Board of Directors

Carlos Velasco

President

An Austin native, Carlos graduated from St. Edward's University in 2009. He became a 6th grade math teacher at the same middle school he attended as a kid. In 2018, he was voted Campus Teacher of the Year by his peers.

Meagan Poag

Carlos Velasco

Vice President

Meg is currently the CEO and Chief Consultant of Mission Squared. She previously served as the CEO of the Literacy Coalition of Central Texas, where she grew the organization from a start-up nonprofit to a $3,500,000 annual operating budget.

Justin Rosas

Carlos Velasco

Justin Rosas

Justin is a born and raised, third-generation, Austinite. Justin graduated from McCallum High School

Treasurer

Justin is a native Austinite and a graduate of the public school system. He currently practices law in Austin and is involved with several non-profit organizations that emphasize mentoring youth.

About Us

Our History

A Teacher’s Gift was founded in 2016 (would later become a 501(c)(3) in 2019) by Dobie Middle School teacher, Carlos Velasco and a few friends. They saw a need and responded by sharing a little of their holiday budget to spread the joy of Christmas to a small number of deserving students and their families.

That circle of friends has grown, and so has the reach of the program.

Our Mission

To inspire and empower Title I students to overcome economic challenges by recognizing education and hard work as pathways to achieving their fullest potential.