Steve served as President – Verizon Communications Southwest Region. In this capacity, he was responsible for the Verizon Foundation donations in his states. At the time, adult literacy was the number one priority for the Foundation. This helped Steve come to deeply appreciate the very difficult challenge of addressing low literacy rates across the USA.
After retirement, he was given the opportunity to serve as the Executive Director of Literacy Texas, starting in December of 2019. When the COVID pandemic hit, Literacy Texas was one of the first organizations to turn entirely to virtual symposia and annual conferences. This created new ways to reach nonprofit programs in need of adult literacy training.
Steve retired from the Literacy Texas Executive Director position in March of 2024. He is pleased to be supporting the mission of Literacy Texas in the new capacity of member of the Board.
Gina Franke was born in Orange, Texas but spent most of her “raising years” in Lake Charles, LA. Her parents both had strong Texas roots and wanted to make sure that, while their work had taken them to Louisiana, that they were true to their deep Texas roots by making sure Gina and her sister were born Texans.
Gina attended McNeese State University in Lake Charles and got a degree, with honors, from Howard College in San Angelo, Texas. She has been blessed with a varied career which took her from working at the Texas Medical Assn to counseling at the Austin Drug and Alcohol Abuse Program in Austin as well as counseling inmates at the IPTC Prison in Kyle, Texas.
She loves being civically involved, as illustrated by her having served on the Johnson City, Texas Independent School Board as well as chairperson for the Hays CISD District Leadership Team in Buda, Texas.
Gina understands and has a passion for the importance of literacy through her experiences in educational involvement as well as the knowledge gained through her work in both counseling and the criminal justice system.
Kay has 30 years of experience in the banking industry. She is known for developing and cultivating relationships with city, county and community leaders/staff and nonprofits through partnering, originating, and supporting Community Development Lending, Investment and Service – via lending, grants, investments, financial education, technical trainings and board/committee memberships.
She has a bachelor’s degree in Business with a minor in Real Estate from Texas A&M Commerce. Currently serving: Texas Association of Community Development Corporation Advisory Roundtable Board, Literacy Texas Board of Directors (Treasurer), United Way of Metropolitan Dallas – Financial Inclusion Roundtable (Affordable Housing Chair), and North Texas Regional Housing Consortium Board of Directors. Kay and her husband Mark reside in Combine, Texas close to Dallas.
Christa Aldrich began her career in 1995 as a fifth-grade teacher in San Antonio ISD, a large urban school district in San Antonio, Texas. She spent 18 years in public education as a teacher, coach, middle school assistant principal, elementary school principal and early childhood program coordinator. She currently works for the largest privately owned grocery store in Texas, H-E-B, where she manages charitable giving for education projects throughout the state. Christa also manages the company’s Read 3 program which aims to provide caregivers with tips and tools on how to develop language and literacy with their children so that they are better prepared for kindergarten.
Christa graduated from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas with a BA and MAT and attended the Harvard Graduate School of Education Principals’ Summer Institute, The Art of Leadership. She has served on the national and local board for Ride for Reading, a non-profit providing books to title 1 schools. Additionally, she served on the state and local board of The Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas, a women’s organization with the purpose of promoting the advancement of women in public, corporate and civic life through education, personal and professional development. Most recently, Christa was chosen to participate in the Latina Leadership Institute of the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
When not working or volunteering, Christa loves to read and spend time with her family. Her husband, Tony, is an avid golfer. Her daughter, Alyssa, is a graduate of Texas A&M and is a first-grade teacher.
MEMBERS
Dr. Kelly Coke serves as the Provost of Texas State Technical College’s (TSTC) Williamson County campus, where she provides executive leadership for faculty, staff, and campus operations while advancing the college’s mission: To put Texans in great-paying jobs. A sixth-generation Texan, Dr. Coke has dedicated her career to expanding access to higher education and strengthening workforce development initiatives that prepare students for high-demand careers across the state.
As Provost, Dr. Coke leads strategic initiatives that strengthen workforce education through TSTC’s Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence. She works collaboratively with industry partners, educators, and community leaders to expand hands-on technical training, workforce development programs, and dual-credit opportunities that equip students with industry-recognized credentials and career-ready skills.
Dr. Coke earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Leadership and Development from Texas A&M University, a Master of Science in Adult Education from Texas A&M University–Texarkana, and a Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership, with an emphasis in Higher Education, from Abilene Christian University.
Her extensive leadership experience includes executive and administrative roles at Texas A&M University–Texarkana, Paris Junior College, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. She also has public service experience working with the United States Senate and the White House, contributing to initiatives that supported education and public policy. In addition to her administrative leadership, Dr. Coke has co-authored numerous scholarly journal articles and professional publications focused on leadership, higher education in both rural and urban communities, and workforce development.
Dr. Coke’s leadership and commitment to workforce and higher education have earned statewide recognition. She was named a 12 Under 12 honoree by the Texas A&M University Association of Former Students, nominated for the Austin Regional Manufacturing Association Ally Award for Workforce Development, recognized as a nominee for the Women of Wilco Williamson County Award, and selected as a nominee for the Austin Business Journal Women in Business Awards. She is a graduate of Leadership Texas Women, Leadership Austin, Leadership Mount Pleasant, and the Texas Education Policy Fellowship Program through Texas Tech University.
Yogashri Pradhan was most recently a Lead Production Engineer at Chevron. She’s had 10+ years of experience in unconventional asset development and production engineering in Midland and Delaware Basins for various Permian operators. She’s now taken this experience and founded IronLady Energy Advisors, a consulting firm focused on technical solutions for all forms of energy.
Most recently, she has been honored as a distinguished alumni from the University of Texas Petroleum Engineering Department and Hart Energy’s 40 Under 40. She is the recipient of the Regional Reservoir Engineering Dynamics and Description and the Regional Service Awards in 2020. She’s also the recipient of Houston Engineers Week Young Engineer of the Year representing SPE-Gulf Coast Section for 2018 and the International Young Member Outstanding Service Award from SPE in 2018.
Yogashri graduated from the University of Texas with a Bachelor’s in Petroleum Engineering in 2015 and received her Masters in Petroleum Engineering at Texas A&M University in 2020. In 2024, she earned her MBA from University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She is a registered Professional Engineer in the state of Texas and New Mexico.
Magda Salazar is a product management, journalism and communications, and event management professional with career experiences working for the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Israel Ministry of Tourism, NBA All-Star Jam Session, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Currently, she is serving as president of Hispanic Communicators DFW, a chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
Magda’s passion for literacy efforts is a result of her own experience growing up along the Texas border in El Paso and access to programs that supported reading development. Magda is a product of the Head Start program, and in school, she competed in poetry, prose, and debate.
For Magda, collaborating on literacy efforts is fundamental to improving access and creating opportunities for communities of color and underrepresented communities.
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Page reviewed/updated: 4/1/2026