Get to Know Your TASPA Board

12 | HR Connection Get To Know Your TASPA Board

RICK RODRIGUEZ TASPA PRESIDENT

Rick Rodriguez is the Chief Operations Officer for Lubbock ISD. A graduate of Eastern New Mexico University, Rick holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish as well as a Masters of Education in Mid-Management from Prairie View A&M University. With over twenty years of experience in education, Rick brings a vast array of knowledge to the table. He has an extensive understanding of the education recruiting process, supervising employee issues, and coordinating the evaluation of employees. His ability to successfully draft and implement staffing plans has led to increased employee efficiency. Furthermore, Rick is quite knowledgeable in federal compliance laws regarding human resources such as educator certification requirements and federal labor laws. Rick resides in Lubbock, Texas, with his wife, Tanna, and has twenty oneyear-old twin daughters, Abbigale and Lyndsie who are in their third year of college this year.

“The education profession has a potential opportunity to capture a moment of nationwide focus amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. While there have been many professions in industry who have had to take the difficult path of furloughing employees, education has found a way to continue to teach and reach students and therefore continue to be compensated. I have seen many positive stories regarding teachers going the extra mile for their students- from going to their homes to sit and the end of the driveway to read to individual students to sending individual notes encouraging students to hang in there to holding virtual proms and senior days for the graduates, and the list goes on and on. So the challenge is two fold. First, how do we harness the positive momentum to keep our teachers from leaving the profession and also how we use this opportunity to recruit new candidates to our profession. The second, how do we continue to garner the support of the general public to provide the support at the legislative for continued education finance reform. While HB 3 has provided some temporary relief- we need to be looking at long term sustainability now so that we do not have the proverbial “rug” yanked out from underneath us.

If you are new to HR I have one key word for you- NETWORK! Most of us who have been in HR for 15+ years are eager to extend a helping hand. I too once wandered into the TASPA conference and observed what appeared to be a family reunion of sorts. I saw colleagues who greeted each other like long lost friends. If you choose to network- you too will be a part of the family. Engage in your local regional TASPA group, attend as many of conferences as you can- the information presented is phenomenal! My goal is to meet at least 5 new TASPA members by the Winter 2020 Conference- won’t you join me and welcome your new colleagues to THE BEST HUMAN RESOURCES ORGANIZATION IN NATION- TASPA!!”

MARTHA CARRASCO TASPA PRESIDENT ELECT

Martha Carrasco is currently serving as the Chief Human Resource Officer for the Canutillo Independent School District. She has served in this position since 2010. Through out her 32 years of service, she has held various positions but prior to working in Human Resources, she served as the District’s Internal Auditor. What a transition!

Martha has found the work in Human Resources to be both challenging and rewarding. This is especially true now that we find ourselves in the middle of a pandemic. Stay at Home orders have been issued for the State of Texas and schools have been closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. Against this backdrop, she would like to share some of the questions that keep her up at night:

What steps will we be taking to ensure employee and/or student safety when returning to the workplace or returning to school in the fall? How are we adapting our workspace or classrooms to comply with social-distancing standards? Are we staggering work hours for employees? Are we staggering students to reduce the number of people in a building by continuing to offer online instruction? Are we encouraging or mandating teleworking part-time? Are we limiting walk-ins to our buildings? Are we offering or requiring the use of gloves/masks, etc. at the workplace? Will we be having to take temperatures or test employees before returning to work?

“I don’t have the answer to all these questions, but moving forward I am confident that together we can find solutions to address our new normal. No doubt we are in a difficult time and find ourselves in uncharted waters, so if you are new to Human Resources, hang-in-there! My best wishes to all as we navigate the days ahead together.”

BERNADETTE GERACE TASPA IV REPRESENTATIVE

Bernadette Gerace is currently serving in Prosper ISD as the Director of Recruitment. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Texas A&M University and a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Concordia University. Bernadette is in her 22nd year in education.

From 2012 to 2019, Bernadette served as Prosper ISD’s first Director of Human Resources, serving as an innovative and collaborative leader and has overseen the tremendous growth in her district from 7,000 students to over 16,000 and from 600 employees to over 1,800. During her time in Prosper ISD, the district was named as one of the top places to work by the Dallas Morning News for six years straight. Bernadette also introduced technology into the HR process, bringing into the district paperless systems for job applications, personnel records, performance management, and professional learning. She leads a highly impactful first year teacher program as well as the district’s leadership cohort. Bernadette is an active member of AASPA, TASPA, and has previously served as president of the regional NCTASPA group, serving the Dallas/Fort Worth region.

When asked about the biggest challenges facing school HR administrators today, Bernadette stated that she believes that the biggest challenge is recruiting and retaining a highly qualified diverse staff of teachers and administrators to serve our state’s rapid growth of diverse students. Part of our task as HR administrators is to look within our own student populations and communicate the impact the students can make in the future by choosing education for their career.