CELEBRATE THE ARTS
TTAO Standards & Practices
The following people are currently serving on the TTAO Standards and Practices committee.
Bobby Robinson
TTAO Region 1 Contest Manager Committee Member
Bobby Robinson directed the OAP (1974 Weinert HS), and 1977-2007 (Rule HS- 4 state contest appearances 1984, 1985, 1995 (1A Champ), 1996 (1A Runner-up). He has been stage manager for Region I-AA OAP contests 2003-2006. He retired in 2007 and has been an OAP contest manager since 2008, in all classifications--all levels--except the old 3A--in Regions I and II in the Abilene area. You may contact him at brobinson_br_43@yahoo.com
Jackie deMontmollin
TTAO Region 3 Adjudicator
Committee Member
Jackie deMontmollin serves as the Associate Director of Theatre Education at The University of Houston School of Theatre & Dance where she heads the Summer MA for Theatre Educators and the BFA in Theatre Education. She also teaches Arts Integration at The University of St. Thomas in Houston. Jackie taught Theatre in Texas Public Schools for 15 years and directed over 70 productions including four State qualifying One Act Plays. Jackie was honored to receive The Ross M. Lence Award for Excellence in Teaching from The University of Houston in 2012. She is proud to serve as a certified TTAO adjudicator. Jackie believes UIL One Act Play to be one of the most beneficial educational experiences a student can have and believes every child should have a quality arts education! You may contact her at jdemontmollin@uh.edu
Omar Leos
TTAO At-Large Committee Member
Omar Leos has taught 13 years in public schools in San Antonio. His last seven years he taught at Thomas Edison High School where his students made an appearance at the State Meet in 2011. His OAP’s have advanced to the district, area and regional levels. He believes strongly in the importance of educational theatre and the OAP. He is currently the coordinator for Visual and Theatre Arts for San Antonio ISD. You may contact Omar at omar.leos@gmail.com
Jay Thomas
TTAO At-Large Committee Member
Jay Thomas received his Associate of Arts degree at San Jacinto College-Central and his BA degree in Theatre from the University of Houston. He was first introduced to UIL in high school, where he participated as a student all four years. He then furthered his UIL education while at San Jacinto College-Central, where he studied under Dr. Jerry Ivins, assisting with their annual UIL clinics and 5A Area competitions. He feels that UIL OAP should first and foremost, be a learning experience for all involved.
You may contact Jay at jay.thomas@sjcd.edu
Yvonne Phillips-Dupree
TTAO Region 3 Contest Manager Committee member
Yvonne J. Phillips is a veteran of education who holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University and a Master of Fine Arts degree from UCLA. She is currently retired from the Houston Independent School District after having dedicated 36 years of tireless service. Previously, she taught theater arts at Sterling Senior High for 17 years having made it to the state meet five times. She has directed professionally at both the Encore and the Ensemble Theaters in Houston, Texas. You may contact her at phillipsdupreeyvonne@gmail.com
Michael Avila
TTAO Region 4 Contest Manager
Committee Member
Michael Avila was born and raised in El Paso, Texas. He received his Master of Arts degree in Theatre at the University of Houston and graduated with honors (cum laude) from Our Lady of the Lake University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts and Drama. Avila also studied at Lincoln Center Theatre in New York City; the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London; and Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago. As an actor and director, he has worked in various artistic and administrative capacities at organizations throughout San Antonio, including Jump-Start Performance Co., the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, and San Pedro Playhouse. From 2003 to 2012 he served as Stage Manager, Technical Director, and Director of the San Antonio holiday classic Las Nuevas Tamaleras. Avila began his career in educational theatre in 2002 at Southside High School. From 2008 to 2012 he served as Fine Arts Department Chair and Director of Theatre Arts at Karen Wagner High School in the Judson Independent School District. In 2011 Avila was selected as a member of the Fine Arts Review Committee for the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). As a theatre educator and UIL One-Act Play Director, Avila has directed students in numerous award-winning productions, including The Balkan Women, The Sins of Sor Juana, Our Leading Lady, Marisol, Antigone, The Diviners, Sueño, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Tartuffe, Once on this Island, AIDA, and The Beggar's Opera. Avila is a UIL One-Act Play Certified Contest Manager and also served on the Teacher Honor Crew for the OAP State Meet from 2010 to 2014. He is a member of the Texas Educational Theatre Association and is currently Director of Theatre Arts at Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio Independent School District. You may contact Michael at michaelavila77@gmail.com
