2025 Board Election

The following are candidates for the 2025-2027 ATPI Board. Use the link provided in the email sent to members to cast your vote by April 9, 2025. There is no limit to the number of vice presidents for the board. The ballot will allow a write-in vote for any position.

The membership at the 2023 Winter Conference approved a change to the By Laws that allows non-classroom teachers to make up no more than 30% of the board as long as they have past teaching experience.

President

Josette Coker

Josette Coker is the CTE Commercial Photography teacher and Yearbook Adviser at VR Eaton High School in Haslet, Texas which is north of Fort Worth. She has an associate's degree from Tarrant County College in Fort Worth and a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies from Western Governors University. She is a lifelong yearbook nerd with a newfound love for teaching photography.

GOAL: As president, I want to continue the amazing work to expand workshops, competition opportunities, and networking with other teachers. I also want to increase our membership to include young teachers starting out and offer new teacher professional development opportunities and/or organized curriculum.

Vice President

Mark Dimmitt

Mark Dimmitt teaches Commercial Photography along with advising the yearbook and is the UIL Journalism team coach at Hallsville High School. He has over 40 years experience as a photographer. He earned a B.S. in Mass Communications from East Central University, an MBA from East Texas Baptist University and is ranked as a Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) with the Professional Photographers of America.

GOAL: My goal this term will be to further expand our membership in both still and video programs. I hope to also continue working on building a relationship with working professional photographers through the Texas Professional Photographers of America and the national Professional Photographers of America organizations.

Matthew Koby

Matthew Koby graduated from Rice University with a degree in Filmmaking and Photography. After working as a director of morning news on a Houston TV station he started teaching the video production courses at Dickinson High School.

GOAL: I’m proud that we have been able to expand the Hal Fulgham scholarship to include a video category. I would like to continue to expand our contest and professional development programs in video. As the industry continues to trend towards mixed multimedia platforms, broadening skillsets will prepare our students for success.

Laura Spray

Laura Spray is the photography teacher at Trimble Tech High School in Fort Worth, TX. She has been teaching for 8 years. She has a bachelor of fine arts in photography from Sam Houston State University.

GOAL: As a board member I would like to reach more students and teachers to encourage them to attend conferences, such as winter conference and summer workshop. Due to time constraints in my life I will be stepping down from President into a vice president position at this time.

Laura Veno

Laura Veno has been an artist and photographer for more than 30 years. She first picked up a camera in her high school darkroom class and never looked back. She has been a professional photographer and art and photography educator in Texas high schools since 2011. Through this combination of traditional and digital art, Laura and her team in Glen Rose ISD have earned the TAEA District of Distinction award as a top art program in the state of Texas three years in a row.

GOAL: Continue to grow the blurred line between art and photography, working with art teachers and digital instructors alike. “Observation is an art that leads to preservation. The display of preservation is a practice that allows a shared experience with art.”