An atmosphere of celebration and joy, but above all unity and commitment was present during the week of PIQE’s 2023 annual All-Staff Retreat.

Our staff arrived from all over California to San Diego on Tuesday, June 20^th. Some of them by car, some of them by plane. Everyone with the best attitude, disposition and ready to work.

It was a time to collaborate, connect and strengthen our bond. Three very important components in achieving our mission.

We started the week with a message from our CEO and President, Gloria Corral, and an ice breaker to meet new team members and reconnect with old friends.

Maryann Reyes was our keynote speaker. Reyes a proven leader and motivator, and an advocate for higher education spoke about the importance of taking care of the leader in you in order to be able to continue impacting families.

She also noted that even though the pandemic had a negative impact on the educational system, PIQE continued to serve the community without any hesitation, and applauded the fact that in the past couple of years, PIQE has expanded to more regions, schools, and districts. “This is PIQE 2.0”, she said.

During our workshops we learned about our story, our mission, and the opportunities that lie ahead. We also talked about the type of leaders that we are and got helpful hints about time management. We even had a workshop about selfcare and mindfulness.

Every team in the organization had the opportunity to share important information about what they are working on and share ideas on how we can all collaborate to reach our goals. Our teams put together wonderful presentations, among others a modeled lesson of the new PIQE workshop, Family Leadership. Our days ended with dinner and get togethers.

We all came back to the office reenergized and ready to continue empowering and uplifting the voices of our families. It was without a doubt a well spent and productive time.