She is currently an adjunct professor in the Pediatrics Department at the University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus.
In 2020, she received the Urie Bronfenbrenner Award for Lifetime Contribution to Developmental Psychology in the Service of Science and Society.
[5] Prior to moving back to Puerto Rico, where she grew up, García Coll was a professor of education, psychology, and pediatrics at Brown University for 30 years.
[1][4] García Coll is a fellow of the American Psychological Association,[5] and served as past president of the Society for the Study of Human Development.
[15] The model differed from other developmental frameworks of the time by centering experiences of social position, racism and segregation and considering their interactions.
[17] She suggested that there is great variance in children's experiences across different ethnicities and levels of income,[18] and loose associations between these factors and a problematic behavioral outcome.