ABOUT

Carol Obando-Derstiine

Democrat for Congress

Carol is an engineer, advocate, educator, and bilingual leader in PA-07 dedicated to serving her community. Carol was only 3 years old when her family immigrated from Colombia, and while it was a transition full of financial hardship, language barriers, and sacrifices, her family found the better life they were looking for in the U.S. Her mother was a factory machine operator, and her father was a hospital technician. Learning from her parents’ work ethic, Carol took multiple jobs in high school to contribute and volunteered as a candy striper. Despite her busy schedule, she graduated near the top of her class.

A LEADER DEDICATED TO PA-07

After receiving her master’s from Penn State, Carol went on to build a career dedicated to helping people help themselves. She worked in a Head Start program, oversaw a food pantry, and an after-school program. She became the executive director of two prominent nonprofits: SkillsUSA Council and the Children’s Coalition of the Lehigh Valley. At SkillsUSA Council, a nonprofit organization that works with five area career and technical schools, she helped thousands of students launch their careers with the training they received. As the first full-time executive director of the Children’s Coalition of the Lehigh Valley, she trained hundreds of new child advocates and mobilized residents to champion children’s issues and policies. 



After 15 years in the nonprofit sector, U.S. Senator Casey selected Carol to serve as his Regional Manager in Lehigh, Northampton, and Carbon counties, as well as his Statewide Latino Affairs Advisor. During her tenure, she connected with thousands of constituents and put them in touch with the services they needed. Impressed with Carol’s results and community engagement, Pennsylvania Governor Wolf asked her to join his Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs, where she represented the Lehigh Valley on the commission. She also volunteered with the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce and Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA, a tech incubator. Moreover, she taught a career exploration class at Northampton Community College.

Carol has nearly a decade of experience in the private sector, working on energy issues at PPL Electric Utilities. During her time there, she earned her second master’s degree in energy systems engineering from Lehigh University. She has helped people and companies lower their utility bills, allowing them to keep more money in their pockets. She also contributed to the region’s economic development by connecting companies to the electric grid, many of which were renewable energy companies.

She and her husband Chad settled in the Lehigh Valley more than 20 years ago and are raising their two children here.