Running on line A-11, a visually impaired woman from the Ironbound wants a seat on the Newark Board of Education in the April 16th election.

A native of Ecuador who came to Newark after suffering medical complications as a consequence of being born premature, Priscilla Garces went through the Newark Schools System  and graduated with honors from Seton Hall University with a bachelor’s degree in diplomacy and international relations. Employed by the NJ Immigrants Alliance, she holds a Master’s Degree in nonprofit leadership from Fordham University and a translator certification from New York University.

“My platform,” Garces said, “is ’empathy, direction, and unity.’ My particular interest is to be an advocate for the children so they can have a better educational system. All people should have greater access to a more empathetic education.”

Garces is running for a seat as an independent, one of 11 candidates seeking three seats in next week’s election. “As a visually impaired person, I can relate education to a different perspective,” the candidate told InsiderNJ.