DEBORAH VALDEZ

Executive Director

Deborah joined the SAYL staff in May of 2016. As Executive Director, she has found a perfect fit for her thirty plus years experience in education and five years in the non-profit arena. Deborah is a military brat, coming to Texas when her father was stationed at Laughlin AFB in Del Rio, Texas as a squadron commander. Having lived here longer than anywhere else in the world, she now considers herself a Texan. Deborah holds a B.S. in Education from Texas A&I, Kingsville (now Texas A&M, Kingsville), an M.S. in Educational Leadership from the University of Texas San Antonio, and a Doctorate from Texas A&M University, College Station in Educational Management. She takes pride in her civic and community involvement serving as a member of the Can High School of San Antonio Development Board, the George Gervin Foundation Board of Directors and the strategic planning committee of the Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas. She has served as an adjunct professor at Texas A&M San Antonio since 2005 when it was still associated with Texas A&M Kingsville and feels privileged to have been a part of the evolution of the university into the fastest growing campus in the Texas A&M system. Having been an early childhood educator, Deborah believes strongly in the vision of SAYL that every child in South Texas enters 3rd grade reading at level and is dedicated to the continued success of SAYL and its mission.