Board Members

Robyn Katz is a professor at University of Texas Law School and St. Mary’s Law School.  She has served as Chair of the State Bar of Texas Animal Law Section and Council Member of the Section. She has prosecuted animal cruelty cases and acted as counsel for an animal protection organization.  She did her undergraduate work at the University of Texas (Austin) and received her Juris Doctorate from Texas Tech Law School.

Fran Ortiz is a Professor of Law at South Texas College of Law Houston and adviser to the school’s Animal Law Clinic.  She joined STCLH in 1996 and teaches animal law, environmental law, natural resources management, water law, and property.  Before teaching full-time, Professor Ortiz practiced law with the Austin offices of Jones Day and Baker Botts and taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Texas at Austin.  Professor Ortiz’s research interests lie largely in the areas of animal law, land use, conservation, and endangered species, and she has written several articles and amicus briefs on these issues. She currently serves as chair of the ABA TIPS Animal Law Committee and secretary of the State Bar of Texas Animal Law Section.  She has previously served as chair of the Animal Law Section of the Association of American Law Schools, a director on the board of the Texas Humane Legislation Network, a council member on both the Animal Law and Environmental Law Sections of the Houston Bar Association, and as chair, vice chair and treasurer of the SBOT Animal Law Section.  Professor Ortiz received her J.D. from Harvard Law School and her B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Katy is on the University of Texas at Austin’s Gift and Estate Planning Team, raising funds for student and faculty support. In her free time, Katy volunteers for the Austin Animal Center to walk dogs and be a foster family for animals in need. She loves to spend time on Town Lake in Austin paddle boarding and kayaking with her husband, Chad. Especially when he’s paddling the kayak! Katy is passionate about finding a path towards a brighter future for farm animals.

Alison has worked at The Rape Crisis Center of San Antonio, where she coordinated a support hotline for incarcerated survivors of sexual violence. As a certified sexual assault program advocate, she has spent many late nights providing crisis intervention services at local hospitals. She has also worked extensively in the field of early childhood education, from her first position as an arts education intern to her eventual role of mentor teacher in a private preschool program. Alison studied English and Creative Writing at Oberlin College, and words and language are still her point of entry into any new passion. She is grateful to the writers who introduced her to animal rights and veganism, before she was lucky enough to find a community of activists. With her good friend (and fellow board member) Jacqueline, she organizes the San Antonio Vegetable Eaters (SAVE) Meetup group. Alison views her animal advocacy efforts as part of a larger commitment to social justice, and she is working toward an inclusive and intersectional vegan movement.

Daniela Castillo is a Mexican Veterinarian born and raised in Oaxaca, Mexico who is very passionate about animal rights, wildlife and environmentalism. Her dream as a child was always to help animals with her own hands.

Valedictorian of her class, she graduated with a Veterinary Medicine degree from Universidad Veracruzana in 2008. She completed a one-year internship in a government funded zoo in Veracruz City. She obtained a full scholarship from the Mexican government to study a Master degree in Wildlife Conservation at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.

 On March 2011 she started volunteering at St. Francis Wildlife Association, a wildlife rehabilitation center in Quincy, Florida. Thanks to her dedication and academic qualifications, she became the Director and licensed Wildlife rehabilitator in charge for nine months.

Daniela realized she could not help wildlife and other animals as much as she wanted to without being licensed to practice Veterinary Medicine in the United States. After almost four years of hard work and study as a veterinary technician, in April of 2016 Daniela became a Licensed Veterinarian in the State of California. 

Currently she works performing High Volume High Quality Spay and Neuter surgeries and practicing shelter medicine for several non-profit organizations. She also does pro-bono work for a farm animal sanctuary in the San Fernando Valley.

Dr. Castillo visualizes and works for a future world where all animals are free of pain, slavery and a cruel and unnecessary death. She envisions a world where Veterinarians will be the main defenders of these simple rights for animals.

Lauren graduated with Honors from the University of Texas School of Law and is a licensed attorney in Texas. She practices environmental justice and affordable housing law. Prior to attending law school, Lauren was an aquatic biologist in Central Texas working with endangered species endemic to the Comal Springs in the Edward’s Aquifer. She holds a M.S. in Aquatic Resources from Texas State University and a B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Biology from the University of Missouri. 

Lauren has served as Texas State Director of the Humane Society of the United States and Chapter President for the Central Texas Chapter of the Texas Humane Legislation Network.  She is an avid vegan cook and loves to hike and camp with her two pups, Ranger and Daffodil.