Education Policy and Management Class of 2015 -2016 Anna Asendorf [email protected] San Antonio, Texas Community engagement, nonprofit leadership, urban education, youth development, anti-racist leadership Anna grew up on a farm in rural Minnesota and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and Chinese. She spent the last three years teaching language arts at a Title I middle school in San Antonio. During that time, she also coached volleyball and track. Anna hopes to get involved with research while at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her interests center on community-school partnerships and finding effective, efficient ways to improve Title I school districts through increased involvement from community leaders, nonprofits and other local organizations. This interest stems from Anna’s experience seeing a lack of community engagement and empowerment in her school. David Atkinson [email protected]; [email protected] Odessa, MO Education policy, education inequality, segregation, gamification David grew up in rural Missouri. He received a bachelor of science from Truman State University, which is a small, public liberal arts college. On the day he graduated, he also commissioned as a Medical Service Corps officer in the army and served 4.5 years on active duty at Fort Bragg, NC. David was a paratrooper in the 82 nd Airborne Division for the first three years, and he deployed to Afghanistan once. The remainder of his time was as the detachment commander of Fort Bragg’s sole Medical Logistics Company. He is most interested in leveraging his leadership experience to reform education policies targeting socioeconomic disparities. Jessica Danielle Boston [email protected] Newton, Massachusetts Urban education, teacher education and evaluation, school leadership, race and poverty, state and federal education policy
EPM 2015 - 2016 Cohort Bio Book 8-6-15
Aug 21, 2015
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Education Policy and Management Class of 2015 -2016
Anna Asendorf
San Antonio, Texas
Community engagement, nonprofit leadership, urban education, youth development, anti-racist leadership
Anna grew up on a farm in rural Minnesota and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and Chinese. She spent the last three years teaching language arts at a Title I middle school in San Antonio. During that time, she also coached volleyball
and track. Anna hopes to get involved with research while at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her interests center on community-school partnerships and finding effective, efficient ways to improve Title I school districts through increased involvement from community leaders, nonprofits and other local organizations. This interest stems from Anna’s experience seeing a lack of community engagement and empowerment in her school.
David Atkinson
[email protected]; [email protected]
Odessa, MO
Education policy, education inequality, segregation, gamification
David grew up in rural Missouri. He received a bachelor of science from Truman State University, which is a small, public liberal arts college. On the day he graduated, he also commissioned as a Medical Service Corps officer in the army and served 4.5 years on active duty at Fort Bragg, NC. David was a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division for the first three years, and he
deployed to Afghanistan once. The remainder of his time was as the detachment commander of Fort Bragg’s sole Medical Logistics Company. He is most interested in leveraging his leadership experience to reform education policies targeting socioeconomic disparities.
Jessica Danielle Boston
Newton, Massachusetts
Urban education, teacher education and evaluation, school leadership, race and poverty, state and federal education policy
Jessica Boston is originally from Plainsboro, NJ. She attended Spelman College in Atlanta, GA and in 2008, graduated with a B.A. in Child Development and a passion for education. Immediately following her graduation, she moved to Brooklyn, NY where she was a founding teacher at PAVE Academy Charter School. There, she taught first and second grade and served as grade team lead, step team coach, and Girl Scout leader. In her first two years of teaching at PAVE Academy, Jessica attended graduate school at Hunter College. She graduated from Hunter College with a M.S. in Teaching. In 2012, Jessica began teaching at SPARK Academy, a KIPP school in Newark, NJ. While at SPARK, Jessica served as first grade teacher, culture chair, grade level chair, teacher manager/coach, and step team coach. In 2014, Jessica opened Life Academy as founding principal. Life Academy is KIPP New Jersey’s first turn-around school.
Emma Bowell
London, United Kingdom
Special Educational Needs, Autistic Spectrum Disorders, parent-professional relationships, social class, exclusion, access to Higher Education
Emma Bowell is originally from London and graduated from the University of Cambridge in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in Education with English. Her undergraduate research focused on the effects of exclusion on children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders and their families. During her time at university,
she was heavily involved in Access to Higher Education initiatives, encouraging applications from students from non-traditional backgrounds; she herself was the first in her family to attend university. Upon graduation, Bowell started her current role Cambridge International Examinations, a not-for-profit organization that provides examinations and curriculum support for over 160 countries. In this role, she is responsible for the processing of all English Coursework to ensure the successful release of examination results.
Jessica C. Boyle
Cambridge, Massachusetts
College access, socioeconomic diversity, the intersection of race and class in U.S. schools, the opportunity gap, low-income high-achievers, first-generation college students, social capital, leadership
Jessica’s experience as an unaccompanied homeless youth navigating the college application process drives her interest in increasing college access and socioeconomic diversity in higher ed. She seeks to learn more about the
diversity of obstacles experienced by low-income high-achievers across racialized, economic, and geographic boundaries in order to better understand, from an academic and policy perspective, the interventions that she benefitted from and how to make successful interventions systemically available to students across the country. In addition, she hopes learn more about organizations that are already doing this important work in a highly effective manner. Jessica is originally from Maine and, since her
graduation from Colby College in 2012, has spent her time working in and consulting for various institutions of education.
Will Candell
Washington, District of Columbia
Teacher effectiveness and evaluation, teachers unions and collective bargaining, charter schools and school choice
Will Candell is originally from the New York metropolitan area and received his bachelor’s degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University. After graduating, he joined Teach For America, where he taught second and third grade at a charter school in southeast Washington, D.C. In this role, he developed curriculum, analyzed student data, and engaged in professional development in order to increase academic achievement for low-income students. During his two years teaching, Candell also earned licensure and his master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction through George Mason University. He enters HGSE’s Education Policy and Management master’s program looking to study the confluence of factors shaping measures of teacher effectiveness, as well as the impact of these measures on student outcomes.
