Your Chapter Board

President: Lindsey Clark, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC, PMHS

Lindsey began her career in pediatrics in 2005. Her nursing journey has included roles in the newborn nursery at both an urban medical center and a small community hospital, the acute care pediatric floor, pediatric primary care, and the NICU, where she was a member of the neonatal transport team. Despite her diverse experience, she fell in love with primary care due to the trusting relationships she could build with her patients and their families. In 2019, she graduated from Maryville University with a Master of Science in Nursing as a pediatric nurse practitioner. From 2020 to 2022, she was a visiting professor of nursing at Arkansas Tech University, where she honed her skills as an educator and mentor. She completed her Doctor of Nursing Practice at Maryville University in August 2022. In 2025, Lindsey completed her Primary Care Mental Health Specialist certification (PMHS) through PNCB to better serve her rural community's mental health needs in the primary care setting. She is married to her husband, Dallis, and they have two boys, Parker, 16, and Emmett, 11. In her spare time, she enjoys shopping, watching her boys play sports, and helping them with their FFA show goats.

President-Elect: Kenda F. Rogers, MSN, CPNP

Kenda Rogers has dedicated more than three decades to pediatric and newborn healthcare. She began her nursing career in 1992 at Children’s Medical Center Dallas, where she worked on the General Pediatrics and Neurosurgery Unit. After four years of bedside nursing, she advanced her career by becoming a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner.

For the past 30 years, Kenda has served at Parkland Health in the Newborn Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) Department. Throughout her career, she has provided compassionate, family-centered care to thousands of newborns and their families. Her extensive clinical experience includes attending low-risk deliveries as the pediatric provider, performing comprehensive newborn examinations, providing infant care education, performing circumcisions, and mentoring nursing students and new nurse practitioners.

Over the last eight years, Kenda has served as Manager of the Newborn APRNs, leading a highly skilled team dedicated to delivering exceptional newborn care. She finds great fulfillment in supporting both patients and healthcare professionals while fostering excellence in clinical practice.

Outside of work, Kenda enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with family and friends. She and her husband, Richey, share their home with their two beloved dogs, Lucy and Buddy.

Immediate Past President: April Meras, DNP, FNP

Dr. April Meras, is a family nurse practitioner. She was born and raised in Dallas, TX. April graduated from the High School of Health Professions at the Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Magnet Center in 1999. She received her BSN in 2004 from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and her MS in 2012 from Texas Womans University. April completed her DNP through the University of Texas at Arlington in 2022. She has been a Family Nurse Practitioner for 13 years. Her nursing background includes inpatient gynecology/oncology surgery at Baylor University Medical Center and inpatient general pediatrics at Children's Medical Center Dallas. After graduating from NP school, she worked in family practice for 5 years and later was the owner and sole provider of a pediatric practice, Kidz Choice Pediatrics, in Dallas. April currently works for Parkland at two locations working in pediatric primary care mostly with newborns. April is married with two daughters, ages 5 and 16, and two stepdaughters, ages 21 & 22. In her spare time she loves to travel and spend time with family and friends. 

Secretary: Allison Harker, RN, MSN, CPNP

Allison is a pediatric nurse practitioner at Parkland Hospital, where she has worked for more than 30 years as part of the APRN team that cares for all the normal newborns born at the hospital, which can be more than 1,000 a month. Before working at Parkland, she worked as a pediatric nurse practitioner for an allergy/immunology doctor and began her career as a pediatric nurse at Baylor. Allison loves the diverse population at Parkland and enjoys being part of a happy time for many families. She has precepted numerous students and new nurse practitioners over the years. Allison is married to her husband, Dan, and has two children who are both married. She has 4 grandchildren. In her free time, she enjoys taking walks, reading, volunteering, travelling, and babysitting her grandkids.

