16 Education Association CEOs and Leaders in Texas

Association leaders shape the systems that help educators do good work. They support members, influence policy, create useful learning and keep professional communities connected. In 2026, this list brings together 16 current CEOs and executive leaders from education associations in Texas, spanning school governance, administration, specialist practice, early childhood, technology, arts and school operations. It is a curated list, not a ranking, and it reflects the range of work that keeps education communities strong.

Why association leadership matters

An association CEO or executive director works at the point where member needs, public purpose and organisational reality meet. The strongest leaders make it easier for professionals to learn, advocate and serve students well. Looking across different education bodies also shows how varied the work is, from school boards and superintendents to speech-language professionals, school nutrition and music educators.

1. Dan Troxell

Executive Director, Texas Association of School Boards

Dan Troxell is the executive director of the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB). He has more than 30 years of experience as a public school leader and was named the TASB Superintendent of the Year in 2008.

That combination of long school-system experience and association leadership gives Troxell a useful view across governance, district operations and the everyday work of educating children. His experience also includes university teaching and writing about board president-superintendent collaboration. That experience matters.

2. Kevin Brown

Executive Director, Texas Association of School Administrators

Dr. Kevin Brown is executive director of the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA). Before joining the TASA staff in 2018, he led Alamo Heights ISD as superintendent for 10 years, after earlier work as a teacher, assistant principal, principal and district leader.

His path matters because TASA works with the people responsible for leading whole school systems. Brown brings a superintendent’s operating experience into a professional body focused on student-centred schools and future-ready students. He has also taught graduate courses at Texas State University and guest lectured at Trinity University.

3. Tracy Ginsburg

Executive Director, Texas Association of School Business Officials

Tracy Ginsburg is Executive Director of the Texas Association of School Business Officials (TASBO). Before leading the association, she was chief financial officer for Round Rock ISD and Fort Bend ISD, then served as TASBO Board President. She has also received national and Texas association recognition.

Her background brings finance and association governance together. That is a particularly relevant combination for a body whose members manage budgets, people, compliance and the practical systems that keep schools running. She has also received both national and Texas association recognition for her work.

4. Ray Martinez

President and Chief Executive Officer, Texas Association of Community Colleges

Ray Martinez is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Texas Association of Community Colleges (TACC). The association represents Texas community colleges, a statewide network with a direct role in expanding post-school opportunity. Martinez’s background also includes postgraduate study at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

That makes TACC a valuable bridge between institutional leaders and the wider education system. Martinez’s remit sits close to access, workforce preparation and the community role of higher education. TACC also connects colleges with workforce and community priorities across a large and growing state.

5. Harley Eckhart

Executive Director, Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association

Harley Eckhart is Executive Director of the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association (TEPSA). The member-owned association has served Texas PK-8 school leaders since 1917. Its current page says more than 6,000 members direct the activities of around 3 million PK-8 school children.

The scale of that network gives the role a clear practical focus. TEPSA is built around leaders learning with and from one another, which makes peer connection a central part of Eckhart’s work.

6. Chandelle Crane

Executive Director, Texas Association of School Personnel Administrators

Chandelle Crane is Executive Director of the Texas Association of School Personnel Administrators (TASPA). TASPA is a professional association for Texas public-school human-resources administrators and support staff. Its work sits close to the practical questions of recruitment, people systems and the day-to-day experience of school employees.

That work is easy to overlook until a school is trying to recruit, support or retain the people who make learning possible. Crane’s association sits close to the human systems behind school culture.

7. Paulina van Eeden Hill

Executive Director, Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented

Paulina van Eeden Hill is Executive Director of the Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented (TAGT). TAGT says its work is to connect and empower educators who meet the unique needs of a diverse gifted and talented community. That puts professional learning, advocacy and member connection at the centre of the role.

Gifted education is not a single classroom issue. It involves teachers, leaders, families and policy, so an association that can connect those groups has a meaningful role in shaping practice.

8. Joe Muñoz

Executive Director, Texas Music Educators Association

Joe Muñoz is Executive Director of the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA). Before moving into association leadership, he was a band director for 28 years across Pearland, Clear Creek and Conroe ISDs. His current responsibilities include general management, the annual convention, liaison work and lobbying for arts education.

His career gives him a direct understanding of the classroom, the school system and the professional association. That helps explain why TMEA connects member service with advocacy for arts education. The association represents music educators and students, so the role carries both professional and public purpose.

