Lauren Puente grew up in Richmond, Texas with one goal in mind, to attend Texas A&M University. Lauren’s great uncle, Colonel Robert Dixon, who was both a TAMU Junction Boy and Air Force One pilot, taught Lauren about Aggie traditions and the honor it is to become an Aggie.
Lauren received both her undergraduate and master’s degrees from the Department of Education at Texas A&M University with a specialized interest in Special Education and Behavior.
While at Texas A&M University, Lauren worked for the Educational Psychology Department under Dr. Kimberly Vannest on Project Data to Knowledge, ProjectD2K, as their Program Specialist. This teacher training grant was funded by the Texas Education Agency. It was in this program that her love for training teachers grew. Learning to instruct teachers on how to fill the research to practice gap became an area of interest and passion for her.
Lauren was one of Texas A&M’s undergraduate research scholars, with a research interest in preservice teachers. She worked as a Special Education Teacher in College Station ISD focusing on students with Autism and Emotional Disturbances. She also served as the Department Head of a large Special Education Department at Oakwood Intermediate School.
Lauren’s proudest moment as an educator was being nominated at Barnes and Noble as Teacher of the Year by her student Timothy. His speech stated,
“She makes me a good man, and a smart man.”
From that point forward, Lauren felt that it was her calling to help others see the potential in themselves. Lauren has many influential students in her life that helped her realize how important it was for her to move back into teacher training.
Two students in particular, Grace and Olivia, were able to shine and grow with the continued collaboration of their parents, teachers, case managers, and Lauren.
Lauren now serves the students and teachers of Region 6 in Huntsville. In Texas, each school is assigned to an Educational Service Center. Lauren is the Behavior Specialist – Special Education at the Region 6 Education Service Center and has the main goal and priority of building the capacity of teachers and district leaders to create sustainability throughout the district, but more importantly, sustainability of important life skills in the lives of each student that the educators she works with impact.
Additionally, Lauren serves on the Texas Behavior Support Network to assist districts in the implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). She works with the school improvement teams to assist districts who are identified as Improvement Required by the Texas Education Agency. She is a Restorative Discipline Trainer, and provides Crisis Prevention Training to districts in her region. Lauren also serves as a liaison for districts and outside service agencies by participating in Community Resource Collaboration Groups (CRCG) meetings throughout her region.
Lauren continues to call College Station home. She resides here with her husband, Jason, and two stepsons, Bryce and Kade. Lauren loves to serve her community, by being an active member on the boards of both College Station Little League and the various PTO boards where her two stepson’s attend.
Aggieland helped make me who I am, and continues to shape me and remind me of the importance of family, love, dedication, and tradition, each and every day. This place is like no other.