Fifth Annual LBJ CHASP Student-Alumni Networking Reception

All LBJ alumni and current SHEP/CHASP affiliated students are invited to CHASP’s fifth annual student-alumni reception on the evening of Thursday, March 24th on first floor lobby of the LBJ School of Public Affairs.

Come chat with fellow LBJers, CHASP faculty, get insights from our great alum panel, and enjoy some refreshment!

Our special alumni panel (full bios below) represents a variety of fields and will speak about their experiences since their days at LBJ:

• Sarah Abrahams, Deputy Assistant Commissioner, DFPS Prevention and Early Intervention
• Mandy DeMayo, Executive Director, HousingWorks Austin
• Priscilla Aquino Garza, Deputy Director-Policy, Educate Texas
• Michelle Harper, Associate Commissioner, HHSC Community Access and Services
• Miguel Liscano, Director, Texas House of Representatives Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence

Registration is required. Free parking is available during the event in the LBJ Library (next to the LBJ School) lot.

Keep connected with social policy at LBJ: CHASP email list, LBJers in Social Policy LinkedIn Group.

Please contact chasp@austin.utexas.edu with questions.

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ALUMNI PANEL:

Sarah Abrahams serves as the Deputy Assistant Commissioner for the Prevention and Early Intervention Division at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. She joins PEI after 2 years at HHSC as the Director of the Office of Health Coordination and Consumer Services where she oversaw the Texas Home Visiting and Early Childhood programs along with cross-systems programs and policy coordination efforts with a focus on children and families. Before joining HHSC, Sarah worked as a Systems Improvement Analyst with Casey Family Programs and has 15 years of nonprofit project management and program development experience, including as the Program Development Director for a statewide parent education and support agency. Sarah holds an Masters in Public Affairs from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas.

Mandy De Mayo is Executive Director of HousingWorks, a nonprofit research, education, and advocacy organization that is dedicated to increasing affordable housing in Austin. De Mayo holds a Masters Degree in Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin and has more than 20 years of experience in the areas of affordable housing and community development. De Mayo is the author of a variety of policy papers, including Building and Retaining an Affordable Austin, Affordable Housing in the City of Austin’s Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Districts, Preserving Affordable Housing in Austin – A Platform for Action, and The Affordable Housing Incentives Task Force Report.

Priscilla Aquino Garza is the Deputy Director of Policy at Educate Texas. She is responsible for statewide policy and advocacy work related to K-12 education in Texas. She began her education work as a middle school teacher in Boston, the South Bronx, and Austin. She served as the Director of Educator and Student Policy Initiatives at the Texas Education Agency where she was responsible for improving educator quality and effectiveness and developing more effective educator recruitment and retention strategies. Prior to Educate Texas, she was the Deputy Director for Stand for Children Texas where she oversaw organizing, advocacy and statewide education policy. Ms. Aquino Garza earned her bachelor's degree in Sociology from Harvard University, a certificate in Latin American Studies, and her teaching certificate from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She received her master's in public affairs from the LBJ School for Public Affairs at the University of Texas.

Michelle Harper is the Associate Commissioner for Community Access and Services (CAS) within the Office of Social Services at the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC). CAS connects Texans to local resources and services through partnerships with faith- and community-based organizations. Michelle has worked at the Health and Human Services Commission for 10 years. Prior to her current role, Michelle was the Deputy Director of Medicaid/CHIP Policy where she directed the analysis and development of program and benefits policy for Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program, and the Texas Women's Health Program. Michelle has also served as a HHSC Government Relations Specialist and Policy Advisor to the former Deputy Executive Commissioner for the Office of Health Services. Prior to joining HHSC, Michelle worked at the Kaiser Permanente Health Plan analyzing legislation for the Health Plan and Hospitals and leading implementation projects for the Health Plan. Michelle has a bachelor's degree from the Pennsylvania State University and a Master of Public Affairs from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.

A native of South Texas, Miguel Liscano earned a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin in 2002. After working as a journalist for a decade, mostly as a metro reporter for the Austin American-Statesman, he earned a Master of Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs in 2014. Miguel now directs the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, where he advises committee chairman State Rep. Abel Herrero on proposed legislation and guides research on criminal justice issues.