Karen Choi
Los Angeles, California
Education policy, international education, district leadership
Karen Choi, a Southern California native, received her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California Los Angeles. Following a passion for writing, she produced online news for KPCC Southern California News Radio while pursuing a master’s degree in journalism at the University of Southern California. After graduation, she joined the journalism
department at Moorpark College as an adjunct, teaching beginning and intermediate writing and reporting. At Moorpark, she also wrote and taught a new course: digital storytelling. While teaching, Choi began working in the international student department at Bishop Alemany High School. She eventually assumed the role of director, overseeing a $3.3 million program. During this time she began consulting for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in writing international program policies and budgets for the district’s 11 secondary schools. In 2013, she founded an educational consulting firm, Global Educational Management (GEM). GEM works with the William S. Hart Union School District to install international education programs on six of its high school campuses. In addition, GEM has partnered with College of the Canyons to develop a comprehensive higher education program for international students. Choi has been a speaker at national TESOL conferences abroad and international education
conferences throughout California. She authors a monthly column for Live365 Internet Radio Network’s international education program, LiuMeiTalk.
Elizabeth Comley
Seattle, WA
School to work transitions, Public and private sector partnerships, 21st century skills
Elizabeth Comley grew up around the globe as part of a military family but lived most recently in Seattle, where she received her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Washington (UW). She started her career as a consultant, supporting multiple tech firms around the PNW.
After four years of consulting, Elizabeth joined Microsoft as a business program manager for their global procurement group and will continue to work there part-time throughout the school year. Elizabeth’s passion for education policy arose from her early work experiences and continued to grow via her engagement with private and public sector partnerships. In 2010 she facilitated a connection between her consulting firm, Hitachi Consulting, UW, and Boeing to provide professional development classes to UW student interns. In 2012 she then established a graduation robe recycling program with a majority low-income school district to increase graduation attendance.
Tasmin Dhaliwal
Austin, TX
Charter schools, school improvement reforms, market-based reforms, school desegregation, diversity, social policy and quantitative methods
Tasmin Dhaliwal identifies as a Californian and earned a degree in Political Economy from UC Berkeley. Since then, she has held various
positions in the field of education and has worked across the public, non-profit and private sector. Tasmin taught first and second grade in a KIPP Houston school, and worked as a Manager in the Teacher Leadership Development team for Teach For America- Houston. Most recently, she conducted research on data-driven decision-making and communicating assessment results as a Research Associate in a Pearson research lab. Aside from taking classes and contributing to research, Tasmin looks forward to engaging with social activism while on campus.
Stacy Diaz
[email protected] OR [email protected]
Boston, Massachusetts
Educational policy, teacher effectiveness, urban education, turnaround schools
Stacy Diaz is originally from Boston and she attended Smith College where she received a Bachelor’s in Psychology, Education, and Brazilian Studies.
After Smith, she taught 3rd grade in Miami-Dade through Teach for America centering her work in community outreach. She fostered a strong culture in her classroom by building connections with her students and their families through their similar life experiences. Subsequently, she took a leadership role as a Founding Dean of Students at Brooke Charter School East Boston serving students from Boston and Chelsea. For three years, she developed and implemented a positive school culture of high expectations and added support for students, teachers, and families.
Dominique Donette
Los Angeles, CA
School to prison pipeline, equity, community and family engagement, college access, program evaluation, culturally relevant curriculum, prison
Dominique was the first in her family to attend college and is committed to using her education for the benefit of others. Dominique currently works for a school turn around non-profit, the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools. This model, a collaboration with the District, private and public partners, will be a
great case study in her EPM courses! Prior to her work at the Partnership, she spent 15 months working for the campaign to elect Marshall Tuck for State Superintendent of Public Instruction of California.
Prior to the Tuck Campaign, Dominique worked in various capacities of the education sector. From progressive independent schools, to RSD and Charter Schools in New Orleans, LA. Dominique’s passion for children and equitable education spans far and wide.
Dominique received her B.A. from UC Berkeley. At Cal, Dominique fought for increased representation of minority students, tutored, ran a small cleaning business and worked for inclusion in the residence halls as an RA for 3.5 years. She also spent every spring break and summer working on various campaigns in New Orleans post Hurricane Katrina.
Dominique enjoys traveling domestically and internationally, dabbling in herbs and homeopathic remedies, dancing, cooking and reading.
Luke Dorfman
Shelburne, Vermont
Secondary education, public schools, ideas of learning and leadership, curriculum development, education reform, student-centered learning
Growing up on the shores of Lake Champlain, Luke Dorfman has acquired an open and critical perspective on education. He graduated from the University of Vermont with a double major in English and anthropology and a minor in pure mathematics, reflecting the breadth of his interests and skills
and the multidisciplinary approach he brings with him into the education world. While at UVM, Luke was a math tutor for local high school students and a peer mentor at the UVM Writing Center. Pursuing his passion for teaching specifically and education more broadly, Luke worked with the UVM Honors College to develop its curriculum policy and facilitate discussion about student experience. His studies in China, Nepal, and the United Kingdom have further sparked his curiosity about the cultural aspects of learning and international development. For the past four years, he has served as a substitute teacher at his high school alma mater, covering subjects ranging from geometry and calculus to history and biology. While at HGSE, Luke is excited to explore the intersection between policy, leadership, and research as he begins his career in education.
