COMING SPRING OF 2027
In My Heart's Dreams
Wildest
ABOUT THE BOOK
This memoir chronicles the author’s journey through the intricate bicultural landscape of American and Mexican societies as a first-generation immigrant. Using humorous reflections, cultural insights, and personal stories, the narrative centers on education as a vital anchor of resilience for overcoming systemic barriers in pursuit of personal and professional aspirations.
It offers a research-based framework that extends beyond the immigrant child’s experience of navigating between two worlds and cultures, presenting strategies to enhance the support for bicultural multilingual learners in educational settings.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Clara M. Guerrero is an educator, author, advocate, and the Founder and CEO of With Heart and Leadership, Inc. With more than 26 years of experience in education, she has served as a bilingual and Structured English Immersion teacher, literacy coach, college professor, special education director, new-teacher mentor, and elementary school administrator leading schools with Dual Language Immersion programs.
Born in San Gabriel, Jalisco, Mexico, Clara immigrated to California with her parents at the age of one. As a first-generation Mexican American who once navigated life as a child who grew up between two languages, two cultures, and two educational systems. Her experiences with poverty, immigration, identity, discrimination, and belonging shaped both her personal journey and her lifelong commitment to children whose stories, strengths, and dreams are too often overlooked.
In In My Heart's Wildest Dreams, Clara writes with vulnerability and hope about the experiences that shaped her—from a child searching for where she belonged to an educational leader committed to changing the systems that once tried to define her. Her story invites educators, families, and communities to look beyond labels, listen more deeply, and recognize the possibilities carried within every child.
Clara earned her doctorate and master's degree in Educational Leadership, along with her Administrative Services Credential, from California Lutheran University. She holds a bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies, a minor in English as a Second Language, and a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from California State University, Northridge.
Clara lives in Southern California with her family. She is a wife, mother of four, proud grandmother of two, and devoted companion to Minnie, her affectionate Maltipoo. When she is not writing, teaching, or supporting school and educational leaders, she enjoys cooking, baking, crocheting, making rosaries, and creating meaningful memories with the people she loves.