Christy is the Executive Director of ACES. Over the past 28 years she has been an elementary school teacher, an elementary and middle school principal, and a charter leader in New Mexico. With the majority of her experience being in a leadership capacity, she has a strong knowledge base and broad understanding of the needs of New Mexico schools. Her vision for ACES is to be the first organization people consider when looking for support services for their schools.
Nancy has extensive experience in finance and provides key bookkeeping services for ACES.
As ACES financial manager, Katherine oversees all financial aspects of the business. Since 2014, her career has focused on gaining financial process efficiencies and improving human relations aspects for small businesses. Katherine grew up in Yokohama Japan and immigrated in 2002 where she graduated from the University of Massachusetts business school, Suma cum laude. Katherine spent several additional years in Japan working to improve military civilian relations in an advertising capacity, before returning to the US to complete an MBA in finance.
Tammy assists the ACES Chief Procurement Officer and works with ACES Participating Agencies, contractors and other vendors regarding all matters pertaining to procurement and contracting. She lives in Roswell where she retired as the Chaves County Purchasing Director in 2016, has worked as a public procurement educator for over 13 years and as a procurement professional consultant with agencies and private companies all across New Mexico. Tammy has been a part of the ACES team since 2022.
As ACES Administrative Assistant, Sharon provides assistance to all areas of ACES business. Composing the ACES Newsletter, maintaining the ACES Website and providing ACES communication are just a few facets of her job. As Employment Services manager, Sharon posts jobs for participating charter schools on various platforms and provides quality candidates for hire. She is also in charge of the Substitute Program for Albuquerque and Las Cruces. Sharon is a retired LCPS employee with 13 years of experience in elementary classrooms and 14 years as a principal. She was also an administrator at J. Paul Taylor Academy for two years.
Lorrie has been in finance since 1997 and has led many small businesses through varying financial climates along the way. She is excited to contribute to ACES in a supporting role and enjoys seeing the successes of charter schools in New Mexico.
Lauren Hunter, a native of Pennsylvania, has been making connections and building relationships in every career she’s held. From starting out in sales as a young student to being a private violin teacher for over 20 years to working in the New Mexico Charter sector in various positions for 10 years, Lauren loves making connections between great people and organizations. Formerly the Operations Coordinator for Public Charter School of New Mexico (PCSNM) and founding Suzuki Violin Specialist teacher at New Mexico International School, Lauren is excited to support NMACES in continuing to nurture important relationships between charter schools and top quality partners.
With nearly three decades of experience in education, Fred has served in various roles, from a classroom teacher at the elementary and secondary level, to an instructional coach, and principal, culminating in his professional career as a district central office Chief Academic Officer and Deputy Superintendent of Operations and Strategy. He has a history of advocacy and support for the charter school movement not only as a district authorizer, but also as the parent of a child that attended a state authorized charter school and a husband to an active public charter school advocacy and support leader. Fred takes immense pride in supporting schools on their academic improvement journeys through comprehensive programmatic development as well as ensuring strong operational foundations that enable leaders to focus on enhancing the student learning experience. As the Operations Manager at NMACES, Fred is excited to support charter schools in all aspects of school operations and is committed to partnering with organizations to help them stay mission-focused and achieve their goals. Fred was born and raised in the Texas and New Mexico Rio Grande Valley, where he celebrates his bilingual and bicultural heritage, sharing his unique story and perspective with family, friends, and colleagues. He and his wife share a son and daughter and have two grandchildren.
Chris serves as the Procurement Compliance Specialist for ACES. He brings five years of experience managing complex, large-scale initiatives from concept through implementation for a New Mexico-based public agency. With a background in government administration and project management, Chris has a strong knowledge base for navigating procurement and contracting. He is dedicated to providing the technical expertise and partnership necessary to help ACES members achieve their operational goals.
Tiffany serves as an Administrative Support specialist at ACES, bringing over 8 years of extensive experience in the finance sector. A graduate of the Anderson School of Management at the University of New Mexico, she leverages her background to provide exceptional organizational support. Tiffany is committed to operational quality and is dedicated to advancing the mission and success of New Mexico schools.
Dr. Valery Ratliff-Parker is an educational leader with more than two decades of service to New Mexico's students and families in the public school sector. Her expertise spans every phase of the charter school lifecycle. She coaches new and experienced charter leaders through school launch and facility acquisition, Public Education Commission renewals, Performance Framework negotiation, mission-specific indicator design, governing council policy development, budget construction, procurement, federal grant management, and NMPED-required 90-Day DASH improvement planning. Her earlier career as a high school mathematics teacher, instructional coach and data analyst, director of curriculum and instruction, and founding principal gives her the classroom credibility to sit alongside teachers and heads of school in the instructional work as well as the operational work. She holds a Doctorate of Education in Educational Administration and Leadership from Walden University, where her dissertation focused on identifying the challenges charter leaders face in New Mexico and the support structures and professional development strategies that help them stay in the work. She holds an active New Mexico Educational Administrator License and currently serves as a charter principal in Las Cruces, enhancing her research as a scholar-practitioner. A proud bilingual and bicultural Las Cruces resident and graduate of New Mexico State University, Dr. Ratliff-Parker considers southern New Mexico both her home and her calling. She and her husband have two children and two grandchildren and share a family love of travel, discovering new adventures together, and the kind of unhurried time around a table that turns an ordinary evening into something worth remembering. Whether she is coaching a first-year charter leader through a difficult meeting, translating a policy shift into practical guidance for schools across the state, or celebrating a Sunday meal with her family, her orientation is the same: show up fully, listen carefully, and leave people—and places—stronger than she found them.
