MEET OUR TEAM
Dedicated to Innovation and Collaboration
DAPHNE RICKARD
Executive Director
Career and Technical Education
Fort Worth ISD
Grant Lead and Fiscal Agent
NCTX Aerial Robotics Initiative
Daphne Rickard currently serves as Executive Director for Fort Worth ISD. Daphne has been an educator for 18 years, with 14 years of experience at the secondary level and 4 years of experience at the post-secondary level. Throughout her tenure in education, Daphne has worked to build programs that provide real-world learning opportunities for all students.
Daphne serves as the Lead of the NCTX Aerial Robotics Team. She leads the team as a motivated, results-oriented collaborator, who has helped to assure unprecedented growth and success of the initiative.
JACOB LUSK
Career and Technical Education Coordinator
Fort Worth ISD
jacob.lusk@fwisd.org
Jacob Lusk is a Career and Technical Education Coordinator at Fort Worth ISD. In this role he supports CTE programs at all FWISD secondary schools of innovation and leads the district’s CTE STEM and automotive programming. He is excited to support partnering school districts and teachers with the development of robust programs that lead to fulfilling careers and postsecondary pathways.
Prior to joining Fort Worth ISD and returning home to the metroplex, Jacob served as Director of Career & Technical Education at Nacogdoches ISD and served as a CTE teacher. This is his 9th year in public education.
STEPHANIE TENNYSON
Stephanie Tennyson currently serves as a Career and Technical Education Coordinator for Fort Worth ISD. Stephanie has been an educator for 14 years, with 12 years of experience at the secondary level and 2 years of experience at the post-secondary level.
Through various roles, Stephanie has found educators to be a constant source of inspiration, building a strong future workforce and adapting to the dynamic, fast-paced changes of today’s world.
Stephanie is an essential member of the team and has been with NCTX Aerial Robotics Initiative since the very beginning. As an expert in STEM Education, she makes sure that industry-standard equipment, curriculum, and training sessions are provided for all participating school districts. She provides support to assure the highest quality of instruction for students.
CANDY SLOCUM
Candy is Executive Director of North Central Texas “InterLink” Inc., which identifies North Central Texas, employer-driven labor market information for Career and Technical high demand career programs of study. She provides labor market information to align the grant with employer demand.
Serving as Grant Intermediary, Candy helps connect stakeholders to meet their goals and build regional pathways. Candy brings years of experience in quality workforce planning and building business/industry/education partnerships for the benefit of NCTX Aerial Robotics.
DR. LINDA ANDERSON
Educational Consultant
Adjunct Professor
Project Manager
NCTX Aerial Robotics Initiative
Linda's career in education, with both K12 and university experience, has modeled the importance of partnerships between business and education. Since joining NCTX Aerial Robotics Initiative in 2019, Linda has played a role in the ongoing collaboration among K12, Post-Secondary, and Business/Industry/ Workforce Partners. Her passion for the work is evident in the momentum and growth of the initiative over the past three years.
