Maria-Elena Diaz has over two decades of public service as an educator and administrator, primarily in higher education. Originally from Hawaii and Guam, she and her husband, Paul, enjoyed exploring and living in different parts of the continental U.S.

She graduated with honors from Brandeis University, where she received her undergraduate education. She earned her first master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma. She earned a second master’s degree and her Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Notre Dame, where she studied social inequalities and social change. Her research examined how beliefs and political behavior are related to social structures. While an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma, she promoted a deeper and broader understanding of social issues.

Dr. Diaz served on the Oklahoma Advisory Board to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, bringing attention to racial inequalities in education and incarceration outcomes. In her free time, she enthusiastically explored the nature of reality and life’s synchronicities, discovering how beliefs and spirituality are related to inner knowing and lived experiences.

Paul died suddenly while she was at a conference, right before the start of a fall semester. During the trauma of losing her beloved life partner, Paul’s love notes from the other side inspired her to move forward in life as much as possible with love, peace, and joy.