Meaghan Foster
Medford, Massachusetts
Teacher preparation programs, early childhood education, educational equity
Meaghan Foster is originally from an island off the coast of Maine and received her Bachelor’s degree in English from Carleton College. After graduation, she spent two
years in Minneapolis as an AmeriCorps Member with College Possible leading an afterschool college access program for low income and first generation high school students. Eager to work in an academic environment with the resources to provide significant instructional support for all students, she then served as a tutor and teaching assistant at Match High School, an innovative, high performing charter school in Boston. Her experiences in a college access nonprofit and an intensive charter school have shown her the impact that educational innovations can have on the trajectories of low-income students, and she looks forward to learning how to scale such solutions. Most recently, she worked as a paralegal at an immigration law firm in Boston.
Bryce Joseph Gilfillian
Cambridge, MA
Higher Education, Admissions, LGBT and gender issues, Issues facing rural and low-income students, history of education
Originally from a cattle ranch in rural southeast Texas, Bryce is a 2012 graduate of Harvard College where he studied American History and Classics. After graduation, he began serving on the admissions committee for Harvard College and is currently a Senior Admissions Officer, overseeing the alumni
interview program in addition to his admissions responsibilities. Additionally, Bryce lives in residence in Harvard Yard as a Freshman Proctor, assisting in the transition to college of forty freshpeople each year. He is excited to add yet another @harvard email address to the collection he’s somehow amassed over the last seven years.
Zachary Goldman
[email protected] [email protected]
Cincinnati, OH
Collective Impact, Service Learning, Dialogue, Restorative Justice, Democratic Schools, Changemaker Education, Leadership Development Pedagogy, Mathematics Pedagogy, Educational Data Analysis.
Zack graduated from Denison University with a degree in mathematics and a physics minor. As an undergrad, he had the opportunity to deeply explore service learning pedagogy and social entrepreneurship pedagogy. He led a campus-wide initiative to guide academic departments and co-curricular programs (including service learning, leadership development, social entrepreneurship education, etc.) to better coordinate and align their efforts around the education of current and future intrapreneurs, entrepreneurs, and “changemakers.” Upon graduation, he spent a year teaching 7th grade mathematics at a low-performing school near Atlanta, which has been, undoubtedly, his greatest personal and professional failure. His passion undeterred for ensuring that all students have access to a high quality education, he has since worn several non-classroom-teacher hats: working for City Year in two cities that were new to this program (Orlando and Jacksonville, FL) and becoming an Education Pioneers Data Analyst Fellow with the Achievement Schools in Tennessee. He is broadly interested in how people of all ages learn within both formal and informal contexts, how people develop into effective problem-solvers and innovators (in all fields), and how schools and organizations can best be structured to enable this kind of learning at all levels and in a way that leverages the diverse backgrounds, experiences, interests, and expertise of everyone involved.
Teresa Elizabeth Gonczy
[email protected] / [email protected]
Bay Area, California
School readiness & early childhood systems, math education & STEM, teaching quality, cognitive science, behavioral economics, intervention evaluation
Teresa Gonczy is originally from the Chicago area, but has been in California for the past 15 years. She is excited to use her time at HGSE to gain knowledge and make connections in early childhood research, policy, and management. Teresa has a background in educational entrepreneurship, having owned two
small brick & mortar businesses, including most recently an educational center for new parents. She has taught everything from sign language for babies to high school math & science to blues dancing & acroyoga. Teresa has also helped to start a charter elementary school in San Diego and a family-friendly makerspace in Los Angeles. Outside of education, she is an organizer for the BIL Conference, a participant-powered version of TED Talks. Teresa studied mathematics at Caltech and cognitive science at UC – San Diego.
Meghan Grady
Indianapolis, Indiana
Education, Policy and Management - specifically interested in K-12 education policy, urban education, STEM, and nonprofits
Meghan is originally from Lafayette, Indiana. She graduated from Purdue University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Political Science and a minor in Spanish. Meghan then spent two years with Teach for America. She taught 5th grade math and science in Indianapolis Public
Schools. While teaching, she also received a Master of Arts in Teaching from Marian University. Her main research focused on alternatives to exclusionary discipline in elementary schools. Meghan is interested in educational nonprofits that support urban schools, STEM initiatives, charter and public education, urban education, and how communication and policy intersect with education.
Ashley Hartman
Boston, MA
Education Policy, Program Evaluation, School Reform, STEM, EdTech
Ashley Hartman received her bachelor’s degree in math and psychology from Wellesley College. After graduating, she worked in finance for several years as an analyst at a litigation consulting firm in Boston. She then transitioned to a research role, moving to Paris for a year on a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct public policy research on retirement and to learn more about French
perspectives on working in old age. After Paris, Ashley returned to Boston to work at Harvard Business School as a research associate, where she writes case studies on corporate strategy and develops an interactive eBook.
Sammie Herrick
Mt. Vernon, Maine
Sociology of education, bullying prevention, school climate, diversity and inclusion
Sammie is from Mt. Vernon, Maine but spent her college years in North Carolina. She received her B.A. from Wake Forest University in both Elementary Education and Sociology in 2014. She is a licensed K-6 teacher in the state of North Carolina. This past year, she fulfilled a Fulbright grant,
teaching English in rural Taiwan. As part of the English Teaching Assistant program, she taught at two different schools, grades 1-9 in Yilan County, Taiwan for 11 months. Her primary focus coming into HGSE is bullying prevention and the current policy surrounding that issue. She hopes to earn her PhD after completing the EPM program.
Shannon Hossinger
Nashville, Tennessee
College completion, early literacy, school-to-prison pipeline, urban renewal, autonomous schools
Shannon Hossinger, an Indiana native, was most recently a high school English teacher in Nashville, TN. Prior to this role, she was a 2012 Teach for America corps member at a charter school rewarded for being in the top 5% of the state for growth. With experience in both urban public and charter schools, she has
formed a strong passion for school choice and education reform. During her time in the classroom, she was selected for an Excellence in Teaching Award and was a Sue Lehmann Award nominee. Shannon graduated summa cum laude from Indiana University. During this time, she focused her attention across the full spectrum of politics, including working in development for a congressman for two years and developing a student-based budgeting policy for the Indianapolis Public School Board as an Urban Leaders Fellow.
