Dr. Valerie Paredes

Dr. Valerie Paredes is a distinguished School Counselor, counselor educator, advocate, and community leader whose career is rooted in a deep commitment to mental health, educational equity, student achievement, and college readiness. With more than 24 years of experience in education and counseling, she has dedicated her professional life to expanding access, breaking barriers, and creating pathways of opportunity for students and families across South Texas. As a first-generation college graduate, Dr. Paredes brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work, fueling her passion to help others recognize their potential and achieve beyond perceived limitations.

Dr. Paredes currently serves as the school counselor at UTRGV Harlingen Collegiate High, an early college high school that provides students the opportunity to earn college credit while completing high school. In this role, she leads a comprehensive, data-driven counseling program aligned with the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling and the ASCA National Model. Her work integrates academic planning, college and career readiness, social-emotional development, crisis response, and family engagement to ensure students receive holistic support. She is recognized for building systems that increase student success, promote resilience, and strengthen postsecondary outcomes.
Previously, she served eleven years at Harlingen High School South, including seven years as Head Counselor, where she led campus-wide initiatives that strengthened counseling services, graduation outcomes, and college-going culture.

Her professional experience spans K–12 education, higher education, disability services, and work with adjudicated youth. Early roles with the Texas Youth Commission and Texas State Technical College helped shape her belief in counseling as a transformative force for access, restoration, and opportunity.

Dr. Paredes is also a scholar and educator whose research interests include college students’ perceptions, schizophrenia, stigma, acculturation, and substance abuse along the South Texas/Mexican border. She has presented at the National Council on Rehabilitation Education National Conference and has been published in The Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education. Her research continues to inform her culturally responsive counseling practices and advocacy for historically underserved communities.

For more than a decade, Dr. Paredes has served as an adjunct professor at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and Our Lady of the Lake University, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in counseling, rehabilitation counseling, and related fields, helping prepare future counselors to enter the profession with competence, compassion, and a strong ethical foundation. She is also deeply committed to mentoring the next generation of helping professionals by supervising and supporting UTRGV counseling interns and social work interns. Through this mentorship, she provides meaningful field-based learning opportunities while helping future counselors and social workers develop the skills, confidence, and professional identity needed to effectively serve students and families.

Dr. Paredes’s professional contributions have earned regional and statewide recognition, including the Texas Counseling Association Presidential Award, selection as a 2025 H-E-B Excellence in Education finalist, and RGV Lead’s Counselor of the Year. She has also secured grant funding for student-centered initiatives, including a 2024 Harlingen Area Educational Foundation grant, a National Society of High School Scholars Social-Emotional Learning Grant, and a Be Kind Grant co-authored with her second-grade daughter.

A respected professional leader, Dr. Paredes serves as a 2025 Emerging Leader and Board Member for the Texas School Counselor Association. She is also a Program Reviewer for both the Texas School Counselor Association and Texas Counseling Association, supporting high-quality professional learning for counselors statewide. In addition, she has contributed to statewide efforts through the Texas Education Agency’s School Counselor Content Advisory Committee and Marker Selection and Standard Setting Committee, supporting work related to counselor standards, assessment, and certification. Dr. Paredes also serves as an Alternate Member of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Financial Aid Advisory Committee.

Beyond education, Dr. Paredes is a dedicated civic and community leader. She serves on the City of Harlingen Community Development Advisory Board, contributing to initiatives that support community growth, public service, and quality of life for residents. She is also an active volunteer with PSS–College Bound, where she supports Rio Grande Valley students in achieving their college aspirations.

In addition, Dr. Paredes serves as Social Media Coordinator for Harlingen United FC, a nonprofit youth soccer organization that strengthens community ties and promotes youth development through sport. Her involvement reflects her belief that schools, families, and community organizations must work together to nurture the whole child.

Dr. Paredes is a proud product of the Harlingen CISD school system and Rio Grande Valley universities. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from The University of Texas-Pan American, a Master of Education in Guidance and Counseling from The University of Texas at Brownsville, and a Ph.D. in Rehabilitation Counseling from The University of Texas-Pan American.

Dr. Valerie Paredes exemplifies leadership driven by purpose. Her career reflects an unwavering dedication to empowering students, supporting families, advancing the counseling profession, and building stronger communities. Through her scholarship, service, and advocacy, she continues to shape the future of education and inspire the next generation of leaders across Texas and beyond.