_{Tonya Dunphy}

_{Community and Parent Involvement Coordinator, Arkansas High, TASD
LT CLASS OF 2018}

_{This is Tonya’s 20th year in education at Texarkana Arkansas School District. She is currently the Community and Parental Involvement/AP Coordinator at Arkansas High. Tonya sponsors three clubs at Arkansas High: the Fellowship of Christian Students (FCS), Youth 2 Leaders (Y2L) and the Interact Club which focuses on youth volunteerism in our community.  Tonya has also taken advantage of opportunities to work with community youth through her involvement with the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) training as well as co-facilitating Leadership Texarkana’s “Today’s Youth Tomorrow’s Leaders” training held every summer.}  

_{Tonya believes it is very important for students from all schools to be given the opportunity to work together because they are the key to having a more united community in the future that’s willing to work together for a common goal.  She says: “My personal mission is to find ways to work with youth in our community, no matter what school they attend… My current position allows me to have an impact on students, teachers, parents, and community members. I remind myself daily that my actions will either have a positive or negative effect on someone else. In John Maxwell’s book, 360 Degree Leader, he discusses it doesn’t matter what position you hold in your organization everyone can have a positive influence. As a leader of young adults, I try to instill this ideal of leadership and empower students to want to get involved in their schools and community. I want them to believe their contributions can cause a magnitude of ripple effects.}

Dr. Jason Smith
Superintendent, Pleasant Grove ISD
LT Class of 2018

Jason Smith serves as Pleasant Grove ISD superintendent and has served over 20 years in public education and has been named the lone finalist to become the next president of Texarkana College. Jason has a doctorate of education administration from Texas A&M University - Commerce and extensive experience as an educator, with three years as a classroom teacher, three years as a middle school principal, four years as a high school principal and thirteen years as a Texas Superintendent. In 2007, Jason and his brother founded a company called TeacherTube.com; for two years, Jason left public education to serve as full-time CEO of the company. The company grew to over two million members before being acquired by a Salem Media Group. 

Stepping Up to Make a Difference 

Stepping Up to Make a Difference 

Jennifer L. Stuart

Employee Benefits Strategist 
Stepka and Associates, Inc.
LT Class of 2018

Dixon Boyles

Dean of Business and Social Sciences, QEP Director, Texarkana College
LT Class of 2018 

Dixon's passion is education and he has worked most of my adult life to become more effective in making the world a smarter, wiser place.  Dixon says, "The value of a college degree has never been more important, and my mission is to increase the college graduation rate of area citizens and thereby to improve their personal wellness in terms of health, earnings, happiness and many other wellness factors and to help end the generational poverty which so many of our citizens have endured.

When asked what his wish would be to make a difference of significance, he said it would be "to restore the appreciation of the pursuit of knowledge for knowledge’s sake. The current demand that everything taught in schools be immediately applicable in the marketplace can blind us to beauty and prevent us from becoming enlightened citizens who are dedicated to building the best communities we can. We need to feed the human spirit if we are to conquer the challenges of the future."

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Pink Trammel

Volunteer Recruiter
CASA of NE Texas
LT Class of 2018

Christina Guzman

Marketing Director, Ledwell & Son
LT Class of 2018

Christina Guzman is originally from Fort Worth, but has called Texarkana home since 2013, working as the Marketing Director of Ledwell, Ledwell Machinery and Ledwell Office Solutions. She and her husband Geoff have two children, a boy and a girl. Christina and her husband enjoy attending events around town like the Four States Fair, Discovery Place Museum and anything with great food. She says, “I love that you have access to shops and restaurants like a big city, but you have that small town feel that makes it a wonderful place to raise a family”.

On completion of the LT program, Christina stated that her intention going forward was “to use my gifts to inspire positive change and encourage others to believe in the possibilities of our community, …to assist in promoting Texarkana as a great place to visit and reside, by using my marketing and advertising skills.”

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

DeMarcus Green

LT Class of 2018
Principal, Kilpatrick Elementary 
Texarkana AR Schools 

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Antonio D. Williams

Executive Director
Housing Authority of Texarkana, TX
LT Class of 2018

Antonio says: 

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Jason Horton
Owner, Jason Horton Law Firm
LT Class of 2009

Jason has lived in and practiced law in Texarkana since marrying Texarkana native Amanda Raney (a 2013 graduate of Leadership Texarkana).

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Totally T-Town Food Faves 
from the team at Texarkana Gastroenterology Consultants

"Chicken Piccata from Chappos Pizza & Pasta"
BRIAN J. SO, M.D.

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Stepping Up to Make a Difference

Leader Profile: LeAnne Purifoy Wright

Profiles in Leadership