Yefei Jin
Minneapolis, Minnesota
College access, English Language Learners, Social Entrepreneurship, education technology, curriculum instruction, out of school time programs
Yefei Jin is originally from China. He completed his undergraduate degree in Theatre and Asian Languages/Literatures from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. He is passionate about college access and education entrepreneurship. During college, his volunteer and work experience focused in arts-based pedagogy, ESL teaching, and student affairs. After graduating, Yefei worked in admissions for his alma matter, started an after school program for local refugee girls, and volunteered in China, Rwanda, and Thailand. He will be pursuing his Ed.M. in Education Policy and Management this fall.
Kabrillen Jones
Springfield, Massachusetts
Education consulting, K-12 reform, HBCUs
Kabrillen Jones is originally from Springfield, Massachusetts and received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in African American History from Spelman College in
Atlanta, GA. While at Spelman, she served as a Bonner Scholar completing over 1,500 hours of community service within charter, public, preschool, elementary and high schools through direct service and program support. Aside from her community service and active leadership on campus, she completed summer internships in education advocacy in Philadelphia, privacy and data compliance in New York City and most recently, an internship in education consulting in Baltimore.
Krista Kaput
Chicago, IL
Education policy, school-to-prison pipeline, ELL, urban education, special education, STEM
Krista Kaput is originally from Minneapolis, MN but moved to Chicago, IL to attend The University of Chicago where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Anthropology. After graduation, Krista joined Teach for America (TFA) working at James H. Bowen High School, a
traditional CPS high school in South Chicago, where she was a Special Education Mathematics Teacher. During her tenure at Bowen, Krista served as the Mathematics Department Chair, Eleventh Grade Lead, Local School Council Teacher Representative, and Girls’ Varsity Basketball Coach. In each of these roles, Krista worked to ensure that all students, both with and without IEPs, were receiving the proper accommodations, modifications and supports so that they were prepared for life after high school. After completing her TFA commitment, Krista worked for one-year at the Noble Network ITW David Speer Academy on the North Side of Chicago where she served as the Founding Mathematics Department Chair and Algebra Teacher. In this role, Krista had a caseload of 140 high-school freshmen. At the end of the year, Krista’s students placed third in the Noble Network for growth in Mathematics. Krista has also had summer fellowships with Teach for America and Minneapolis Public Schools.
Frances Kraft
Chicago, Illinois
Educational equity, after-school initiatives, restorative practices, opportunity gaps
Frances Kraft is originally from Sarasota, Florida. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism/public relations from the University of Florida and spent 20 years in corporate communications. When discussions about the “achievement gap” in her community of Oak Park intensified 10 years ago,
she earned a master’s in teaching in order to understand the challenges from the standpoint of an educator. While student teaching, she created and launched an after-school initiative for Holmes Elementary students in grades K-5 to provide extended learning time for students. The framework, which became part of the formal school improvement plan, incorporated data-driven strategies and enlisted multiple community partners, including tutor/mentors from local high schools and universities. Kraft has taught fifth-grade math and science since 2010 while directing three after-school programs. One program was replicated at the middle-school level this past year. She organized and currently leads an Equity Team that includes more than a dozen community partners working collaboratively to change systems and address opportunity gaps faced by students and families from early childhood through college.
CeCe Lacey
Birmingham, Alabama
Middle and secondary education administration, urban education, nonprofit management, college readiness
CeCe Lacey, a native of Birmingham, AL, graduated cum laude from Birmingham-Southern College in 2012 with a B.A. in Spanish, a minor in psychology, and a Distinction in Leadership Studies. After graduating, CeCe taught elementary and middle school Spanish at LaGrange Academy in
LaGrange, GA. CeCe returned to Birmingham after her time at LaGrange Academy to serve as an AmeriCorps member with Impact Alabama. Most recently, CeCe served as Impact’s SpeakFirst Middle School and CollegeFirst Coordinator. SpeakFirst Middle School partners with six middle schools to provide a citywide extracurricular debate program. CollegeFirst is an Advanced Placement Summer Institute which allows high school students in Birmingham, Huntsville, and Tuscaloosa to work with AP teachers and college mentors to prepare for the rigor of their upcoming AP biology, calculus, chemistry, or English courses.
Carlos León
Minneapolis, Minnesota
School redesign and innovation, educational technology, teacher quality, early childhood education policy
Carlos grew up in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico and Las Cruces, New Mexico. He received his bachelor degree in Literature from Georgetown University. After working as an elementary bilingual teacher as part of Teach For America Twin Cities in the Minneapolis Public Schools, he continued to teach
and mentor teachers as an instructional math specialist for the Minneapolis Public Schools. Currently, Carlos leads work for Minneapolis Public Schools’ Office of New Schools which seeks to drive school-based innovation through the development of autonomous and community school models.
Zhi Ting Leow
Singapore
Early Childhood Education, Developmental Psychology, Economics of Education, Entrepreneurship in Education
Zhi Ting Leow is from Singapore and moved to London, UK when she was 19 to pursue her undergraduate studies in Economics at University College London (UCL). Her academic pursuits in university included Economics of Education, Economics Policy Analysis focusing on UK and US policies and a summer course at Yale University on Developmental Psychology. She is a fresh graduate who hopes to apply her Economics knowledge in the field of Education through a Master’s Program. In the last four years, she has worked at Singapore’s Ministry of Education to understand policy formulation and taught as a Science teacher at a primary school to learn about curriculum design. In the UK, she also volunteered as an assistant Mandarin teacher in UCL Academy to understand early language development. She aspires to work in the Singapore government through contributing to education policy formulation. As such, she wishes to gain practical field experience, enhance her existing academic knowledge and learn about the US education system. Her interest in education stems from her desire to impact her community and she hopes to use innovation to spearhead sustainable education reforms in Singapore. Her other interests include singing in the choir, playing the piano, travelling (the last destination being Prague) as well as yoga and swimming.
