Session 1: Real People, Real Experiences
Friday, January 21, 2022 | 12:00 - 1:30 PM
Impact Austin's leadership and DEIB Committee have organized a panel of stellar experts and community advocates for this session. Central Texas demographics are changing rapidly.
These shifts are more than just numbers – real lives and communities are affected every day. What are the human stories of critical and urgent needs we all need to hear?
These topics and more will be addressed by the panelists:
What are demographic data for Bastrop, Hays, Travis, and Williamson counties pertaining to socioeconomics, race, and age?
How do issues represented in the data interconnect to affect the teachers, staff, students, and families in Del Valle ISD?
How have community growth, COVID, and industry infiltration affected housing needs and affordability?
How have demographic changes impacted the health of Central Texans and their access to medical care?
How can Impact Austin members and donors support your work to create a more equitable community, despite these daunting numbers?
Moderator:
Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, Austin City Council, District 2
Elected to the Austin City Council on Nov. 3, 2020, Councilwoman Vanessa Fuentes is the second Latina to serve in this role. She brings more than ten years of community, public, private, and nonprofit sector experience.
As the daughter of a Mexican immigrant mother and military veteran father, the councilwoman’s parents instilled in her that education is the great equalizer. She is a first-generation college graduate, having attended the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to office, she worked as an advocacy strategist for the American Heart Association, championing causes such as improved access to healthy food and quality, affordable health care.
Councilwoman Fuentes serves as the vice-chair of the Public Health Committee and vice-chair of the Austin Water Oversight committee. She sits on the Regional Affordability Committee and Community Action Network board of directors. She also serves on the Austin/Travis County Hate Crimes Task Force as an appointee by the Mayor.
Panelists:
Adriana Kohler, Policy Director, Texans Care for Children
As Policy Director for Texans Care for Children, Adriana Kohler collaborates with the rest of the organization’s policy team to support their efforts, coordinates the team’s work across multiple policy areas, and leads organization-wide efforts to shape policy. She also leads the organization’s work on maternal health policy.
Adriana is frequently invited to testify at the Texas Legislature and speak at conferences about maternal health policy, advocacy strategy, children's health, and other subjects. Adriana plays a leading role in a number of coalitions, including the Texas Women's Health Coalition, the Children's Health Coverage Coalition, and Cover Texas Now.
Before joining Texans Care for Children, Adriana worked at a national nonprofit in Washington D.C. where she developed and advanced policy solutions at the state and federal level to address a variety of health finance, public health, and health insurance issues and improve access to preventive care. Adriana also spent several years at a law firm counseling a range of clients on legislative and regulatory issues involving Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) as well as Affordable Care Act implementation. Adriana received her B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania, and her J.D. from the University Of Pennsylvania School Of Law.
Dr. Lloyd Potter, State of Texas Demographer and Director of the Institute for Demographic and Socioeconomic Research at University of Texas-San Antonio
Dr. Lloyd B. Potter was appointed State Demographer in June, 2010. Dr. Potter holds a Ph.D. in Demography and Sociology from The University of Texas at Austin, a Master of Public Health Degree from Emory University, a Master of Science in Education from the University of Houston at Clear Lake, and a Bachelor of Science from Texas A&M University. He is a professor in the Department of Demography at The University of Texas at San Antonio where he also serves as the Director of the Institute for Demographic and Socioeconomic Research (IDSER). He has extensive experience working as an applied demographer in several settings. His current research focuses on public policy and health-related demographic topics and training applied demographers.
Dr. Potter also serves as the director of the Texas Demographic Center housed at The University of Texas at San Antonio. The Texas Demographic Center program produces population estimates and projections for the State of Texas, serves as a data archive for Texas, and offers technical expertise in demographic and socioeconomic research.
Christina Rosales, Board Member, Austin Tenants Council and Housing and Land Justice Director, PowerSwitch Action
2021 Community Partner Austin Tenants Council ensures housing stability by rectifying Fair Housing Act violations and empowering tenants to exercise their rights through mediation, advocacy, and education.
At PowerSwitch Action (previously named For Working Families), Christina Rosales works with affiliates to build and grow housing and land justice campaigns and strategies that advance housing as a human right and promote public land for public good. Christina was Deputy Director of Texas Housers, a statewide housing justice advocacy group that supports community leaders to become effective housing advocates and hold public officials accountable to invest in community-centered housing solutions. She supervised teams of staff focused on pandemic recovery, legislative advocacy for tenant protections, San Antonio tenant rights, equitable development, and communications and messaging. Christina was previously a newspaper reporter in Dallas. She holds a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Chicago and a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism from Northwestern University.
Dr. Annette Tielle, Superintendent, Del Valle ISD
Annette Tielle, Ed.D. is the Superintendent of Del Valle ISD. As an educator with 30 years of experience, she previously served as the Deputy Superintendent of Del Valle ISD, and formerly, as the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum in Comal ISD and Pflugerville ISD, respectively. She also worked with Manor ISD and Round Rock ISD. Dr. Tielle holds a doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin in the Cooperative Superintendency Program. She also is a graduate of Bloomsburg University, and she received her Master's degree from East Stroudsburg University before pursuing her doctorate. Her passion is to encourage each student’s confidence and belief system, so that they know that any goal is possible.
