Lori Tays, Trustee since 2023

Lori Tays is a passionate advocate for students, teachers, and public education. A mother of two Denton ISD children, Ms. Tays has been actively involved in the district as a PTA member since her oldest child started kindergarten.

Born and raised in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, Ms. Tays recognized the need to serve others from an early age, leading to a career in emergency medicine. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Western Governors University and later returned to complete her MBA, driven by a desire to better serve her community through leadership, innovation, and systems-level improvement in healthcare and education.

Over the past 19 years, Ms. Tays has served a number of DFW communities as an EMT and nurse, working in Level 1 trauma centers, county facilities, and community hospitals. In 2017, she answered a calling to pediatric emergency medicine and joined Children’s Health, where she quickly developed a deep connection to the mission: Make Life Better for Children.

A Denton County resident for the past ten years, Ms. Tays continues to give back through her service on the Denton ISD Board of Trustees and her role as a troop leader with Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas. She also served on the Texas Association of School Boards Legislative Advisory Committee, helping shape the 2025 legislative priorities for public school districts across the state.

Memberships

• Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
• Denton ISD PTA
• National Society of Leadership and Success
• Emergency Nurses Association
• Society of Pediatric Nurses
• MASBA – School Board Members for Latino Equity
• Texas Association of School Boards
• North Texas Area Association of School Boards

Awards

• Juliette Gordon Low Leadership Award, Girl Scouts Northeast Texas, 2024, 2025
• Ethical Leadership Excellence Award, Western Governors University, 2024
• Employee of the Year, THR Flower Mound, 2016