Alexis Lian
Elmira, New York
Education policy reform, urban education, the achievement gap, leadership
Alexis is originally from upstate New York and received her dual bachelor’s degree in political science and policy studies from Syracuse University. After graduating, Alexis moved to Baltimore, Maryland to work as a corps member with Teach For America teaching English at an over-aged, under-credited alternative high school in southeast Baltimore for three years. During this
time, Alexis earned her Masters in Education with a concentration in Secondary Education and Urban Education from Johns Hopkins University. After finding a large need for ESOL accommodations in her Baltimore classrooms, Alexis moved to Lyon, France to gain experience in this field, teaching elementary-level English in fifteen classrooms across Lyon, France through Fulbright for the past year.
Anna Marrs
Charlotte, North Carolina
Education policy, early childhood education, education inequality and the achievement gap
Anna Marrs grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. She received her undergraduate degree from Williams College, where she double majored in Political Science and Economics. During her senior year she spent time working in a low-income elementary school in a neighboring town. Upon
graduation in 2013, she moved to Charlotte, North Carolina where she began teaching first grade in a Title I school through the Teach for America program. She spent two years at this school working closely with students, families, and administrators. The contrasts between her personal K-12 school experiences and those of the students she taught started her thinking about education policy and equity. Working with students of such a young age exposed her to the literacy gap students faced by students from low-income backgrounds and has specifically focused her interests in early childhood education issues.
Monica Martinez
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Impact of community on education, financial aid, community service learning, culture and language learning
Monica Martinez lived in Mexico until she was six when her family moved back to Colorado. She attended Colorado College where she received her bachelor's degree in Romance Languages. Upon graduating, she took a position in a Title One school as an ESL Community Liaison: her work focused
on stabilizing and strengthening the school community. After three years, Monica returned to school for a year of quantitative coursework which she intends to apply within the field of education and economics. Upon completing this year, Monica took a position as a financial aid advisor which exposed her to educational policy in higher education. Monica has also spent five of the past six summers working as a trip leader on international service trips for high school students.
Menna Mburi
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Achievement gap, multicultural education, equal educational opportunities, social justice, leadership, policy, reform
Menna Mburi is a resident of Raleigh, North Carolina. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she cultivated an interest in social justice and education. After serving as a high school social studies teacher in Louisiana through Teach
for America, she moved to South Korea, where she taught English to elementary and middle school students at a private academy. During her eighteen months in Korea, she also created and developed lesson plans, assessments, and learning materials for the academy’s reformed curriculum. Mburi is excited to join the HGSE community as a masters student in the Education Policy and Management program. She is looking forward to engaging with educators and learners from diverse backgrounds and contributing her own unique experiences, ideas, and skills with other passionate leaders who desire to see effective education reform in our country.
Jocelyn R. McDaniel
Marianna, Arkansas
Whole system reform, education leadership, teaching and learning, politics, diversity, equity & inclusiveness
Jocelyn R. McDaniel is a native of Marianna, Arkansas and received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas. After receiving her degree, Jocelyn spent time on Capitol Hill serving as a Legislative Fellow in the Office of Senator Mark Pryor while participating in the Congressional Black Caucus’ Foundation Leadership Institute for Public Service. Jocelyn
went on to complete a two year commitment as a Teach For America corps member in the Arkansas Delta as a 2nd Grade Teacher/Team Leader at KIPP Delta Public Schools. Jocelyn spent her summers gaining experience in education policy and research with the University of Arkansas’ Office of Education Policy. This past year, Jocelyn served on Teach For America Arkansas’ Regional staff as a Manager of Teacher Leadership Development where she was responsible for coaching and supporting 34 K-12 teachers in the Arkansas Delta in the areas of classroom management, instructional competence, and leadership development. Jocelyn also served concurrent terms as the International 2nd Vice President of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and the Educational Advancement Foundation.
Hannah McIntire
[email protected] or [email protected]
Providence, Rhode Island
Refugee children & families, English Language Learners, whole child education models, full service community schools, non-profit leadership
Originally from Connecticut, Hannah now lives in Providence, RI where she moved in 2013 after graduating from Macalester College in Saint Paul, MN with her bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Religious Studies with
a minor in Arabic. Her passion and dedication to working with families has led her to work in Nablus, Palestine, the Twin Cities, New Haven, CT, and now in Providence, RI with both immigrant and refugee families. She currently manages the Family Literacy program, Toyota Family Learning program and the Rhode Island Refugee School Impact Grant in her role at Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island where she will continue to work part-time while at HGSE. Long-term, Hannah is very interested in non-profit leadership and is really looking forward to her time at HGSE.
Quincy R. Mitchell
San Antonio, Texas
College access, counseling, admissions, higher education administration, advocacy, leadership, social justice.
Quincy Mitchell is originally from San Antonio, Texas and earned her bachelor’s degree in Sociology with a minor in African American Diaspora Studies, from The University of Texas at Austin. Immediately following graduation, she joined the
College Advising Corps 2011 cohort. This role gave her a humbling opportunity to guide first-generation students and their families through the college application process in Houston’s historic 5th Ward. She later joined KIPP Houston Public Schools as the Founding College Counselor, before working as the Admissions Coordinator at Harvard Divinity School for two years. Quincy currently works in the Department of Government at Harvard University where she supports faculty and students.
