BOARD

Tammy Jones

Tammy has over 20 years of experience in higher education, serving almost four years as Manager, Student Service Testing Center at Richland College, and three years as Sr. Manager of Testing Services overseeing eight Testing Centers and seven Campuses. Tammy’s education career began as a student worker at Tarrant County Junior College. She had the opportunity to hold several positions with TCC, teaching GED and helping with setting up class as a Sr. Office Assistant at Tarrant County College. She was also the Campus Testing Coordinator at Premier High School, while also teaching Youth Entrepreneurs and CTE classes for all grade levels. Tammy has a Master of Science degree in Professional Counseling from Grand Canyon University and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Dallas Baptist University.

Diana Nores, M.Ed. 

Diana is the Director of the University of Houston Clear Lake Testing Center. She has over 20 years experience in K12 and higher education in assessment and education leadership. She is a presenter at national and local conferences.

Diana strives to dispel educational silos and bring educators together to create better structures that support education for all students. Her strengths are building community among peers, providing support, creating innovative programs, and finding resources to support her programs and peers.

Diana’s goal is to help reshape the TACTP into an accessible organization that is fully able to support its members with their immediate needs, training opportunities, and community networking.

Dr. Shakila Farmer

Dr. Shakila M. Farmer, a native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has called Texas home for the past 17 years. With over 22 years of experience in higher education, Dr. Farmer currently directs the Office of Testing Services at a local community college. In this role, she oversees assessments related to Health Care Programs, Texas Success Initiatives, CLEP, and more, ensuring students have access to the tools they need for success.

Beyond her professional responsibilities, Dr. Farmer is dedicated to promoting wellness on campus, serving as a leader for faculty and staff wellness initiatives. She also served as the immediate past webinar chairperson for the National Collegiate Testing Association (NCTA) under the Professional Development division, and a past President-Elect for TACTP.

A proud 29-year member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc., Dr. Farmer is passionate about community service, having served as her chapter's past Wellness Ambassador. She is a devoted wife, aunt, small business owner, author, and educator, committed to helping students from all backgrounds, including homeschool and military-connected students, achieve their academic and personal goals. Dr. Farmer brings a contagious, upbeat energy to the TCC campus every day and is guided by her belief that “To Whom Much Is Given, Much is Required!er

Donna Rodriguez

Donna has over 25 years in higher education having worked in both a 4-year private university and at a 2-year public college in various capacities. She currently services as the Director of Testing at Victoria College where assessments are administered in a highly professional, safe and secure environment; maintaining the highest level of academic integrity and customer service.

She has served as a catalyst for many successful management and community organization such as Victoria Christian Assistance Ministry (VCAM), Victoria Planning Commission, Victoria Lions Club, and the Golden Crescent Workforce Development Youth Advisory Council. Additionally, Donna has served as a member of professional organizations such as Texas Association of College Admission Counselors (TACAC), College Reading and Learning Association (CRLA) and the National College Testing Association where she is currently a NCTA Special Interest Group (SIG) Co-facilitator.

Faviola Ortega 

Faviola is the Testing Center Coordinator at Lee College in Baytown, Texas. She holds a Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Business Administration and has 14 years of testing experience in higher education, serving different testing roles while at Lee College. Faviola's mission is to provide students the best opportunity to succeed before transitioning to a 4-year institution.

Kate Rodriquez

Kate is the Director of Testing Services at UT Permian Basin. She graduated from the university with a BA in Communications, and has spent the past 10 years working for the same university to support the same community that helped her to graduate. Her passion is to give her students a safe place to grow as individuals, learn how to be good humans, and become capable individuals who believe in their own ability to reach their dreams. As a neurospicy person herself with chronic health conditions, Kate strives to advocate for students and their right to educational supports but she also believes in the importance of teaching her students how to advocate for themselves. The value that Kate holds most important to herself is authenticity. Being an honest, authentic person is the personality trait that people most often say that they admire about her.

Karen Stewart 

Karen is the Director of Testing at Collin College. She has Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Iowa State University in Education and worked in Higher Education for 20 years and in testing for nine. She worked in both four year and two-year institutions, as well as private and public colleges, spent nine years working in a college library and is a huge history buff. Serving as the organization's historian would be a lot of fun and very rewarding. She also worked in the corporate world developing employee training for 13 years.