About me

A man wearing a backwards baseball hat, smiling

My name is Mateo; I live with my fiancee Nichole, our teenager Reese, Zuko the dog, and our cats, Iroh and Calcifer, in the Capital Region of NY. I'm finishing up a Bachelor's degree in Human Development at UAlbany, and I'm a member of the Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Teaching Collective.

I have many years of childcare experience, from infant home care, to toddler classrooms, to special education preschool.

As a proud member of the BIPOC Doula Network, I'm passionate about improving health outcomes for marginalized birthing people. My advocacy experience in hospitals has given me the skills to navigate systems that aren't always built for who they serve. I'm also a neurodiverse affirming direct support professional, so I'm passionate about helping disabled folks navigate those systems, too.  I'm currently working on the requirements to bill Medicaid so I can provide doula services to low income parents. I established the Ally Fund to fill in gaps in coverage for those that need doula services but can't afford them. Iā€™m comfortable working in hospital settings, birth centers, and at home births, as well as with other birth workers.

I am the Vice President of the UAlbany Disabled Students Union, work with Mask Together Capital Region, and am active with the Black Abolitionist Directive, among other activist organizations. As a member of the WGSS Teaching Collective I will be co-facilitating an Introduction to Feminisms course in the Spring of 2025 at UAlbany.

I and my family are Covid cautious, which means we always mask indoors in public, as well as outdoors in crowded places (using KN95's or better). We test before sharing air indoors with people that don't mask (using our trusty Pluslife Mini Dock PCR device!), clean the air when we can, and usually only dine outdoors if we're out to eat (if the space isn't too crowded). I am more than willing to test before meeting; my only expectation from clients is that they let me know if they or someone in their household isn't feeling well (depending on the situation this may just mean that I take further precautions while meeting).

Whether you want help researching your ancestors' traditional birth practices, an advocate during birth, help transitioning into life with a newborn, or help finding your way on your gender journey, I'm here for you.