Maritere Rivera Mix
Wilmington, MA
Student engagement and empowerment, student advising and mentoring, educational nonprofits, and community partnerships
Teri Mix was born in Puerto Rico but grew up in Massachusetts. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Ancient Greek and Latin from Boston University. When she wasn’t translating Caesar, Cicero, and Homer, Teri spent her summers working for a nonprofit in East Boston. After graduation, she spent
several years working for State Street Corporation, learning valuable marketing and corporate skills. Determined to put her degree in Classics to use, she taught Latin at Boston Latin Academy in Dorchester while also pursuing her M.Ed. at UMass Boston. In addition to managing a full teaching schedule, she has spent past five years becoming more involved in school-wide desicion-making: as an active member of the school’s ILT, as a co-chair for the accreditation steering committee, and as an onsite BPS Lead Teacher.
Laura Myers
Oakland, California
Higher education access and success, non-profit management, first generation and immigrant students, leadership, financial aid policy
Laura Myers grew up internationally and received her bachelor’s degree in psychology and educational studies from Carleton College. Following graduation, she discovered her interest in access to higher education for first generation and immigrant students as an AmeriCorps volunteer with College Possible in Minneapolis. She then moved to rural Guatemala to work with Limitless Horizons Ixil, an educational opportunity and community development organization, focusing on capacity building and leadership development. After two years, Laura was eager to return to work in higher education access for under-resourced students in the US. She joined BUILD, a national entrepreneurship and college readiness organization, as the College Readiness Program Manger in East Oakland. There she managed a program providing BUILD students with college advising, 21st century skill development, and financial aid counseling to ensure they graduate high school with college options and ready to succeed in higher
education.
Lauren Norton
St. Louis, MO
Comparative policy, urban education, family and community engagement, mentorship, non-profit management, women’s leadership
Lauren Norton is originally from St. Louis and received her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Missouri. In college, she was an active participant in community service and undergraduate research, as well as the Griffith’s Leadership Society for Women. For the past four years, she has
been teaching AP English Language and Composition at an international high school in Shanghai, China. While there, she also served as the faculty sponsor of Girls’ Club, a student organization aimed at promoting female leadership through mentorship programs, volunteer work, and informational seminars. As a member of the Education Policy and Management cohort of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Norton hopes to learn how to bridge her international experience with domestic policy issues.
Ashton Pemberton
High Point, North Carolina
Education Equity, Cultural Awareness, College Access
Ashton Pemberton is originally from High Point, NC and received his bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a minor in Education from Duke University. While at Duke he was the Education Committee Co-Chair of the Duke NAACP, the Vice President of the Alpha Alpha Chi Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated, and was a part of the gospel choir of United in Praise, a premier gospel group on Duke’s campus. He has also had several months of different educational community
engagement experience working in nonprofits, churches, and in schools to have a positive impact on youth. He plans on having a career that allows him to help low income minority students with college access. He also hopes to one day have foundations that not only provide scholarships to low income minority students but also help community organizations like churches that need funding for programs that are social justice oriented.
Mariel Perlow
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Leadership, Management and Organization, Special Education, Innovation Education
Mariel just completed her fifth year teaching special education. After graduating from Boston College with a degree in Elementary Education and Political Science in 2010, Mariel joined Teach for America as a Bay Area corps member. Mariel
taught special education for three years in Oakland during the academic years and spent summers with Camp Galileo teaching science innovation education. Most recently Mariel spent two years teaching at UP Academy Dorchester as a founding special education teacher during the first two years of school turnaround.
Aliya Pilchen
Boston, Massachusetts
Research and evaluation, education and social policy, out-of-school time, community engagement
Aliya Pilchen is originally from Arlington, Virginia and received her bachelor’s degree in Public Policy with minors in Education and Psychology from Duke University. While in college, she volunteered as an afterschool tutor working with small groups of fifth and sixth graders at a community center in
Durham, NC. After graduating, she moved to Boston to work for two years as a National Teaching Fellow for Citizen Schools, an education nonprofit that partners with public schools across the country to expand the learning day and provide hands-on learning experiences for low-income middle school students. In this role, Pilchen taught ELA enrichment lessons to classes of fifth, sixth, and seventh grade students, provided counseling and mentoring for disruptive students, and developed systems to track students’ academic progress, behavior, and attendance. She is interested in continuing to research and advocate on behalf of high-quality education programs, particularly those that leverage out-of-school time effectively.
Gabrielle N. Pingue
Cambridge, MA
Education law, public K-12 education
Gabrielle (“Gabby”) Pingue grew up in Cambridge, MA. She attended Spelman College where she majored in Political Science and, as a Bonner Scholar, volunteered ten hours a week at a local elementary school. After graduating from Spelman, Gabby joined the 2010 Teach for America Miami-Dade County corps and taught 5th grade reading & writing and 3rd grade. She
then attended law school at Northeastern University School of Law (“NUSL”) as part of the Class of 2015. At NUSL, Gabby completed internships at the Middlesex County Juvenile Court, the Center for Law and Education, Massachusetts Advocates for Children, and Kotin, Crabtree, and Strong, LLP where she worked with education law attorneys and advocates on various law and policy issues affecting public education, such as special education and school discipline. In September 2013, Gabby co-founded the after school program, Higg-Lew Leaders, at the Higginson-Lewis School in Roxbury, MA. The after-school program brings together NUSL student volunteers to provide 7th and 8th graders with academic and enrichment support. Gabby is the 2015 inaugural recipient of the Massachusetts Black Lawyer’s Association’s Chief Justice Roderick L. Ireland Juvenile Justice and Leadership Award.
