My name is Antonio Hernandez, Jr. but please call me Tony. I was born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. My parents moved to the area from Puerto Rico and actually met at the annual Puerto Rican Cultural Festival and Parade in 1970. With that said, culturally, I consider myself lancoriqueño. ( My own made up word blending my Lancaster experience and Puerto Rican experience). My parents Elia Pabòn and Antonio Hernàndez exchanged vows on August 18, 1973. I was born on December 9, 1974 as the first of three sons.  Since my parents only completed an elementary level of education, they both instilled in my brothers and me the importance of having a better life through pursuing higher education.

I was the first in my family to graduate from J. P. McCaskey High School in 1992. I gained early admissions to Millersville University as an Elementary Education major. Two years into the Elementary Education program, I decided to dual major in Elementary Education and Early Childhood with a concentration in Urban Education. I graduated in 1996 with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Elementary and Early childhood Education. I gained employment as the first male Kindergarten teacher in the School District of Lancaster and worked for the district for eleven years. For the last eight years, I have been working as a Lower School Faculty member at Lancaster Country Day School teaching Kindergarten, Pre-Kindergarten and Second Grade.  I obtained a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Human Development from George Washington University in 2012.

Besides teaching, I also have a passion in the area of professional facilitation. Two years ago, I attended training at the National School Reform Faculty in Bloomington, Indiana to become a trained Critical Friends Group (CFG) Facilitator. CFG facilitation is a method utilized in which a small group of educators gather together to reflect on their work and teacher practice to improve student learning. For the last ten years, I have also taken continued professional development in the Responsive Classroom Approach.

Besides being an educator, looking at community engagement through the lenses of equity and social justice is another area I am passionate about. More specifically how equity and social justice are addressed at the governance level on boards right here in the heart of Lancaster County. I serve as Co-chair for the Resurrection Catholic School Board in Lancaster city. I am a grant reviewer for the Lancaster County Community Foundation. I am a Commissioner for Millersville University President’s Commission for Cultural Diversity and Inclusion. I am a Leadership Facilitator for the Latino Empowerment Project. I am a board member for the Girl Scouts in the Heart of Pennsylvania. And also a board member for Leadership Lancaster.

On a personal note, my wife Linda and I have been married for twelve years. Linda is an Art teacher in the School District of Lancaster. We have two daughters. Elena is twelve years old and is in sixth grade at Resurrection Catholic School (RCS). Sara is eight years old and is in second grade at RCS. We also have a foster son named Josh. We adopted him at the age of 16. Josh completed a five year enlistment in the Marines. He has returned home and is currently taking courses at Harrisburg Community College (HACC) and Millersville Universty. We have also hosted foreign exchange students from Egypt, Morocco, and Israel. When I have downtime, I enjoy an eclectic group of hobbies. I like to watch documentaries. I try to attend Zumba classes. I am an avid reader too.