9. Katie Strang

Executive Director, Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association

Katie Strang is Executive Director of the Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association (TSHA). She began the role in January 2022 after building a career in association management, education strategy and conference leadership. Her background includes work with SmithBucklin, the American Red Cross and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Her work is a reminder that education associations also support specialist professions that sit across schools, health services and family life. Association leadership here depends on clarity, coordination and professional trust.

10. Ben Starr

Interim Executive Director, Texas Computer Education Association

Ben Starr is Interim Executive Director of the Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA). TCEA appointed him to lead the organisation after Lori Gracey retired in March 2026. Starr has been with TCEA since 2013, and the association supports technology use across the PreK-16 education environment.

The interim title is important and has been kept visible. Starr is leading during a defined transition, while the board searches for the next permanent executive director. The board’s search means his tenure is transitional, not a claim that the permanent appointment is complete.

11. Crystal White

Executive Director, Texas Association of Community Schools

Crystal White is Executive Director of the Texas Association of Community Schools (TACS). Before joining TACS, she spent 32 years in public education, including work as a teacher, counsellor, administrator and superintendent. She also worked with the 64 school districts in Region 16 through education service centre roles.

Her experience spans classrooms, district leadership, service-centre work and association management. That gives TACS a leader who understands both the daily reality of schools and the needs of a statewide member network.

12. Billy Pringle

Executive Director, Texas Association of Secondary School Principals

Billy Pringle is Executive Director of the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals (TASSP). TASSP says it is formed by and for more than 6,400 campus-level administrators. Its mission centres on courageous, transformative leadership, professional learning and a unifying voice for learners across Texas.

The association’s scale and history make professional learning and advocacy central to the role. Pringle’s work is connected to the people who set the tone for secondary campuses across the state. TASSP describes itself as the largest and oldest secondary school principal association in the world.

13. Shannon Holmes

Executive Director, Association of Texas Professional Educators

Shannon Holmes is Executive Director of the Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE). The association says its executive director reports to the board and is responsible for the general supervision and day-to-day management of the organisation. ATPE employs a statewide team to serve individual Texas educators.

The role is operational as well as representative. Holmes sits where board direction, member service and the association’s day-to-day delivery meet, supporting a professional community spread across Texas. Its administration team also supports member services, professional education and advocacy for individual educators.

14. Mary Harper

Executive Director, Texas Association for the Education of Young Children

Mary Harper is Executive Director of the Texas Association for the Education of Young Children (TXAEYC). The association’s 2026 announcement says she brings more than 25 years across early childhood education, higher education and statewide early-learning systems. Her stated focus includes professional learning, member connection and a stronger early-childhood workforce.

Her first-year priorities are deliberately member-focused. Re-engaging chapters, strengthening professional networks and building useful learning are practical ways to rebuild value in a professional membership association.

15. Lindsey Jost

Executive Director, Texas Association for School Nutrition

Lindsey Jost is Executive Director of the Texas Association for School Nutrition (TASN). TASN says she brings more than 17 years of association leadership experience, including work in education nonprofits, governance, programmes, events and member engagement. The role connects association leadership with the practical work of feeding students well.

School nutrition is part of the education experience, not an issue outside it. Jost’s association leadership connects member development with the people responsible for feeding students every day. Her background includes strategic planning, governance support, programme development and volunteer leadership.

16. Jim Lee

Executive Director, Texas Association of Music Schools

Jim Lee is Executive Director of the Texas Association of Music Schools (TAMS). The association’s stated mission is to promote cooperation, understanding and excellence in music education in Texas colleges and universities. Its leadership page lists Lee as Executive Director and shows a long history of service in the organisation.

The association links higher education music leaders across Texas. Lee’s role therefore combines professional connection with the shared work of keeping music education strong in colleges and universities.

Conclusion

The people in this list work across very different parts of education, but several themes connect them. They turn professional membership into practical support, carry the voice of their fields into policy conversations, and help specialists learn from one another. They also show that association leadership is close to the daily experience of schools, educators, students and families.

That work needs leaders who can hold purpose and people together while making clear choices about what members need next. For readers leading education organisations, the opportunity is not only to run a sound association. It is to build a community that people trust, value and want to contribute to.

About the Author

Jonno White is a Brisbane-based leadership consultant, keynote speaker and Certified Working Genius Facilitator. He is the author of Step Up or Step Out and works with schools, organisations and leadership teams around the world.

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If your education association or leadership team needs a practical way to build trust, shared language and stronger day-to-day work, email jonno@consultclarity.org.