Adrian San Miguel

38 •Director of postsecondary education •

Idaho Career & Technical Education • Boise

As the director of postsecondary education for Idaho Career & Technical Education (ICTE), Adrian San Miguel creates and oversees programs that help students and their parents understand the breadth of options available for nontraditional training and education. Additionally, he is the Idaho representative for the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, a governor-appointed member of the Idaho Commission on the Arts, and serves on various organizations dedicated to technical education.

San Miguel was drawn to this career because it allowed him to help others in their own educational journeys, to connect, and to be an advocate. San Miguel grew up in southern Texas, and that gave him a unique perspective on the need to provide access and inclusion to people of diverse backgrounds.

“He is someone who is already doing extraordinary things to improve the lives of students in Idaho and the broader country, and I am confident that he will be a great leader in educational equity for Idaho,” writes Ben Williams, CEO of National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE), in a letter of recommendation.

San Miguel cites his parents as a primary influence. His father worked multiple jobs to help put San Miguel’s mother through college, and both his parents did their best to pay for good educations for their children. His father’s career involved welding, railroad construction and landscaping and eventually led to starting a railroad construction company. His father’s example influenced San Miguel’s eventual work at ICTE.

“I’ve seen the power of what career and technical education can do, based on my family and providing opportunities for employment and work,” San Miguel says.

While earning a master’s degree in music from Baylor University, San Miguel mentored other students and became interested in helping them explore their opportunities. After graduating, he moved to Boise to work at the admissions office of Boise State University.

Shortly after the College of Western Idaho was formed and students were being transitioned from Boise State’s technical college, San Miguel reached out to Vera McCrink, the technical college’s dean, and offered to help. He then transitioned to CWI with McCrink. In 2014, McCrink, who had moved to ICTE, reached out and recommended he apply for a position there.

Looking ahead to the next 20 years, San Miguel hopes to continue working in education and advocating for inclusion and diversity. He does not rule out the possibility of returning fully to academia or working with a national organization. For now, his future is working on career and technical education in Idaho, and he hopes to continue to expand ICTE’s programs and reach for new opportunities to work with people.

“You never know how those opportunities will provide you with new ones down the road,” San Miguel says. “I guess that’s been my approach in what I’ve done in the last 20 years and how I’ll continue to embrace opportunities as they come in the future.”