Today we’d like to introduce you to ELIZABETH “Lisa” RETAMOZO.
Hi ELIZABETH “Lisa”, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My professional journey has always been rooted in a belief that education can transform lives, especially for students who may not have traditionally had access to the same opportunities or support systems.
As the daughter of immigrants from Peru and a first-generation college graduate, I understand how powerful it can be when someone helps you see possibilities you may not yet see for yourself. When I began attending the University of Texas at Austin, there were times when I honestly was not sure I would even make it to graduation. College felt overwhelming, and I did not have a roadmap for navigating it. But I persevered, earned my degree from UT, and later completed my MBA from Texas Woman’s University.
That experience shaped the direction of my career. More than thirty years ago, I began working directly with federally funded college access and student success programs, including TRIO programs designed to support low-income, first-generation students, and students with disabilities. I held leadership roles in campus and community-based programs, including developing and directing initiatives at universities and nonprofit organizations. Those years gave me a close view of both the promise of these programs and the very real challenges institutions face in securing resources, building strong systems, and sustaining meaningful services for students.
In 2003, I founded NOSOTROS Education Center, or NEC, with the vision of helping educational institutions and agencies build their capacity through grant development, strategic planning, professional development, program evaluation, and ongoing technical assistance. What began as a small consulting practice has grown into a national organization serving colleges, universities, school districts, and nonprofit organizations across the country.
NEC has now helped clients secure more than $792 million in grant funding and has maintained a proposal success rate of more than 90 percent. Yet the numbers matter most because of what they represent: stronger programs, increased access to education, and life-changing opportunities for students and families.
One of the most meaningful full-circle moments of my career has been being named to the University of Texas Longhorn 100 list in both 2023 and 2026. The recognition honors the fastest-growing businesses led by Longhorn alumni worldwide. To think back to the young woman at UT who was unsure she would even graduate, and then to be recognized years later as the Founder and CEO of a growing national business, is humbling and deeply meaningful.
Looking back, I never imagined my career would take me from working directly with students to leading an organization that supports institutions and agencies nationwide. The journey has included hard work, setbacks, faith, family support, and many lessons along the way. What has remained constant is my commitment to helping create pathways to success for students who may need someone to open a door, explain the process, and remind them that they belong there.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No, it was definitely not a smooth road. In fact, the period that ultimately led to the creation of NOSOTROS Education Center was one of the most difficult and uncertain times of my life.
In 2003 and 2004, I went through several life-changing events at once. I was divorced and raising my son, Andy, as a single mother. Andy has severe autism, and I made the difficult decision to leave Fort Worth, where I had spent 11 years building a career and programs that I truly loved, so that he could attend a private school in North Dallas designed for children with autism.
Leaving was heartbreaking. I had helped build several pre-college and career programs from the ground up, and I honestly believed I would stay there forever. I loved the work, the students, and the people. But as a parent, I knew I had to make the decision that gave Andy the best opportunity to thrive.
So I moved to North Dallas without a job, without a clear professional plan, and with very little financial cushion beyond what I could access from a small amount of retirement savings. At the same time, I had an unexpected hysterectomy and began graduate school. I had no idea what kind of work I would find in a new city or whether there would even be opportunities similar to the work I had built my career around. I was scared to death.
My parents stepped in in a way I will never be able to fully repay. We moved to Allen together, bought a house together, and they helped me care for Andy while I navigated graduate school, recovery, parenting, and the uncertainty of starting over professionally. We are still living together all these years later, and I truly could not have made it without them.
Looking back, I sometimes wonder how I survived all of it. But these struggles forced me to discover strengths I did not know I had. It taught me resilience, humility, resourcefulness, and the importance of family support.
More importantly, it forced me to create my own job. There were no obvious opportunities in North Dallas that matched the work I had loved and built in Fort Worth, so rather than wait for the right position to appear, I began creating a consulting business around the experience, skills, and passion I already had. That decision became the beginning of NOSOTROS Education Center.
Had I remained in Fort Worth, where I was happy and had planned to stay, NEC likely would never have been established. What felt at the time like a frightening loss of stability ultimately became the catalyst for building something larger than I could have imagined. Today, NEC supports agencies and institutions with student success programs across the country, but it began during one of the most uncertain and difficult periods of my life. I can now see that time shaped both the person and the business leader I became.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
NOSOTROS Education Center, or NEC, is a national education consulting firm I founded in 2003 to help colleges, universities, school districts, nonprofit organizations, and community-based agencies strengthen the programs that serve students and families.
