Center for Community Engagement
Laura Koenig
Senior Director, Center for Community Engagement
For over 20 years, Laura Koenig has worked with families through direct child care, parent education, provider education, public policy, and advocacy. In her early career, Laura worked in child care as an infant teacher. She was also a Policy and Education Specialist through the Institute for Child Care Excellence, a community-wide initiative to improve access to quality, affordable child care. Before joining E3 Alliance, Laura coordinated the Parents of Newborns project at Family Connections, providing education and outreach to over 7,800 new families annually.
Laura holds a master’s degree in Public Affairs from the LBJ School at The University of Texas, where she focused on child and family policy. She also earned a bachelor’s degree, Plan II, Cum Laude, from The University of Texas of Austin with a concentration in Psychology.
Naya Brown
Collective Impact Associate
With a background in Internal Communications and Social Media Management, Naya brings a dynamic perspective to the E3 Alliance team.
Naya holds a master’s degree in Global Communications from The American University of Paris and a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication from Sam Houston State University.
Nwando Clyburn
Community Engagement Manager
Nwando has nearly 20 years of experience in the field of education. She began her career as a primary grade teacher and continued to serve in a variety of roles throughout her career. Nwando has served as a secondary Master Reading Teacher, elementary Reading Specialist, literacy coach, a Reading Academies Cohort Leader, district level early literacy specialist, and a director at the Texas Education Agency. She brings in-depth knowledge of the Science of Teaching Reading and Early Childhood to this position. Nwando earned a Bachelor of Science Interdisciplinary Studies from Prairie View A&M University. She also holds a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction-Literacy Studies from the University of Texas Arlington.
Maria Rosas
Community Engagement Manager
Maria is a dynamic leader with 20 years of experience advancing family engagement within diverse communities. She builds trust-based partnerships that foster collaborative leadership, using culturally responsive practices to co-create solutions grounded in community needs.
She has led the design and expansion of initiatives such as Families as Partners, the Parent Champion Model, and the AISD ParentChild+ Home Visiting Program, all of which honor the knowledge, cultural, and linguistic strengths of students and families. Throughout her career, Maria has partnered with school leaders, caregivers, and educators to empower families as essential contributors to student success.
She looks forward to supporting educational initiatives at E3 Alliance by fostering partnerships with families, students, educators, and community-based organizations.
Maria holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature from The University of Texas at Austin. She is currently pursuing a master’s in organizational and global leadership and has also completed advanced training at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is deeply committed to continuous learning and to advocating for equitable opportunities for all families.
Heather Salaz
Community Engagement Director
Heather brings more than 20 years of experience to the E3 Alliance team as an effective instructional leader in managing teams, programming, professional development, and training, as well as mentoring, coaching, and teaching.
Her seasoned career in public education spans from Central Texas school districts to regional- and state-level administration. She served at the Texas Education Agency and Education Service Center Region 13 in various statewide initiatives focused on transforming systems to ensure equity and excellence for all students.
She holds a Master’s degree in Elementary Education with a focus on second language acquisition from Texas State University and a Principal Certificate from Region 13.
Lauren Thomas
Community Engagement Director
Lauren first started working in education as a High School Programs Coordinator at Austin Community College. Her role was part of a nationwide initiative funded by the Department of Labor to increase the local workforce. In this role, she helped expand these workforce efforts into the local area high schools to train students in information technology, health sciences, and building trades.
Previously, she served three years as the Director of Business Development for a small business.
She holds a master’s degree in Sociology from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor’s degree in Sociology with a minor in Psychology from the University of Central Oklahoma.