I am a native Houstonian who was born and raised in House District 138 and serve as the State Representative. I attended Spring Branch ISD schools before earning a bachelor's degree in Political Science and History from the University of Houston. First elected to the Texas House in 2020. I currently serve as Chair of the Texas House Committee on Human Services and on the House Committee on State Affairs, and the State Affairs Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Broadband. I also serve as the House's ex officio member on the Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth, and Families, the Sunset Advisory Commission and the Joint Committee to Study the Effects of Media on Minors.
I have a strong record of expanding access to quality, affordable healthcare. As Chair of the House Human Services Committee, I oversee programs serving Texans with disabilities. I supported HB 109 to expand mental health treatment options and authored HB 136 to provide Medicaid coverage for lactation services and HB 26 to expand nutrition counseling. I also supported protections preventing insurers from forcing stable mental health patients to switch medications. Lowering healthcare costs through greater price transparency will be a priority next session. I have partnered with Federally Qualified Health Centers, including Spring Branch Community Health Center, and understand their vital role in providing affordable care.
I voted for House Bill 2 that made significant investments in Texas Public Schools. I supported teacher pay raises for public school librarians, counselors, nurses and teachers who take on challenging teaching jobs. This bill also supported special education and expanded early literacy and school safety initiatives. I also believe taxpayer dollars must be spent responsibly. Education Savings Accounts should include strong accountability measures, including financial oversight, audits, and safeguards to ensure funds are used only for approved educational purposes.I also passed a bill that protects our children online by limiting what they can access on social media and preventing sexual predators and Big Tech from preying on them.
The most pressing issues facing District 138 continue to be public safety and infrastructure, including flooding. I am proud to be supported by the members of the Houston Police Officers’ Union, and I work closely with law enforcement to address crime and to keep our communities safe. Dangerous criminals must be held accountable, and we must continue fighting the distribution of deadly drugs, especially fentanyl, which is devastating families and taking the lives of our children. I worked for our community to get drug cartels designated as terrorist organizations to hold them accountable for poisoning our kids with fentanyl. I am proud that I secured $5 million dollars for the Spring Shadows Drainage and Paving Project to reduce flooding.
I serve as the Associate Regional Director for a national nonprofit where I’ve helped pass legislation at both the state and federal levels and secured millions of dollars in grant funding for community violence intervention efforts across the country. I’ve brought Democrats and Republicans together to pass laws that protect children and families by establishing stronger safety standards for social media and digital platforms and protect children from gun violence. I recently completed the Obama Foundation USA Leaders program, where I was selected as one of just 100 leaders nationwide. I’m a proud graduate of Texas Southern University, right in the heart of our city where my commitment to this community began and continues today.
I believe health care is a right, not a privilege limited to those who can afford it. That’s why I will fight for Medicaid expansion to immediately cover 726,000 uninsured Texans. But I will fight for much more. I will push for state funding supplements to community health centers with a focus on safety-net providers. I will push for state funding to expand mental health residency programs, create loan forgiveness for therapists serving underserved communities, and remove licensing barriers for out-of-state providers. And I will fight for state funding to expand cancer screening programs, diabetes prevention initiatives, and obesity counseling for uninsured residents.
Ensuring adequate state funding for public schools is about making the right choices. Sending public school dollars to private schools is the wrong choice. Students are the backbone and future of our nation. I have long believed that our current school funding model is broken. I want to work with leaders to find fair ways to fund schools so that every student has access to quality education, regardless of their zip code. I also want to advocate for teacher pay raises to ensure we attract and retain the best talent. Additionally, I want to create clear pathways to trades, recognizing that not every student will attend college. It is the state’s responsibility to prepare students for whatever life’s next steps may be after high school.
I am running for State Representative to lower the cost of healthcare and housing, fix the power grid, and keep our families safe from violence. I’ll fight to expand health insurance coverage and remove barriers to building housing that families can afford. I’ll fight to redirect wasted state funds to fix our aging power grid, to keep repeat violent offenders off our streets through comprehensive bipartisan bail reform, and to get mental health treatment for nonviolent offenders who need it. Locally, I will fight for more funding for northside schools in Spring Branch ISD to prevent school closures, and for local control over the placement of concrete batch plants like the one planned for next door to the Awty School in our district.