NCTX AERIAL ROBOTICS ADVISORY COMMITTEE
School Districts, Workforce, Post-Secondary, Business/Industry
SCHOOL DISTRICTS
Daphne Rickard
Fort Worth ISD
Executive Director CTE
Lisa Castillo
Fort Worth ISD
Executive Director Choice and Enrichment Programming
David Saenz
Fort Worth ISD
Senior Innovation Officer
Ann Hartlieb
Fort Worth ISD
STEM Partnership Specialist
Jacob Lusk
Fort Worth ISD
Innovation and STEM Coordinator
Stephanie Tennyson
Fort Worth ISD
Coordinator CTE
Mark Slagle
Fort Worth ISD
Instructional Coach
Dr. Stacy Burrell
Fort Worth ISD
Director Grants Compliance and Monitoring
Stephanie Pollard
Fort Worth ISD
Senior Project Development Specialist Grants and Development
Dr. Linda Anderson
Educational Consultant
Project Manager for NCTX Aerial Robotics STEM Initiative
Dr. Suzanne Murr
Azle ISD
CTE Director
Tyler Harrison
Azle ISD
CTE Teacher
Allison Vinson
Birdville ISD
CTE Director
allison.vinson@birdvilleschools.net
Jacob Hildebrand
Birdville ISD
CTE Coordinator
jacob.hildebrand@birdvilleschools.net
Mark McClure
Cleburne ISD
CTE Director
Tim Grijalva
Cleburne ISD
Director of Instructional Technology
Kimberly Wrick
Crowley ISD
CTE/PTECH Coordinator
kimberly.wrick@crowley.k12.tx.us
Annette Duvall
Crowley ISD
CTE Director
annette.duvall@crowley.k12.tx.us
Brian Johnson
Era ISD
Secondary Principal/CTE Director
Dr. Shannon Luis
Era ISD
Superintendent
Courtney Carlton
Era ISD
CTE Teacher
Rick Bracy
Grapevine-Colleyville ISD
CTE Director
Candace McGowan
Grapevine-Colleyville ISD
CTE Coordinator
Dr. Rob Wright
Keller ISD
CTE Director
Keith Killebrew
Keller ISD
CTE Coordinator
Leslee Shepherd
Keller ISD
CCMR Executive Director
Deeann Hampton
Mineral Wells ISD
CTE Director
Brent Tincher
Mineral Wells ISD
Teacher
John Kuhn
Mineral Wells ISD
Superintendent
Melanie Cormack
Strawn ISD
CTE Director
John Eli
Strawn ISD
Teacher
Dewaine Lee
Strawn ISD
Superintendent
Lisa Harrison
ESC Region 11
Administrator Coach
Chelsea Reeves
ESC Region 11
CTE Coach
WORKFORCE
Candy Slocum
North Central Texas InterLink
Executive Director, InterLink and NCTX Aerial Robotics Project Intermediary
Renee Parker
Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County
Industry Services Unit Director
renee.parker@workforcesolutions.net
Ernest Huffman
North Central Texas Council of Governments
Program Manager, Aviation Training and Education
Nicole Johnson
North Central Texas Council of Governments
Danielle Davis
Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas
Partnership Development Coordinator
POST-SECONDARY
Isaac Rivera
Tarrant County College
District Director of Curriculum and Educational Planning
Richard Vela
Tarrant County College
Director of Academic Affairs Educational Partnerships
James Grant
Tarrant County College
Dean of Aviation, Business and Logistics
Trevor Saylors
Tarrant County College
Coordinator of Division of Aviation, Business and Logistics
Dr. Katsuhiko "Kirk" Oda
Tarrant County College
Associate Professor of Geographic Information Systems and Cartography/GIS Coordinator
Dr. Kenneth S. Berry
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Lyle School of Engineering
Southern Methodist University
Research Professor
Associate Director of STEM Programs
Dr. Nandika D'Souza
University of North Texas
Regents Professor Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies
Dr. Kamesh Namuduri
University of North Texas
Professor Electrical Engineering
BUSINESS/INDUSTRY
Tricia Hiros
Bell Textron, Inc.
Project Manager/Focus on Educational Development
Rohn Olson
Bell Textron, Inc.
Senior Tech Fellow
Nathan Wright
Bell Textron, Inc.
Director Product Cyber Security
Sean Saucier
Bell Textron, Inc.
Military and Autonomous Engineer
Mark Robertson
DPR Construction
Senior Field Engineer
Bill Swope, CP
Halff Associates, Inc.
Survey Business Development Manager
NCT9-1-1
Texas Instruments, Inc.
Jason Madison
V3 Consulting Engineers
Electrical Engineer/Project Manager
Desiree Hurst
Yazel Peebles & Associates LLC
Land Surveying and Mapping
dhurst@ypassociates.com desilu44d@netscape.net
Thomas Harris
Hillwood
Executive Vice President