Founder & Executive Director
Inga Cotton
Inga Cotton has been voicing her support of school choice starting in the first semester of college at Trinity University, when she wrote her term paper on the subject. Little did she know how important this topic would be to her later in life. Inga is the Founder and Executive Director of San Antonio Charter Moms, a nonprofit that helps families find schools that are the right fit for their children and become advocates for quality education.
Administrative Assistant
Lora Idol
With more than 15 years of experience in the non-profit sector, Lora has been serving nonprofits of all sizes, including churches and local organizations. Originally from the Rio Grande Valley, Lora and her family moved to San Antonio ten years ago and now calls this beautiful place her home. Lora has served alongside Inga Cotton and San Antonio Charter Moms for four years.
Lora loves reading books and listening to podcasts, considers herself a personality test enthusiast, and enjoys running and working out. Lora is married to Mitch Idol, and they have three children Sophia, Jack, and Chase.
Board President
Ray Tijerina
Ray Tijerina of San Antonio is cofounder of Verdant EDU, an educational support company based in San Antonio that supports districts with talent, systems and data. Ray was previously the Director of Talent and Chief of Staff for Compass Rose Academy and Regional Talent Recruiter for IDEA Public Schools supporting the Central Texas Region. Mr. Tijerina was appointed by Governor Abbott to serve as a member of the States Continuing Advisory Committee for Special Education in 2019. In addition to serving on the SACM board, he serves on the boards of Royal Public Schools and Legacy Texas. He is a Veteran of the United States Navy where he served honorably for nine years.
Board Director
Stephanie McClain
Stephanie was raised with a behind-the-scenes understanding of education by two public school teachers in her gulf coast hometown of Seabrook, Texas. While she hasn’t found her way to the front of the classroom, her 20-year career has allowed her to support the best education for K–12 students and future health professionals. San Antonio has been home to the McClains since Stephanie, Peter, and their two babies evacuated from Galveston Island ahead of Hurricane Ike in 2008. Their son Gideon is a 2023 graduate of Great Hearts Monte Vista and daughter Eden attends the International School of the Americas at LEE High School. In selecting the best situations for her children’s education, Stephanie discovered that it really does take a village to raise a child. When she was invited to join the SACM board, she immediately agreed because she saw it as an opportunity to support that village for other families and children in our community. When she’s AFK, you can find her dancing, hiking, or chaperoning a cross-country high school field trip.
Board Treasurer
Esmael “Smiley” Orosco III
Smiley is a full-time REALTOR® born and raised in San Antonio. He runs a small team called the Smiley Sells SA Realty Group within the Laughy Hilger Group Real Estate brokerage. Our mission is to build lasting relationships while providing excellent service during the buying, selling, building, and investing process for every client.
Smiley enjoys his family, reading, baseball, art, food, and live music.
Our Contributors
These amazing people are highly skilled at what they do and passionate about helping parents and caregivers gather trustworthy information about school options.
Terranight Studio
Jenn & David Stevenson
At Terranight Studio, we are a dynamic team made up of a husband and wife who specialize in multifaceted services such as design, marketing, social media management, branding, and consulting. Our passion for creativity, coupled with a strong understanding of business strategy, enables us to help brands achieve their full potential in the digital era. We are committed to providing exceptional results to our clients and thrive on collaboration, creativity, and innovation. Our goal is to exceed expectations on every project we undertake. Whether you are a startup looking to establish your presence, or an established brand seeking a fresh perspective, we are here to provide guidance and help you succeed.
Outside of work, together we enjoy spoiling our two dogs, eating way too many burgers, and watching the latest comic and sci-fi tv show/films.
Grant House Communications
Valerie Grant
With more than 20 years of experience in public relations, marketing, and communications strategy, Valerie Grant can quickly assess a client’s objectives, develop a persuasive plan of action, and execute it flawlessly. Her extensive media relationships are a testament to her reputation for being reliable, responsive, and deeply informed. As Founder and CEO of Grant House Communications, she believes well executed communications can educate, inspire and influence human behavior. Delivered effectively, public relations can help organizations reach new audiences and grow their bottom line. By managing your message and cultivating positive relationships with select target audiences, Grant House Communications helps businesses raise brand awareness above the competitive set. Grant House goes to work to craft your brand story, map your objectives to broader trends and identify target audiences to determine the most effective avenues to convey relevance. Informed by research and market insight, Grant House creates sophisticated campaigns to capture attention in a crowded marketplace.
Aperture Partners
Bruce Murchison
Bruce Murchison, MBA, has an extensive background in Leadership Coaching, Business Planning, Process Improvement, and Technology, with over forty years as a national and regional firm management consultant, professional firm COO, and technology company owner/principal. His focus in the last 10 years has been coaching business owners and non-profit founders/CEOs and boards to launch on a solid financial and governance platform (including gaining IRS tax-exempt status) and Grow their organizational capabilities to pursue and enhance their mission.
Creek Digital
Rudy & Christina Macias
Christina and Rudy Macias own Creek Digital, a WordPress Agency where they support organizations with their website needs. Rudy has over 20 years of experience in building dynamic websites and also enjoys being an Adjunct Instructor at Northwest Vista College contributing to the growth and development of future professionals in the field. Christina is thrilled to be a part of nonprofit organizations like Friends of Bonham, which fosters community engagement by bringing together parents and local businesses.
Both grew up in San Antonio, Texas, including their 2 kiddos, and enjoy traveling and spending quality moments on the porch sitting with family and friends.