Deb Shaw
TTAO Region 1 Adjudicator Committee Member
The Director of Fine Arts for Midland ISD, Deb Shaw has an extensive background in UIL Academics and One-Act Play. As a theatre director, she has had OAP companies appear at the State Meet three times winning first with The King Stag, 2nd with Our Country's Good and 3rd with Beggar's Opera. She has also served as a critic judge, contest manager and stage manager for district, area, region and state OAP contests. In 2014, Ms Shaw was invited as a high school adjudicator for the Southeastern Theatre Conference's High School Festival. A graduate of the University of North Texas, Ms Shaw was recognized as a UNT Outstanding Alumna in 2004 and was voted Most Inspirational Teacher by the senior class at Denton High School in 2002. She was inducted into the inaugural class of Texas Thespians Hall of Fame in 2011 and went on to win the Alma Slawinski Award of Excellence in 2013. She is working on her Ph.D. at Texas Tech University. You may reach Deb at deb.shaw@midlandisd.net
Michelle Howard-Schwind
TTAO Region 2 Adjudicator Committee Member
Dr. Michelle Howard-Schwind has been involved with UIL One-Act Play at every level. Dr. Howard-Schwind absolutely believes in the positive educational value of the experience of OAP. She started as an alternate 30 years ago. She managed the state contest in Austin for several years. Michelle taught high school theatre for 9 years. She has a BFA in Acting from UT Austin, and M.Ed from UTA, and a PH.D. from the University of North Texas. She also teaches as an adjunct college professor. Students and directors have spent so much time, love and energy on their work and should be recognized for their commitment and sacrifice to their art. You may contact Michelle at mhowardschwind@gmail.com
Craig Hertel
TTAO At-Large Committee Member
Craig Hertel has directed over 25 one-act plays, including six State Champions. He has served as chair of UIL's OAP Advisory Committee, is on the State Board of Texas Thespians, and was Assistant Director for the Texas All-State Show. He has directed for university theatre, including ACTF, and many community theatre shows. He has served as an Academic Coordinator, guiding his school to 14 State Academic Championships. You may contact Craig at craighertel@gmail.com
Mandy Epley
TTAO Region 4 Adjudicator Committee member
Mandy Epley holds a masters degree in Education Administration from Lamar and a BFA in Acting and Directing from Sam Houston State University. She served as the Director of Fine Arts for Comal ISD and is now Executive Director of Human Resources and Customer Service. She taught high school theatre for 16 years. Her productions qualified for Region multiple times and her students performed at the state meet in 2009. In addition to acting and directing professionally, she has served as a Camp on the Coast director at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, and Artistic Director of Inception Theatre. In 2012, Mandy was named Texas Educational Theatre Association Educator of the Year, in 2009, Brandeis High School Educator of the Year, Northside ISD High School Educator of the Year, and KENS5/SACU Excel Award winner. She is one of the authors of the Maestro Theatre Publications, LLC. Teacher Resource for Theatre Education and is a guest instructor for workshops and clinics across the state. You may contact Mandy at moojuice1975@yahoo.com
Freddie Buckner
TTAO At-Large Committee Member
Freddie Buckner taught high school and middle school theatre arts for thirty years in Texas. He has been an member of TETA for over 33 years and been involved in UIL on all levels of One-Act Play since 1976. He has the greatest respect for high school one-act play directors, especially beginners. While teaching at both MacArthur and Eisenhower High Schools in Houston, Freddie advanced from zone through regional contests numerous times and advanced to state twice, placing once. He did yearly performances for State Thespian Festivals and had two students on the State Thespian Board. His students competed at Nationals and in T.F.A. speech tournaments. You may reach Freddie at freddie.buckner@att.net
Karen King
TTAO Region 2 Contest Manager
Committee Member
Karen King holds a MA in Theatre Arts from the University of Houston and a BS in Drama/English Lit from East Texas State University. She spent the last 10 years directing OAP at the high school and Jr. High levels in Hillsboro, TX. She is currently the professor of Drama at Panola College. She is also a UIL OAP Certified Contest Manager. You may contact Karen at kking@panola.edu