Karina Zuno Chapa

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT KARINA ZUNO CHAPA

Karina, originally from Monterrey, Mexico, earned her Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from El Tecnológico de Monterrey. After moving to Texas, she discovered her passion for education and became a Bilingual teacher through an Alternative Certification program. She went on to earn a Master’s in Bilingual Education and School Principalship from the University of Texas-Pan American in 2005.Throughout her career, Karina has held a range of impactful leadership roles, including Bilingual/ESL Strategist, Newcomer Academy Coordinator, Middle School Assistant Principal, and Bilingual/ESL Director for an International Baccalaureate district in South Texas. Her leadership was instrumental in transitioning the district from an Early Exit to a Dual Language program—a milestone that earned her the Public Education Honoree Award from the Texas Association for Bilingual Education (TABE) in 2016.A committed advocate for bilingual education, Karina has served in numerous non-profit leadership positions, including Secretary, President, and Parliamentarian for RGV-TABE, as well as Secretary, Bilingual Administrator Representative, and Chair of the Legislative and Newsletter Committees for TABE.From 2016 to 2023, she served as the Director of Language Proficiency, Biliteracy, and Cultural Diversity at Region One ESC, supporting over emergent bilingual students and their families across the Texas border region. Today, Karina continues this mission as Executive Director of TABE, proudly advocating for over one million bilingual students, their families, educators, and administrators across Texas.In addition to her advocacy work, Karina teaches courses in Testing and Measurement, Language Acquisition, and Applied Linguistics as an adjunct instructor at Texas A&M University–Kingsville. She also took the TEDx stage in November 2019 with her talk, “The Revolutionary Power of Bilingualism.”Stay connected with Karina on Twitter:@bilingualpride and @TA4BE.