Erika Estrada

Founder and CEO

My name is Erika Estrada, a scientist, an immigrant, a first-generation college student, and a product of the California community college system. Currently, I am a Ph.D. Candidate in the Food Science Graduate Group at UC Davis and the founder and CEO of The MANO Project.

My academic journey has not been easy, but I have been fortunate to have found mentors who have guided me throughout my college and professional career – without them, I would not be the person, the professional, and the scientist I am today. Now it is my time to pay it forward and aid the younger generation achieve their academic goals.

I believe that every undergraduate, especially those attending community college, deserves the opportunity to broaden their horizons and discover the endless possibilities that graduate education can offer and that is why I created The MANO Project.

MANO's story is our founder's story

From a farm worker to a PhD and a CEO

MANO's founder and CEO, Erika M. Estrada, was born and raised in Tangancicuaro, Michoacan. In 2010, at the age of 17, she moved to the United States with the goal of pursuing a higher education. Over the past decade, her journey has taken her from the California Central Valley, where she worked as a grape picker, to the pursuit of a PhD at one of top food science institution in the country. Along the way, she has experienced both accomplishments and failures, but these experiences only served to find her purpose to empower and lead the younger generation to strive for the unreachable.

Increase diversity in academia; Accessible resources and mentorship

As Erika progressed through academia, from community college to graduate school, she noticed the underrepresentation of students from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. While she was fortunate to have access to mentors and resources that helped her navigate academia and exposed her to graduate school, she realized that many of my classmates did not. Often, these resources were part of extracurricular programs that were exclusive, limited and difficult to find or become affiliated with.

Over the past 10 years, Erika realized that she could and wanted to bring those resources to everyone - her mission was to bridge that gap.

Lending a helping MANO (hand)

Erika's passion for education, mentoring, and philanthropy inspired her to found The MANO Project, an initiative that provides resources and support to undergraduate students, particularly those attending community college students, to get exposure to higher education including graduate school therefore allowing students to make an educated decision about their academic careers.

At MANO, we believe that all undergraduate students, especially those attending community colleges, deserve the opportunity to broaden their horizons and discover the endless possibilities that graduate education can offer. All MANO resources are designed to expose students to such opportunities and motivate them achieve their academic goals.

By empowering students to pursue higher education and providing them with the necessary tools for academic success we allow them to be the driving force for innovation and progress. We aim to make a positive impact in the lives of all students, especially of those from underrepresented backgrounds and their communities.