Manager

Communication Services

Dallas ISD 

Managed the successful creation and implementation of the district’s multi-language custom mobile app to improve outreach to parents, staff and the community. For the inaugural State of the District event, successfully led $125,000 fundraising effort—including design of benefits levels, production of print and electronic collateral materials and coordination of fundraising team—and managed reservation and seating logistics for more than 720 luncheon guests. Continue to manage the district’s SchoolMessenger program for departments and 221 schools, including coordinating users and callouts in several languages, providing multi-tier training and troubleshooting. Work on the district’s internal communications efforts includes managing internal email campaigns, effectively communicating internal programs and developing strategies to better engage employees. Work on external communications includes participating in the successful redesign of the district’s website, coordinating community meetings, designing marketing materials and communications plans, producing speeches for the superintendent and writing bilingual monthly trustee columns. Parent engagement efforts include producing creative collateral materials to market available resources and events to families through the Office of Family and Community Engagement and leading and participating in diverse RFP efforts for parent engagement programs.

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Manager

Office of Family and Community Engagement

Dallas ISD 

 

Manage three full-time employees, a $500,000+ budget, several districtwide programs and all marketing and communications in several languages to the families of 156,000+ students from the Office of Family and Community Engagement. Worked with community organizations, government agencies and foundations to provide resources and information to families. Produce presentations for parent education and parent engagement for use by departments and schools. Write, translate edit and design award-winning monthly, bilingual electronic newsletter emailed to 19,000 parents. Produce resource fairs for parents that have grown to a total yearly attendance of 14,000. Design and maintain the department’s Web site and the Parents/Students pages. 

 

 

Coordinator

Communications • Dallas ISD 

 

Created and implemented a branding campaign as well as internal and external communications plans and materials to garner internal and community support for the adoption of the Teacher Excellence Initiative as the new teacher evaluation system for Dallas. Coordinated development of strategic plans and executed marketing/branding campaigns to promote the district and specific programs. Designed and delivered seminars and handouts on communications strategies, newsletter writing, design and production. Produced internal and external publications, including award-winning, bilingual newsletters and magazines distributed to almost 90,000 parents and the community. Wrote bilingual scripts for district programs and special media presentations, responded to media requests, and functioned as on-air personality/spokesperson for district and parent engagement topics in English and Spanish. Wrote speeches, letters, editorials and other tools for superintendent, trustees and top administrators to communicate initiatives, strategies and goals.

 

 

Staff writer

La Fuente • The Dallas Morning News

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Reported, wrote and edited stories for and about Hispanics for the 108,000-circulation bilingual weekly published by The Dallas Morning News. Created and produced special sections throughout the year and met readership demand for more news stories by establishing a working relationship with the newsroom and the Mexico City Bureau to obtain original news features and photos. Art directed and designed photo shoots for cover stories and worked with the designer on the layout while fostering a team atmosphere in the creative process.

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Reporter 

Diario de Juarez and El Paso Herald-Post 

 

In Cd. Juarez: Covered El Paso for an 80,000-circulation, Spanish-language daily by reporting mostly in English and writing in Spanish. Developed excellent time management and organizational skills required to cover a broad array of issues and a large territory while producing daily pieces for the newspaper. In El Paso: produced breaking stories on the police and government beats. Initiated a new trend in covering El Paso city budget hearings by writing stories that showed how the proposed budget changes would directly affect residents.

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