Crystal Polski
Somerville, Massachusetts (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Teacher leadership, global education, student voice, opportunity gaps
Crystal Polski grew up in the suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota, attending Gustavus Adolphus College for undergrad, and obtaining a degree in Social Studies Teaching. In 2005-2006 she participated in the JET Program teaching English between mountains and rice paddies in beautiful rural Japan. For the past nine years, she has been teaching Economics and Public Policy: An
Applied Social Science Analysis, AP Comparative Government, and Sociology at large suburban public high school. While teaching she earned a Masters of Arts in Economics and Entrepreneurship Education at the University of Delaware. In 2013-2014 she was awarded the Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching and researched social studies teaching methods and 21st Century Skills in Finland.
Austin Reid
New York, New York
Urban education, school reform, behavioral science, political history and theory
Austin grew up in Oklahoma and received his bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Arkansas. As an undergraduate, he served as the student body treasurer and wrote theses on Renaissance drama and
Romantic poetry. After graduating, he taught Spanish for two years at a Kansas City high school and one year at a charter high school in Harlem.
Rebecca Ryan
Maha Sarakham, Thailand
Policy reform, educational non-profits, program evaluation, leadership, innovative solutions to closing the achievement gap
Rebecca Ryan grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico and earned her bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience from the University of Southern California. Upon graduation she combined her background in science and interest in education as a Teach For America teacher in New Orleans. At
Dolores. T Aaron Elementary School she taught seventh and eighth grade science as well as developed curriculum and led the summer school. Prior to starting her year at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, she completed a yearlong Fulbright Grant in Thailand. During this experience she expanded her knowledge of education on a global scale through teaching and serving as a cultural ambassador for the community. At HGSE she is pursuing a master’s in Education Policy and Management in hopes to continue on and influence policy to ensure all students receive an excellent education.
Mahmoud Sayani
Indianapolis, IN
STEM-focused education, achievement gap, school leadership, school turnaround
Mahmoud Sayani is originally from Kenya and had his early career in the technology industry, having studied Electrical Engineering at Duke University and Business at Boston University. He made a mid-career change
to the non-profit world and got involved in education by heading up a non-profit organization operating
eleven schools in Kenya. Mahmoud has been a member of the IB Educator Network, and was recently awarded The Mind Trust’s Innovation School Fellowship to start a new STEM-focused public/charter school in Indianapolis.
Amanda Sebba
Houston, Texas
English language learners, bilingual education, elementary education, literacy, teacher training and development
Amanda Sebba grew up in New Jersey and Florida and later returned to the Northeast, where she earned a B.A. in history at Columbia University. After graduating in 2009, she joined Teach for America and moved to Houston to teach 5th grade reading and language arts in the Houston Independent School
District. Most of Amanda’s students were English language learners, and during her years in the classroom, Amanda became passionate about improving both short-term and long-term educational outcomes for bilingual students. In 2013, Amanda became an instructional coach for Teaching Excellence, a teacher-development program serving novice teachers in three school districts in the Houston area.
Samantha Leigh Semrow
Chicago, Illinois
K-12 public education policy, educational equity, city and state level policymaking, education finance, low-income communities
Samantha Semrow graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign receiving a degree in Sociology and History. Following graduation she returned to the Chicago area to serve as a College Advisor with the College Advising Corps’ Illinois program. At two Chicago area high schools she
assisted senior classes of 500+ students navigate the college going process over the course of three years. Initially interested in bridging the achievement gap and college access, she quickly recognized the severe deficit of academic preparedness and unequal access to education amongst her students. She is coming to the EPM program in pursuit of a deeper understanding of education policy decision-making and to explore opportunities to ensure equity and excellence of education across all socio-economic strata. After HGSE she hopes to play an effective role in city or state level education policy specifically in the areas of research, education finance policy, or through projects involving direct student interaction.
Andrew Serrano
Odessa, TX
Leadership, education systems, early childhood education, nonprofit management
Andrew Serrano is originally from Odessa, Texas and received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Texas Tech University. After teaching third grade for two years as a Teach For America corps member in San Antonio, Andrew worked as a White House intern in the Office of the Chief of Staff and
then as an education policy adviser for Texas Representative Mike Villarreal. Most recently, Andrew is a graduate of Georgetown University’s McCourt School, where he gained a Masters in Public Policy (MPP). During his time at Georgetown, Andrew had the opportunity to work with a Capstone team to complete a yearlong program evaluation for a Maryland-based nonprofit organization that works to get low-income, first-generation to college students into four-year universities.
Marysa Sheren
Miami, Florida
Education Technology, Urban Education
Marysa is a literacy coach in Miami, Florida serving at the first and largest public high school in Dade County. She is a 2012 Teach For America alumna
and 2012 graduate of Tufts University, where she majored in Philosophy and Religious Studies. Marysa is extremely excited and humbled to join the Harvard community and move to Cambridge with her partner, also an educator, who will be matriculating at the Kennedy School. She hopes to pursue a career focused on educational equity and technology.
Christina Simpson
San Carlos, California
Early childhood education, child development, program evaluation, research methods, P-12 education policy
Christina Simpson grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in 2012 with a B.A. in Anthropology and a minor in Education Studies. As an undergraduate student, she worked with the Social Research Methodology (SRM) Evaluation Group assisting with
two evaluations of teacher professional development initiatives and at a preschool as an assistant
teacher. Most recently, she worked at the San Mateo County Office of Education. In this role, she developed communication materials to strengthen awareness of the programs and work of the County Office of Education. She also assisted with a number of local policy initiatives on such topics as early literacy, emergency response, and mental health supports in schools.
