Catalina Lara is a trailblazing first-generation Mexican-American who has dedicated her life and career to helping others strengthen their talents. She currently serves as senior manager of minor league education and learning at the Los Angeles Dodgers. She travels often, supporting up-and-coming players across the United States and even internationally at Campo Las Palmas in the Dominican Republic.
A significant part of her player development formula is ensuring that they are treated as individuals and work to harness the power of an education. She manages staff and programming across six locations doing so with a collaborative spirit. In her five years with the Dodgers organization, she has empowered young athletes to confidently perform in the demanding industry of professional baseball.
With a career spanning twenty years in education prior to joining the Dodgers, Lara has made it her mission to craft high-performance educational environments. She created specialized educational plans for students with learning disabilities as a learning support specialist and worked with student athletes. Lara used those experiences to build her professional toolkit, highlighting why individualized care is of paramount importance in a person’s success.
Lara’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion is consistently evident, even beyond her usual duties. She has served as cochair on the Dodgers’ SOMOS LA business resource group for several years. Her leadership contributions include programming support for celebrations at the stadium including Mexican Heritage Night, Salvadoran Heritage Night, Día de Los Dodgers, and Guatemalan Heritage Night. She also works closely with SOMOS LA members to strengthen bonds with nearby Los Angeles communities and empower employees through personal development and other opportunities.
Lara earned her BA in political science, Spanish, and French from Cal State Dominguez Hills. She then became a double-graduate at the University of Southern California when she earned a Master’s in Public Administration, followed by a Doctor of Education (Ed.D) in Educational Leadership with a concentration in Educational Psychology.
She has been married to her husband Javier for twenty-nine years and has two daughters, Juliana and Olivia.