Kaylan D. Smith

Regional Advocacy Director – Dallas County
[email protected]



Kaylan Dixon Smith joined the Raise Your Hand Texas Foundation in fall 2019 as the regional advocacy director for Dallas County. Kaylan hails from Dallas and attended schools there and in Mesquite. She received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Fisk University and a Master of Education in administration from Lamar University. She is pursuing a Juris Doctorate from the University of North Texas – Dallas College of Law.
Kaylan returned home to serve students in the Dallas Independent School District for almost 10 years. She joined Teach for America after college and taught kindergarten through 3rd grade before transitioning to facilitator for the Teacher Excellence Initiative. She continued her work in Dallas ISD as lead instructional specialist in the Early Learning Department and supported the Accelerating Campus Excellence initiative.
Kaylan is a true advocate of public education and believes all students deserve a quality education.