Teachers Faculty and Staff
2024 Staff List
Cassandra Lizardi
Cassandra received her Master of Science in Education from the University of California Berkeley in 2022 in addition to her B.A. in Political Science from University of Texas at Dallas. She has 2 years of experience teaching English and History in a low-income middle school in Oakland, California and worked extensively as a judge and coach with the Dallas Urban Debate Alliance from 2016-2021. In high school, Cassandra participated in both Lincoln Douglas and Public Policy debate at TFA, UDL, and national levels.
Maritza Maldonado
Hello, I am Maritza Maldonado and I am a senior at Irma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School. My favorite classes are mock trial and debate for which I have a deep passion for. These classes and my outstanding teachers have allowed me to develop my love for advocating for marginalized communities by building my public speaking skills. In college I hope to join the mock trial team and other organizations in order to be part of my campus community. After college, I plan on attending law school and becoming an immigration lawyer.
Andy Werner
I teach philosophy to college and high school students. For this coming year, I will be teaching at the University of Houston and Houston Community College; I also teach philosophy to high school students through my non-profit Adventures in Thinking.
I have taught at TDC since its founding, and I have taught at the Teacher's Institute for the past 6 years.
Kris Wright
Kris Wright has been coaching debate for over thirteen years. He is the Director of Debate for Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School in Dallas. He is also a co-founder of TDC. As a high school debate coach, Kris’s students have been successful nationally and locally in Dallas on one of the toughest circuits in the country. Prior to coaching at Irma Rangel, Kris had exclusively coached LD, working for Marcus, Westlake, Southlake, University School, and Law Magnet. His students achieved success on the local and national levels. In the span of six years, his LDers reached semis or better of TFA state five times, including the 2009 TFA State Champion and Top Speaker. He qualified many students to the TOC & NSDA Nationals and to reach elimination rounds—including a semifinalist at the TOC and top-11 finishes at NSDA Nationals.