PRESIDENT: David González
David González brings experience, perspective and a great enthusiasm to the Seedling Foundation.  As a founding partner of Sumpter & González, L.L.P., David González grew up with parents who inspired, nearly required, him to attend college with the plan of going on to obtain a graduate degree. After earning a BA at Dartmouth he fulfilled his parents' wishes and enrolled in law school at Stanford. There he not only got a first-rate legal education, but also met Corinne Sumpter, his wife, business partner and fellow attorney.  After graduating from Stanford he spent time in Mexico brushing up on his Spanish and then came to Austin to begin his practice. He founded The González Firm in 1999, won several worker's rights cases, became interested in juvenile and criminal cases after visiting Corinne in Washington D.C.  After only two years of practice, his solitary firm morphed into partnership. David is also a graduate of the Leadership Austin Class of 2007.

David combines his various interests in law, individuals, social activism, graphic design, business, laughter, humanity and transcendent existence into one entity that operates under the label Law Firm. The way he treats it, though, Sumpter & González is a hub: A hub for help, for hope, for guidance. In order to give his clients more than any other lawyer ever has, he built a team of talented staff members. He hired a former juvenile probation officer to organize services for our clients and their families. David hired a full-time investigator to keep our attorneys as knowledgeable as possible. He hired a graphic designer to perfect visual aids and technology for trial. He hired the most talented office manager in Texas to ensure that communication between clients and attorneys remains as clear and timely as possible. David's thirst to help people extends to the Seedling Foundation's program to match children of incarcerated parents with caring mentors from our community. In addition to other numerous awards throughout his career, David was a 2008 Finalist, American Bar Association National Outstanding Young Lawyer Award and named 2008 Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year by the Austin Young Lawyers Association.  He was also identified as Austin Bar Association and Texas Monthly Rising Star, Criminal Law for 2008.

Kali' was recognized by the Austin SERTOMA Club as its 2009 "Service to Mankind Award" recipient for her many years of service to children in the Austin community.   Kali' has served as Treasurer for two AISD Board of Trustee races and this led to her interest in getting involved in the District.  She will serve on the AISD District Advisory Council for 2010-2012 and is also a graduate of the 2008-2009 AISD UpClose program. She is a former member of the Austin Chamber of Commerce Education Report Card Task force and an Oak Tree Award Winner for Volunteerism from the Austin Council  of PTA. In 2004, Murchison Middle School presented Kali' with a lifetime membership to the Texas PTA in recognition for her accomplishments for the benefit of the school. 

Kali' and her husband Dan created the Seedling Foundation Rourke College Scholarships, which encourage Seedling Foundation mentored middle school students entering high school by guaranteeing them funds toward their college education. Kali' also serves as web administrator and a creative designer for the Seedling Foundation. 

TREASURER: Sue Frye
In addition to her duties as a Senior Vice President at Frost Bank, Sue leads the wonderful Frost Bank A-Team as they help with Seedling Campus Beautification and make such a difference at the schools they volunteer in.  She and her co-workers mentor as well, and her support of the foundation over the years has been invaluable.  Sue serves on many boards in the Austin area and is an outstanding representative for both Frost Bank and the Seedling Foundation.

SECRETARY:  Patricia Whiteside
Patricia Whiteside has been a Certified Public Accountant since November1982 and is currently the president of the Austin firm, Whiteside & Huver CPA, PC which was incorporated in 2000.  Prior to 2000, Pat was a sole proprietor for 18 years and also served for 3 years in the Texas State Auditors Office and 9 years with the Internal Revenue Service.

Pat received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting in August 1980 and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology in December 1972.  She is licensed by the Texas State Board of Accountancy and is a member of the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants and its local Austin Chapter. Pat is a member of the Oak Hill Business and Professional Association.  She is also a member of the Board of Directors of both the South Austin Civic Club and the Lake Travis Lodges Marina Association.  She is a former member of the Board of Trustees of the Austin Independent School District.

Pat has been married to W. Robin Whiteside since February 14, 1976 and they have two adult children, William R. Whiteside, Jr. (29) and Brandy E.Whiteside (25).  

CHAIRMAN of the BOARD - Founder: John C. Blazier
John C. Blazier is the founder of the Seedling Foundation, formerly known as the Travis Community Education Foundation, and an ardent supporter of public education for many years in partnership with AISD.  A prominent attorney and partner in Blazier, Christensen, Bigelow & Virr, John has lent his vision, energy and talent for networking to further the interests of schoolchildren throughout the district.  He has been named Partner of the Year and also led the Partners in Education organization.  John has been recognized many times for his community leadership and passion for education, including the "Five Who Care" award. There is not a program at the Seedling Foundation that has not been envisioned and supported by John and in recognition of his outstanding contributions to AISD, the John C. Blazier Elementary School opened in the fall of 2007.  In 2009, John was honored by the Austin Bar Association with the David H. Walter Community Excellence Award for his work with the Seedling Foundation, acknowledging his "significant work in the community that has raised the profile of the legal profession."

