Texas’ Strength Through Restoration, Independence, Vision and Empowerment (STRIVE) Reentry Program

ICPA2024 Presentation by April Zamora, Kristina Hartman and Doug Dretke (ICPA2024-PID028)

Authors

April Zamora

Division Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

April Zamora has worked for the State of Texas in Corrections since 1998 and is currently the Director of the Reentry and Integration Division at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. She serves on the American Correctional Association’s Community Corrections Committee and is an appointed Commissioner for the Texas Judicial Commission on Mental Health.
Ms. Zamora held several positions and roles within criminal justice, including parole officer, parole unit supervisor, program specialist for substance use services, internal audit and training, and Director of the Texas Correctional Office for Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments. She served as the president of the Texas Corrections Association (TCA) and previously as vice president, secretary, and treasurer and became a proud recipient of the TCA Star Award and TCA Presidents Gavel. Ms. Zamora also served on the American Correctional Association’s Corrections Delegate Assembly and the Parole and Probation Committee.
Ms. Zamora strives to use her experience working with justice-involved juveniles and adults to engage in the development and growth of programs and policies that foster a successful reentry into the community in her role at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and as an appointed Commissioner for the Texas Judicial Commission on Mental Health.

Kristina Hartman

Superintendent, Windham School District

Kristina J. Hartman, Ed.S. is the Superintendent of the Windham School District, operating prison-based schools in Texas. Ms. Hartman started her over 20-year journey in education as an intern at the Adult Probation Office in Waco, Texas and then relocated to Florida and began her career with the Florida Department of Corrections. She served in various roles before returning to Texas. In September of 2019, she was unanimously appointed by the Windham Board of Trustees as the district’s superintendent where her team of over 1,000 employees supports 50,000 students a year at 97 campuses in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Ms. Hartman holds a bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in Political Science from Baylor University, a master’s degree in Special Education and education specialist’s degree in Educational Leadership from the University of West Florida.

Superintendent Hartman currently serves as the President of the Council of Education Directors for the Correctional Education Association.

Doug Dretke

Director of the Office of Comparative and International Education and Leadership, Sam Houston State University

Doug Dretke is the Director of the Office of Comparative and International Education and Leadership within the College of Criminal Justice at Sam Houston State University (SHSU). He retired as the Executive Director of the Correctional Management Institute (CMIT) at SHSU after serving 17 years. Doug served 26 years with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) beginning as a correctional officer and advancing throughout his career. He held senior and executive leadership positions for 13 years, including Warden, Regional Director and Director of TDCJ’s Correctional Institutions Division, responsible for over 100 prison facilities.
Mr. Dretke is active with associations including the American Probation and Parole Association, American Jail Association, North American Association of Wardens and Superintendents, International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA), and the American Correctional Association (ACA). He is currently Chair of the ACA Resolutions and Policy Committee, member of ACA’s International Committee, and past Chair of the Professional Certification Commission. Doug is a Board Member of the ICPA – North America Chapter and Deputy Chair of ICPA’s Staff Training and Professional Development Network. Doug is a past president of the Texas Corrections Association and received the Dr. George J Beto Hall of Honor Award in 2009 recognizing his significant achievements to the correctional profession. Doug was recently selected as the 2024 recipient of ACA’s E.R. Cass Correctional Achievement Award – ACA’s highest honor. Doug earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminology and Corrections from SHSU and a Master of Public Administration from Texas A&M, Corpus Christi.

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