Treasurer: Melissa Rowles, MSN, APRN, CPNP

Melissa is a pediatric nurse practitioner at John Peter Smith Hospital. She has worked at JPS for 12 years as a primary care provider in the Haltom City School-Based Clinic and now in the Grapevine Colleyville Pediatric Clinic. She previously worked at Children’s Health in Dallas for 19.5 years as an RN, team leader, and practice manager. She has a passion for caring for the underserved pediatric population and children with developmental problems, such as autism. Rowles also promotes the nursing profession by being a mentor and preceptor for nurse practitioner students. She has worked with more than 50 students in her role as a nurse practitioner, encouraging them to be their best to better serve the children they will see in the future. She is married to her husband, Kevin, and has a stepdaughter, son-in-law, grandson, and two fur children. In her free time, she enjoys scrapbooking, reading, and spending time with family and friends.

Communications Chair: Quanica Darden, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC

Dr. Darden is a pediatric nurse practitioner and primary care provider at Parkland’s Community Oriented Primary Care of Southeast Dallas Health Center and clinical adjunct professor at Baylor University Louise Herrington School of Nursing (LHSON). She obtained her Doctorate of Advanced Practice Registered Nursing from Texas Tech University in 2020 and her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Grambling State University. She has worked in primary care and has served as a preceptor to nurse practitioner students in pediatric and family tracks for more than 13 years. She dedicates her professional time to advocating for and enhancing pediatric care. She has a passion for preventive health and provides guidance using a collaborative coaching style. She finds great joy in working with children and young families, demonstrating cultural competency and providing personalized, quality care. She is especially passionate about working with adolescents as they transition into young adults, teen moms, and asthma management. In her spare time she loves to read!
 

Legislative Chair: Cathy Lux, DNP, RN, CPNP-PC

Catherine Lux DNP, MBA, APRN, CPNP has been a pediatric nurse practitioner for over 3 decades. She has worked clinically most of that time as a PCP in Oak Cliff at a clinic founded by newborn nursery NPs in 1995 in response to a lack of sufficient pediatric primary care in South Dallas. She received her DNP and MSN from UTA, where she subsequently was an associate clinical professor for several years. Prior to her NP role, she was a PICU nurse for seven years after receiving her BSN (and also humanities BA) from Johns Hopkins University.
A passionate supporter of APRNs in leadership and advocacy, Dr. Lux received her MBA at UT Dallas in 2020.  As Manager of Advanced Practice for primary care APPs since 2018, the APP service line in COPC has more than doubled, and their transition to the PCP role has greatly expanded access to care for underserved patients in Dallas. She is immediate past president of APRN Council at Parkland. Dr. Lux is also active in professional organizations, including past-President of both North Texas Nurse Practitioners and of Greater Texas NAPNAP, and currently serves as Legislative Chair for a Greater Texas NAPNAP’ and also North Texas NPs. She has also been a legislative ambassador for TNP for the past several years and has attended AANP Health Policy conference in Washington DC annually since 2013.

Community Engagement Chair: Theresa M. Willey MSN, CPNP

Membership Chair: Van Nguyen MSN, RN, CPNP

Student Liaison: Sammie Smith, BSN, RN, NCSN

I am first-generation college student and bachelor’s prepared Registered Nurse. I obtained my BSN in 2019 from the University of Oklahoma and began my nursing career in Adult Surgical Trauma in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I am currently working to attain a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in Primary Care.

I most recently worked as a school nurse in Dallas, Texas. I hold credentials as a Registered Nurse and Nationally Certified School Nurse. I have been actively working as a Registered Nurse for six years, with five years serving the pediatric population. I am a committed patient advocate with a heart for children and education. 

Nominations Chair: April Meras, DNP, FNP

Dr. April Meras, is a family nurse practitioner. She was born and raised in Dallas, TX. April graduated from the High School of Health Professions at the Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Magnet Center in 1999. She received her BSN in 2004 from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and her MS in 2012 from Texas Womans University. April completed her DNP through the University of Texas at Arlington in 2022. She has been a Family Nurse Practitioner for 13 years. Her nursing background includes inpatient gynecology/oncology surgery at Baylor University Medical Center and inpatient general pediatrics at Children's Medical Center Dallas. After graduating from NP school, she worked in family practice for 5 years and later was the owner and sole provider of a pediatric practice, Kidz Choice Pediatrics, in Dallas. April currently works for Parkland at two locations working in pediatric primary care mostly with newborns. April is married with two daughters, ages 5 and 16, and two stepdaughters, ages 21 & 22. In her spare time she loves to travel and spend time with family and friends.