TEAM OF EIGHT SYMPOSIUM

Dr. Cathy Lauer has spent more than 37 years in public education. After retiring in 2021 from Nixon-Smiley CISD, where she served as superintendent for nearly 18 years, Cathy quickly realized that retirement wasn’t quite her style. She returned to the field and is now enjoying her latest role as Lead for Texas Strategic Leadership (TSL) at ESC Region 13, where she partners with districts on strategic planning and supports superintendents through the change management process — a role she describes as “more fun than actual work.” Cathy holds degrees in elementary education, mid-management, and educational leadership, and is an authorized provider of EISO training, along with other state-mandated training for Texas school board members.

Melinda Marquez is a recognized leader in Texas Accountability, specializing in helping districts and campuses navigate the complexities of state and federal accountability systems. As the Director of Accountability, Assessment, and Leadership Systems at ESC Region 13, she works closely with district leaders to analyze data, interpret performance metrics, and implement strategies that drive continuous improvement.

With extensive experience in School Improvement and leadership development, Melinda supports districts in aligning their accountability efforts with sustainable, research-based practices. She is a certified EISO trainer and has a deep understanding of how accountability connects to broader initiatives, including the Effective Schools Framework (ESF), campus turnaround strategies, and leadership capacity building.

Terry Smith has served the education community in the State of Texas for over 35 years. He currently works with school districts on school finance issues related primarily to property tax agreements, school board training, planning, group facilitation and efficiency reviews. Dr. Smith also serves as an elected alderman for the city of Highland Haven, Texas.

Dr. Smith previously spent 20 years working for Texas Education Service Centers. He served as Executive Director for Education Service Centers, Region 13 (ESC-13) in Austin and Region 20 (ESC-20) in San Antonio. As Executive Director, Smith led significant organizational changes at both ESCs. Under his leadership both Centers developed products and services utilized across the state by school districts of all sizes and procured multiple state-wide projects through the Texas Education Agency and the U.S. Department of Education. Additionally, during his tenure, each ESC was recognized as an Outstanding Workplace. Prior to becoming an Executive Director, Smith worked as a Deputy Executive Director for ESC-13, and also held positions as Field Service Agent and Director of Information Systems Support while at ESC-20. During his ESC tenure, Dr. Smith served on multiple boards and commissions. He was also invited on several occasions to provide testimony to the Texas Legislature on issues related to school finance, property taxation and border security.

Dr. Smith gained his public schools experience working in rural schools on the Texas South Plains. He served as Superintendent of Schools for the Southland Independent School District and held administrator positions in Special Education and Career and Technical Education. Dr. Smith began his education career as a High School Agricultural-Science teacher.

Dr. Smith earned bachelor’s degrees in Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Education at Texas Tech University. He also holds a master’s degree in Educational Administration from Texas Tech and an earned Education Doctorate from Texas A&M University.

Bryan was elected to the Thrall ISD Board of Trustees in May of 2011. Since then, he has served two terms as Secretary, two terms as Vice-President, and is currently serving in his sixth term as President. In 2018 Bryan became active with the Central Texas School Board Association and currently serves as their VP – Small Districts. He earned the distinction of Master Trustee when he completed the Leadership TASB program with the Class of 2020. He currently serves on the LTASB Alumni Association Board of Directors, and in September 2024 was elected to the TASB Board of Directors. Over the years he has served on the Region 13 Superintendent of the Year committee 6 times. Bryan is heavily involved in advocacy work on behalf of public education and was named the TASB Advocate of the Year for 2023.

Patricia J. Sulak, M.D. is passionate about improving the lives of everyone she encounters. She and her husband, Jeffrey A. Waxman, MD, are Co-Founders of Living WELL Aware, a holistic wellness educational program. While internationally known for her innovative research on difficult women’s medical issues, her current endeavor is assisting men and women of all ages in elevating their health and happiness.

Dr. Sulak sees first-hand the declining physical, emotional, and social well-being of Americans. The good news: There are doable strategies to dealing with these problems. Dr. Sulak shows the way to reclaiming our health and happiness, using her experience of over 40 years as a physician, educator, researcher, and highest-rated speaker. She is ideally positioned to provide the best in validated wellness information and has the gift of helping audiences comprehend the root causes of common health issues, assisting them in visualizing and achieving their goals, and addressing the key reasons we all struggle in making life-improving changes. Through her keynote presentations, conferences, webinar series, and her book, workbook, and wellness journal, Dr Sulak provides the necessary framework for all of us to have fulfilling lives.

Importantly, Dr. Sulak shares her personal journey. As a busy wife, mother, OBGYN physician, researcher, and international speaker, she was doing amazing work helping others, but not taking care of herself. This took its toll in many areas of her life, including her marriage and emotional well-being. In 2008, Dr. Sulak and Dr. Waxman began their search for proven wellness concepts to elevate the quality of their own lives, acquiring information they had not been taught in medical school. The result: They experienced greater health and happiness, and also became more productive and creative. The next step was sharing these life-changing strategies with others.

Dr. Sulak has delivered her Living WELL Aware messages to businesses, organizations, schools, and communities throughout the country. Now, thousands of middle school students are also benefiting from her unique online adolescent health curriculum Living WELL Aware: My Choices, My Life. Students, parents, and instructors are giving the adolescent program a big thumbs up because of its applicable content, ease of online implementation, and components for adults.

Dr. Sulak’s distinguished career includes numerous honors including Alumnus of the Year at the University of Texas School of Medicine, inclusion in “Best Doctors in America” and “Texas Super Docs,” the TEA “Heroes for Children” award, and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology Community Service Award. And, Dr. Sulak shows no evidence of slowing down! She welcomes opportunities to share her passion of obtaining a life of abundance by Living WELL Aware.