Travis Garcia

Computer Science Education Specialist
Expanding Pathways in Computing

Email: tgarcia@tacc.utexas.edu

I like to think of my journey with TACC beginning in the summer of ‘24 through my involvement with the HS AI Hub and CS Cert Hub, though I will officially join the team on June 1st as a CS Education Specialist. Prior to joining TACC, I worked at Lufkin High School where I taught a variety of science courses eventually transitioning into computer science education. Throughout my teaching career it became clear I had a passion for emerging technologies, computational thinking and helping educators bring it all together into meaningful classroom experiences.

My dream/goal is to help TACC expand access to high-quality CS (and AI) education for all students, but especially those in rural and underserved communities. Coming from a rural/underserved community myself, I understand how transformative these opportunities can be and I hope to help bridge that gap for future learners and educators.

Selected Publications

Advancing AI Literacy Lessons

  • Unseen by the Machine: When People and Rocks Are Misread
  • Voices in the Stone - Science Meets Culture
  • Teaching the Machine - Classifying Rocks with AI

Presented Conference Session(s)

WeTeach CS Summit 2025:

  • If You’re Happy and You Code It: Experience Joy with Music and Computational Thinking
  • Deep in the Heart: A micro:bit Musical Road Trip
  • Row, Row, Row your Code: Navigating the Streams of Making Music on the TI Innovator Hub

CSTA TX Chapters Conference 2026 // CSTA 2026:

  • Deep in the Heart of Coding: A micro:bit Exploration of Culture and Creativity

Current Projects

 

  • Supporting STEM & Robotics initiatives through mentorship with FIRST Robotics Competition team 2582
  • Supporting educator PD in computational thinking and emerging technologies
  • Expanding equitable access to computer science and AI education

 

Areas of Research

  • AI literacy in K-12 education
  • Interdisciplinary STEM curriculum design
  • Robotics and physical computing
  • Computer vision

Memberships

  • CSTA - Greater Houston Chapter
  • Texas Speleological Association
  • Geological Society of America
  • Houston Aquarium Club