Staff
The Student Advisory Council is organized and supported by Young Invincibles, The Education Trust in Texas, Every Texan, and Breakthrough Central Texas as a joint initiative of the Texas Postsecondary Advocates Coalition for Equity (TX PACE).
As part of a paid fellowship through early 2023, student members will be actively engaged in the work of the Texas Commission on Community College Finance and subsequent legislative activity.
Meet the staff supporting the Student Advisory Council:
Kasey Corpus
Staff
Young Invincibles | Policy Manager and Advocacy Manager
Kasey Corpus is the Policy and Advocacy Manager at Young Invincibles. She lives in Austin, Texas and originally grew up near the border in the Rio Grande Valley. Her past experience includes campaigning for local officials, working at the Texas legislature, and developing community engagement strategy at the City of Austin. With her background in research, community outreach, and advocacy, she has worked to increase civic engagement and the representation of underserved communities in Texas. When she is not working, you can often find her in the crowd at an Austin FC game or looking for live music.
Will Davies
Staff
Policy and data analyst with Breakthrough Central Texas
Will Davies currently serves as a policy and data analyst with Breakthrough Central Texas, an educational non-profit organization that supports first-generation college aspirants to achieve their personal and professional goals from 6th grade through postsecondary completion. He is responsible for the execution of Breakthrough’s research and advocacy activities focused on improving postsecondary access and success for young Texans across institutional and local, state, and federal policymaking domains and leads the collection, management, and analysis of data to evaluate and improve outcomes and strategy. Originally from Boston, Will earned a B.A. in Political Science and Philosophy from Boston University then spent the next four years teaching English as a foreign language in South America.
After returning from abroad, he worked five years as a (Spanish/English) bilingual elementary classroom teacher and three as a campus literacy specialist in Central Texas public schools while earning a M. Ed. in Education Policy and Planning from the University of Texas at Austin where he is currently a doctoral student. Will’s academic research has often focused on the sociopolitical context of bilingual education, especially the rapid discursive shift around and expansion of dual language education and its implications for the access and experience of minoritized students and families.
He is also a research analyst and program evaluator for Building a Green Texas: Activating a New Generation of Sustainability Leaders, an initiative that partners the University of Texas system, Texas school districts, sustainability professionals, municipal governments, and community based organizations to strengthen climate resiliency through the development of green building pipelines and active environmental education opportunities for high school-aged youth from the communities most impacted by climate change and least represented in green careers. Will loves to spend as much of his free time as possible outdoors hanging out, hiking, cooking, biking, swimming, camping, or playing sports with family and friends.
Andrea Thurston
Staff
Ed Trust Texas | Senior Higher Education Policy Analyst
For over a decade, Thurston has worked toward educational equity as an educator, strategist, and consultant. She has led institutions around the nation in achieving strategic plans for more inclusive campuses. Her platform comes from her endeavors at the University of Missouri post-Ferguson to encourage the institution to confront its inequities, using past shortcomings as a framework to create an equitable and intersectional learning environment for the future. For these efforts, she was awarded by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and featured in the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
As a Chicago native and the granddaughter of freedom fighters, Thurston earned a B.A. inPsychology and Sociology from the University of Missouri and a Master of Science in Education and Education Policy from Johns Hopkins University. Her journey navigating inequitable systems fuels her passion for closing achievement, attainment, and opportunity gaps. She seeks to continue to yield successful policy change on the local and state level while keeping the voices of historically excluded communities at the center.
Jonathan Feinstein
Staff
Ed Trust Texas | Staff Director
Jonathan brings more than 15 years of experience in education as a teacher, organizer and nonprofit leader. He serves as the State Director of Texas, where he works with and supports partners statewide to advance educational equity for students of color and from low-income backgrounds.
Prior to joining Ed Trust, Jonathan worked at the Commit Partnership, where he led community engagement and advocacy efforts to bring together a wide range of systems leaders and directly impacted stakeholders to improve cradle-to-career outcomes for students in Dallas County. Before that, Jonathan worked as a middle school and special needs teacher, and continues to engage directly with educators, students and other leaders to deepen learning and commitment to racial equity.
Morgan McCaul
Staff
Breakthrough Central Texas l Program and Advising Coordinator, College & Career Success
Born & raised in Minnesota, Morgan brings deep experience in community care, access, advocacy empowerment, and holistic support in the context of systemic obstacles. Her commitment to service and education for autonomy was fostered at St. Olaf College, where she graduated with a BA in Psychology with minors in Education and Neuroscience. She spent three years working with her campus Wellness Center as a Peer Educator providing accessible and medically accurate information, community outreach, risk-reduction programming, and peer substance coaching. Following graduation, she packed up her car and moved to Austin TX where she served two years in AmeriCorps national service working directly with first generation college students through educational access, relational support, and advocacy. In the spring of 2025 she joined Young Invincibles as a Young Advocate during the 89th Texas legislative session, where she worked in community organization and advocated for healthcare, educational, and economic mobility access for young adults.
She currently sits at the intersection of direct service work as a Program Coordinator with Breakthrough Central Texas, policy and advocacy as a member of the Texas Youth Advisory Board with Young Invincibles, and is excited to merge the two in her role supporting the Student Advisory Council!
Elias Ramirez
Staff
Young Invincibles | Southern Program Coordinator
Elias Ramirez serves as the Southern Program Coordinator at Young Invincibles. He previously worked as Program Coordinator at the Galveston County Food Bank, overseeing initiatives that supported more than 250 homebound seniors and 20 schools across the county. Elias is President and Board Chair of the Hispanic Business Network of Galveston County and Treasurer of Lifeline of Galveston County, where he leads community efforts to support small businesses and vulnerable populations. He is also an alumnus of the Texas PACE Student Advisory Council, where he contributed to student-centered policy work. He currently serves on several local municipal and educational committees focused on civic engagement and community development. Elias holds a B.S. in Public Service Leadership from the University of Houston–Clear Lake. In his free time, he mentors first-generation students, volunteers in his community, and participates in local civic events.