Our work is centered on educational access, student success, workforce development, and institutional capacity building. We are especially well known for supporting federally funded programs, including TRIO, GEAR UP, Title III, Title V, CCAMPIS, and other initiatives designed to help low-income, first-generation college students, students with disabilities, adult learners, and other historically underserved populations access education and complete their goals.
NEC provides a wide range of services, including grant proposal development and technical reviews, strategic planning, program evaluations, compliance and performance reporting support, professional development, policy and procedure development, and individualized technical assistance. We help clients not only compete for funding but also build strong, sustainable programs after receiving an award.
What sets us apart is that our work is grounded in real, hands-on experience. Before founding NEC, I spent more than 20 years working directly in college access and student success programs. I have been in the position of trying to serve students with limited resources, preparing a grant proposal under pressure, responding to a federal monitoring request, training staff, managing reporting requirements, and figuring out how to strengthen a program with the resources available. Our clients are not getting generic advice from people who have only studied these programs from a distance. They are working with a team that understands the work from the inside out.
The name NOSOTROS means “we” in Spanish, which reflects how we approach every client relationship. We see ourselves as an extension of our clients’ teams. We do not believe in one-size-fits-all solutions, because every institution, community, program, and student population is different. Our goal is to listen carefully, understand what each client needs, and provide practical, high-quality guidance that helps them move forward with confidence.
Over the years, NEC has helped clients secure more than $792 million in grant funding and has maintained a proposal success rate exceeding 90 percent. I am proud of those results, but I am even more proud of the trust clients place in us. Many of the organizations we serve return to us year after year because they know we care about the quality of their work, the success of their programs, and most importantly, the students and families they serve.
At its heart, NEC exists because I believe education can change the course of a person’s life. Our work may involve grants, compliance, training, and strategic planning, but the purpose behind all of it is simple: helping institutions create stronger pathways for students to succeed.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was competitive, independent, and probably a little more responsible than most kids my age. I was born just outside San Francisco and am the oldest of four sisters. Because both of my parents worked full-time to make ends meet, I took on a leadership role early. There were no cell phones, tracking apps, or Ring cameras back then, so being the oldest often meant helping keep an eye on my sisters, following the rules, and making sure everyone was where they were supposed to be until my parents got home. It was a lot of responsibility at a young age, but I believe it helped shape the leadership, accountability, and protectiveness I still carry with me today.
My father worked for American Airlines, and his career gave our family the opportunity to travel often. That exposure made me curious about the world and gave me a love of travel that has stayed with me throughout my life. I was fortunate to see and experience things beyond my immediate surroundings, and it taught me early on that there was a big world beyond where I started.
Academically, I was much stronger in some subjects than others. Math was a real struggle for me, but I loved reading, English, and composition. I consistently earned A’s in those classes, and writing became the area where I felt most confident. Looking back, I believe that strength helped carry me through school and college, especially during times when other subjects felt much more difficult. It also turned out to be one of the skills that shaped my career, although I certainly did not know that at the time.
Before moving to Texas in the middle of high school, I played just about every sport available. Once we moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, I had to choose one sport to focus on, and I chose tennis because I had been playing since I was about ten years old. I played competitively in high school and for a few semesters in college before transferring to The University of Texas at Austin.
Sports have always been important to me because they taught me discipline, teamwork, perseverance, and how to compete without falling apart when things do not go your way. I stepped away from tennis for many years, picked it back up in 2012, and competed at USTA Nationals in 2013 and 2014. In 2017, I transitioned to pickleball, which has become another real passion of mine. I have played on several competitive teams and still play whenever I can.
Looking back, I think I was always someone who liked people, enjoyed playing sports, took responsibility seriously, and believed that hard work could get you somewhere. I did not know exactly what my future would look like, but I had a strong sense that I wanted to do something meaningful and make the people I loved proud.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nosotrosedu.org/
- Instagram: @nectrio
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Nosotrosedu
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-retamozo-014542281
- Twitter: @NosotrosEdu
- Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/@NOSOTROSEducationCenter
