Did you know ATPE has seven dedicated regional representatives who work for our members in their local communities across the state of Texas? These representatives live and work in various locations across the state and are ready to serve you and help you meet your region’s goals.

Regions 1 and 2

Roger Gutierrez, ATPE’s South Texas representative, was an educator in Weslaco for 18 years before coming to work for ATPE. He has a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Texas–Pan American. Roger joined ATPE in 1996 and has served in various volunteer roles at the local, region, and state level. During Roger’s spare time, you will likely find him barbequing and spending time with his family, enjoying Avengers cartoons with his son, or taking in some Sunday football.

Read Roger Gutierrez’s blog post. Contact Roger at rgutierrez@atpe.org.

Regions 3 and 4

Cynthia Villalovos is ATPE’s representative for the Houston area. Cynthia started her ATPE career in 1995 as one of the founding officers of McMurry University ATPE, and her education career in Wylie ISD in Abilene in 1996. She received her master's degree in school administration from Sul Ross State University in 2003; soon after, she moved to Houston and held a position at Chavez High School. In 2005, Cynthia became the principal at the Health Academy at Lee High School, and in 2006, she became the principal of the Health Academy at Waltrip High School. Throughout that time, Cynthia held various offices within ATPE, including serving as the Houston ATPE president during 2012-13 and the ATPE Region 4 secretary in 2013. Cynthia is also the proud mom of one daughter, who may very well be a future volunteer leader within ATPE.

Read Cynthia Villalovos’s blog post. Contact Cynthia at cvillalovos@atpe.org.

Regions 5-7 and 12

Ginger Franks, from East Texas, is one of ATPE’s newest regional representatives. Before becoming an ATPE regional representative, Ginger was a special education teacher for 34 years in Martinsville and Woden and has been an ATPE member for 30 years. She even served as the 2013-14 state president of ATPE. Ginger and her husband Carl are proud grandparents of two grandbabies, and spend as much time with their families as they can. Carl Franks has been in education for 25 years and Ginger’s two sisters have both worked in education for many years. Ginger has truly dedicated herself to public education through the years and continues to do so now with ATPE.

Read Ginger Franks’s blog post. Contact Ginger at gfranks@atpe.org.

Regions 8 and 10

Kaki Spronz became the Dallas area representative early in 2016. Before becoming an ATPE regional rep, Kaki taught high school Spanish, regular and pre-AP, for four years. She was also the Denton local unit university liaison. While teaching, Kaki earned a professional development grant to study advanced grammar and participate in workshops at Academia Buenos Aires. In her spare time, Kaki coaches CrossFit. Kaki completed undergraduate studies at Hardin-Simmons University and earned a master’s in foreign language education from the University of Texas at Austin.

Read Kaki Spronz’s blog post. Contact Kaki at kspronz@atpe.org.

Regions 9 and 11

Diane Pokluda, ATPE’s representative for the North Texas/Fort Worth area, was a classroom teacher for 34 years before moving into her current position. During her career in education, Diane served in several ATPE leadership positions from the local to the regional level; she considers her time as Region 11 ATPE director to be one of the most rewarding experiences of her career. During her spare time, Diane enjoys traveling with her husband, Steve, who is also a dedicated ATPE member. They are also devoted Texas Rangers fans.

Read Diane Pokluda’s blog post. Contact Diane at dpokluda@atpe.org.

Regions 13 and 20

Heather Tuley is ATPE’s representative for Central Texas (the Austin and San Antonio area). Heather has a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Texas A&M University (1998) and a master’s degree in education leadership with principal’s certification from Texas State University (2010). Heather taught elementary school for 12 years and also served as an ATPE ambassador in Lake Travis ISD. When she’s not working, Heather can be found boating or enjoying other outdoor activities in the Hill Country. Heather and her husband have one energetic little boy, Ryder, born in February 2015.

Read Heather Tuley’s blog post. Contact Heather at htuley@atpe.org.

Regions 14-19

Chana Jones serves ATPE members in West Texas. Before joining ATPE as a regional representative, Chana was a public school teacher for nine years and an ATPE member for 12 years. She comes from a family of educators and is passionate about Texas public education. Chana is a graduate of Angelo State University, holds a bachelor’s of science degree in interdisciplinary studies, and has a master’s of education degree in reading. She also holds several teaching certificates and understands the challenges and rewards of working in a public school. Chana and her husband, Casey, reside in the Snyder area.

Read Chana Jones’s blog post. Contact Chana at cjones@atpe.org.

Photo, from left to right: Kaki Spronz, Diane Pokluda, Cynthia Villalovos, Chana Jones, Heather Tuley, Roger Gutierrez, and Ginger Franks

To find your region, enter your ISD name into the search bar beneath the Texas map on ATPE’s home page.

Not a member of ATPE? Join today to become part of Texas’s largest educators’ association.