Mekka Smith
Boston, Massachusetts
Leadership and instructional coaching; district policy; teacher preparation; diversity, equity and inclusion work; change management
A native of Atlanta, Mekka has lived in Boston for the past three years. She has spent much of her career with Teach For America, starting when she first joined the organization after graduating from Amherst College in Massachusetts. Mekka taught first and second grade for five years in Miami;
then made the move back up North to coach K-12 teachers full-time in Boston and the surrounding districts. She has been heavily involved in beginning teacher preparation work every summer since 2011, and in 2014 co-created a diversity series for Massachusetts teachers that received the highest ratings in satisfaction of content and delivery compared to 15 similar summer training institutes across the country. This past year Mekka worked in a district and school partnerships liaison role, where she supported local education non-profits as well as school and district leaders to recruit and retain TFA alumni in high impact roles.
Mavis Snelson
Hong Kong S.A.R.
K-12 Education, Education Inequality, Teacher Education, Curriculum Development
Mavis is originally from a small town in Western Pennsylvania, and she received her bachelor’s degree in Urban Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. After graudating, Mavis joined Teach for America in San Antonio, Texas, where she taught 7th grade math. During this time she sat on
the San Antonio Region's Corps Leadership Council and led the committee on community partnerships. After two years with Teach for America, she moved to Hong Kong to work for Capstone Prep, an extracurricular education startup whose primary aim is to foster critical thinking skills in middle school students. At Capstone, she wrote curriculum for three programs, was the team leader for the Primary Scholars Program, and worked extensively with English Language Learners at a variety of levels.
Leah Sutton
Fuquay Varina, NC
Parent and Community Involvement in Schools, Educational Stakeholders, Educational Policy and its Connection to Economics
Leah Sutton is originally from Goldsboro, a small town in eastern North Carolina. She received a bachelor’s degree in History Education from North Carolina State University. After teaching high school Social Studies for one year in Greenville, NC, she continued her career in Raleigh, NC where she taught middle school English Language Arts. In this position,
she served in a variety of school-based roles including English Language Arts department chair, Beginning Teacher Mentor and School Improvement Team Chair. In addition, she served on the Superintendent’s Teacher Advisory Council.
Tommy Tran
Atlanta, Georgia
Higher education access, financial aid, financial literacy
Tommy Tran is from Dalton, GA and received his bachelor’s degree from Emory University in Atlanta, GA in 2014. He majored in economics and
business, with concentrations in finance and international business. While at school, he held various leadership roles in promoting access to higher education. He was the campus-based leader of the Gates Millennium Scholarship organization where he organized and held information sessions at local high schools to give advice on applying to colleges and scholarships. During the summer of 2013, he helped to develop and implement a summer financial literacy challenge for inner-Birmingham city high school students. Also during his time at Emory, he studied abroad in Beijing, China and Istanbul, Turkey, where he planned English conversation circles for Turkish students to practice their English. Prior to joining HGSE, Tommy worked at Bank of America as a credit analyst for the commercial bank.
Peter R. Weiss
Brooklyn, New York
Teacher preparation, school and district leadership, math education, CCSS implementation, district-charter collaboration, military dependents
Originally from New Rochelle, New York, Peter Weiss received his bachelor's degree in political science from The George Washington
University. After interning for the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, Peter joined Teach For America, serving two years on Schofield United States Army Barracks in Hawai'i. With such a highly transient student population, it was here that he first discovered the need for universal and rigorous academic standards. After TFA, he joined the Achievement First charter school network in Brooklyn where he taught third grade math and authored network math curriculum. In 2013, Peter co-authored a paper on recommended changes to traditional teacher preparation published by Educators 4 Excellence. While at Harvard, Peter is excited to study policy solutions to ensure equal access to quality public education for all children.
Alice Wong Tucker
Brookline, Massachusetts
Urban Education, English as a Second Language, Curriculum Development, Teacher Leadership
Alice Wong Tucker received her undergraduate degree in African American Studies and Anthropology from Harvard University. After graduating, she spent a year as a teaching intern at the American School of London. She then became a classroom teacher in the Boston Public Schools. For the last ten years, she has worked as a 2nd/ 3rd grade teacher at an innovative pilot
school in West Roxbury and as a 1st grade ESL teacher in South Boston. In 2008, she earned a Master’s of Elementary Education from Lesley University. Throughout her career, she has held many leadership roles including team and school-wide lead teacher, heading a formative assessment team, creating and teaching professional development, and participating in the US Department of Education’s Teach to Lead Summits. She is a member of the governing board of the Boston Teacher Leadership Certificate Program, a program offering leadership development classes to teachers.
Jonathan Yoo
San Antonio, TX
Urban education policy, service learning, consulting, research and evaluation,
Jonathan is originally from central New Jersey and received his bachelor’s degree in Finance from Rutgers University. During his studies at business school he interned at Merrill Lynch’s Global Wealth Management division
and volunteered with the IRS as a site coordinator for VITA. In pursuit of further service learning, upon graduation he applied and joined Teach For America and moved to San Antonio, Texas where he taught middle school mathematics and social justice studies for the past three years.
Andrea Zuñiga
Los Angeles, California and Guatemala City, Guatemala
Non-Profit Management, Education and Social Justice, Parent and Community Engagement, Immigration, Youth Leadership and Mentoring, Arts Education, Leadership, Language Justice, Diversity and Inclusion in Education
Andrea Zuñiga is a graduate student at the school of Education at Harvard, concentrating on Education Policy and Management. She is a big fan of
writing, storytelling, community work, education, singing and creativity. Andrea grew up in California and Guatemala and spent a year studying in Mexico, which encouraged her passion of working with transnational communities. Andrea's background consists of professional work in educational programming with non-profit and independent organizations and schools. She has spent over a decade working on collaborative mentoring, social justice projects, event organizing, diversity and inclusion projects, managing and supporting arts, education, political and creative programming. She also currently serves on the board of a community-led organization based in East Los Angeles and enjoys her time volunteering at community events.
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