Benjamin Soria immigrated with his family to the state of Kansas from Nogalez, Veracruz Mexico when he was nine years old.

He became superintendent of the Yakima School District in 2000 with over twenty years of successful school administration experience. He served in large urban school districts in three different states, including Santa Ana and San Francisco, California; and Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Tacoma, Washington, where he served as the Tacoma School District deputy superintendent for twelve years.

Mr. Soria also worked in private enterprise for ten years in Oakland, California, as Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer for BCTV, Inc. BCTV was the producer of “Villa Allegre,” a bilingual children’s educational television series very much like Sesame Street but in Spanish and English. The program aired nationally for eight years.

He was the recipient of the Washington Association of School Admistrators, Robert Handy “Most Effective Admistrator Award” for large school districts in the state of Washington in 2002-03.

In November of 2005, Mr. Soria was selected as 2006 Superintendent-of-the-Year by the Washington Association of School Admistrators Association and was one of the four top national finalists for 2006 National Superintendent-of-the-Year.

The Yakima School District is today being recognized nationally as a school district on the move as a result of his leadership.