Mary Alice holds M.Ed. and B.S. degrees from Southwest Texas State University and was the proud principal of Akins High School in AISD.  She has seen first hand the results that Seedling CAMP has had and Akins was proud to announce that three of the four original students who participated in CAMP (College Admissions Mentoring Program) achieved Commended or Semi Finalist level for National Merit recognition in 2006.  In 2009 Ms Deike graduated from the University of Texas with a doctorate degree in Education Leadership.

Raffy Garza-Vizcaino
Raffy Garza-Vizcaino was formerly the Executive Principal for Middle Schools of the Leadership Development Academy of AISD. In this position with AISD, Ms. Vizcaino acted as a mentor to Principals and collaborates with the Associate Superintendents to form the kind of teaching environment that nurtures both teacher and student.  A former AISD Principal at both the middle and elementary levels (Martin Middle School and Brooke Elementary School), Ms. Vizcaino is an experienced administrator as well as an experienced teacher. Raffy began her career in teaching in 1976 and has seen many changes along the way.  She earned her Master's in Education at A&M Tarleton University and has won numerous awards for both teaching and leadership.  A few highlights have been Region XIII Teacher of the Year, AISD Teacher of the Year and AISD Jr. High Teacher of the Year.

David Grant Halpern
David Halpern has been an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Texas since 1994. He is a member of the Agency's Civil Medicaid Fraud Division. He serves on the Attorney General's Training and Recruiting Committees. He is the founder and director of the Attorney General's Distinguished Speakers Program and he is a regular speaker at in-house and inter-agency seminars and workshops.  In addition to U.T. Law, his teaching background includes service as faculty for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, the National Association of Attorney's General, and the State Bar of Texas. David is a contributing author to the book, Practicing Medicine in the 21st Century.

David received his undergraduate degree in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin with High Honors. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Texas School of Law in 1994.  David is board certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.  He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and the College of the State Bar of Texas. He is licensed to practice in the State of Texas and is admitted to practice before the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States District Courts of Texas.

David is a member of the Board of Directors for the Mental Health America of Texas, Set2Serve, and is a participating mentor for the Seedling Foundation's Children of the Incarcerated Program. He and Linda Sue have been married for 23 years and is fortunate to be the father to Joshua Nathaniel Halpern, 18 and Katelyn Rose Halpern, 20.

Patrick Patterson
Patrick Patterson began his teaching career in 1981 at the high school level in Chicago, IL where he taught Algebra, Physical Education, and coached basketball and baseball. Upon completion of his Masters Degree in Education from Chicago State University in 1983, he moved to Austin where he taught for seven years at Blackshear Elementary, and served as asst. principal at Summitt Elementary for two years. In 1992, he began his tenure as an AISD principal at Reilly Elementary, where he remained until his move in 1996 to Dobie MS. In 1999, he was named principal at Lanier HS, where he remained until 2004.

In 2004, as part of the district blueprint initiative, Mr Patterson was named principal of LBJ HS, where he recently retired. Some of the previously mentioned schools attained State and National Recognition during the time of his service. Reilly Elementary became "Recognized" in 1996, Lanier was ranked 202 in the top 1200 High Schools, according to Newsweek, during his last year of administration in 2004.  LBJ cracked the top 100 at 95 in 2007 in the same Newsweek annual ranking system. Mr Patterson is the only person in the history of AISD to have successfully served as principal at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. In 2009 Patrick Patterson was selected as the APIE - AISD High School Principal of the Year.

Mr Patterson enjoys reading, music, weight-training, fast cars, and Harley-Davidsons in his spare time. He has been married since 1992 to his wife Janet. He has two daughters, Avaire and Amani. 

Angel Rangel
Angel Rangel is the Construction Supervisor of Rangel Concrete, Ltd. where he has experience in all areas of phases of residential and commercial construction including excavation.  A former student and strong supporter of Austin public schools, Mr. Rangel is a graduate of Travis High School where he saw the Seedling Foundation's work firsthand and later earned his Bachelor's degree in Business Administration at Texas State University.  Angel has a great deal of experience in project management and quality control and a strong interest in the Campus Beautification program of the Seedling Foundation.  

Carol Wright
As the Vice President of Educational Services of Skillpoint Alliance, Carol oversees Skillpoint’s Educator Professional Development initiatives.  Committed to improving college and career success for youth in the Capital area, Carol supervises the implementation of Skillpoint’s annual College and Career Fair for more than 3,000 Central Texas high school juniors and seniors.

A true advocate for career and technology education, Carol also coordinates business and industry visits for guidance counselors and coordinates an annual Educators Conference. Prior to coming to Skillpoint in 1998, Carol worked for 11 years as the Director of School-to-Career Programs for the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce.

Carol is the recipient of the 1997 Layperson Exemplary Service Award from the Texas Counseling Association and the 2006 Career & Technology Association of Texas Award. She is also active in the community outside of Skillpoint. Carol has volunteered for eight years with the Austin Area Heritage Council and has served as chair for the last four, helping coordinate the annual Austin Area MLK Community Celebration.  She currently serves on the KLRU Community Advisory Board and chairs the education and scholarship committee at her church. She also mentors a middle school student weekly through the Seedling's Promise Program. Carol is the grandmother of 15 grandchildren.