Staff Members

Scott founded Education Pioneers in 2003 to develop a national network of leaders and entrepreneurs focused on devising and implementing creative solutions to our nation's most pressing educational problems.  He feels incredibly fortunate to collaborate with exceptional individuals and high-performing organizations that share his deep commitment to developing diverse, talented leaders to transform urban education. 

Scott began his career teaching social studies and leadership at St. Jude High School in Montgomery, Alabama, through the University of Notre Dame’s ACE Program. Scott later served as the legal counsel for Aspire Public Schools, where he worked with the management team and school leaders to start and operate a network of high quality public charter schools to prepare urban students for college. He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa in government from the University of Notre Dame, received his Master of Arts in Teaching from the University of Portland, and earned his law degree from Stanford Law School. Scott is a Draper Richards Kaplan Entrepreneur, a board member of Beyond 12, Inc., and a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow, Class of 2010.

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Frances McLaughlin, President of Education Pioneers, has extensive experience in for- and non-profit organizations. Prior to joining Education Pioneers in early 2009, Frances was a Senior Director at the Broad Foundation, a Los Angeles-based venture philanthropy.  There she was responsible for the foundation's investments in organizations which build leadership capacity in public education.  Frances previously served as executive vice president of the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), a nonprofit organization and market leader in the fields of study abroad and international student exchange. In addition to developing new business activities, over the course of her ten years at CIEE, she also served as chief operating officer of the organization's largest division, managing operations in Asia, Australia, Europe and the United States.  Prior to CIEE, Frances was the director of North American marketing and sales for the EF International Language Schools, and also worked as a regional director for Teach for America.  Frances has a bachelor's degree in history and art history and an Executive Management Certificate from Columbia University. 

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Julayne Virgil is passionate about the use of education as a lever to transform possibilities for individuals and communities. Since the age of 14, she has been involved in passing on the educational opportunities she has received by creating possibilities for others.

In her current role, Julayne drives the organization's focus on strategically connecting leaders with key organizations to accelerate solutions for the education sector.  She joined Education Pioneers in 2008, as the Founding Managing Director of the Chicago office, where she oversaw the successful launch of Chicago operations and subsequent growth of 115%.  Julayne has extensive experience in the private, non-profit and public sectors where she developed strong strategic planning and change management skills.  Prior to joining Education Pioneers, she developed resources for school-based health centers in Chicago, and developed social change communications for The Ad Council.  Julayne also has experience consulting for Deloitte and the City of Los Angeles, as well as facilitating enrichment programs for Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, Breakthrough Collaborative and the YMCA. 

Julayne graduated cum laude with a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and holds a master's degree in public administration from the University of Southern California where she earned the Dean's Merit Award. Julayne serves on the Alumni Association Board of Directors of Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California.

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Jackie joined Education Pioneers to work for an organization which serves as a hub in the nonprofit education industry.  The exposure to a myriad of different educational organizations, strategies, and incredible leaders ensures constant development and access to an unparalleled network.  Jackie also is motivated by the opportunity to use her business skills to make significant changes to a small but quickly growing organization.

An alumna of Education Pioneers, Jacqueline spent her summer fellowship at KIPP Bay Area while completing her MBA at the Haas School of Business at University of California - Berkeley. In her role at KIPP Bay Area, Jacqueline researched and implemented a donor management system for a $20 million fundraising goal, oversaw the launch of the inaugural KIPP Bay Area website, and developed a marketing plan to promote KIPP Bay Area to donors and teachers. At Haas, Jacqueline co-founded the Education Leadership Club, served as an Oakland Small Schools Resident, and led a feasibility study for a Supplemental Education Services program in Oakland Unified School District. She developed an interest in education reform prior to business school while working as a Director at SCORE! Educational Centers, where she recruited and tutored over 1,000 children in the San Francisco community.

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After years of working in education and youth development, Kelli was drawn to the core values and mission of Education Pioneers.  Helping others find their voice and connecting people to opportunities has been a common thread throughout her career.  Education Pioneers serves as the perfect forum for Kelli to continue to positively impact education while assisting in the development of a new cadre of dedicated leaders in the field.

Kelli comes to Education Pioneers with an incredible track record of serving youth, communities and urban education systems in Minneapolis, Washington, D.C. and New York City. Following law school, Kelli worked as law clerk for two years in Minneapolis. During that time, she focused her sights on tackling critical community issues before launching her non-profit career with the Children's Defense Fund. Kelli went on to develop and manage youth programs for the National Black Child Institute and the Harlem Community Justice Center. Drawing on more than a decade of experience with organizations including Youth Frontiers, New Leaders for New Schools, and the NYC Department of Education, Kelli brings her expertise in program design and management, facilitation, partnership development and talent recruitment to Education Pioneers to support the continued growth and success of our New York City site. Kelli pursued her undergraduate degree from Howard University and received her J.D. from Tulane Law School.

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Julie joined Education Pioneers to increase the supply of transformative leaders in education. After years working within the charter school movement in California and Colorado, Julie observed the critical need for leaders in schools, districts, and education organizations. 

Julie has over 12 years of experience in marketing and sales for non-profit organizations and specializes in strategic, integrated marketing, message development, marketing/communications and media management. Julie first developed a passion to improve urban public education studying the severe inequities in Winston-Salem, North Carolina public schools. She began her career as the Assistant Director, and second employee, with the Colorado League of Charter Schools where she grew the organization's membership and conference programs. Julie was a founding staff member of the California Charter Schools Association where she notably led a 40% increase in the organzaition's membership in two years. As the Director of Marketing, she led marketing strategy, message development, and managed marketing / communications and media outreach resulting in a 6-month 30% increase in media activity. Julie received her BA from Wake Forest University in Communications and Politics, completed graduate work in Public Policy from the University of Colorado at Boulder and received a Professional Certificate in Marketing. 

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Anne Sawyer Shields is the Vice President of National Programs where she leads Education Pioneers' efforts to attract and prepare our Fellows.  Anne manages the 12-person team responsible for leading the talent strategy and placement, curriculum and training, and the data leadership initiative. Anne joined Education Pioneers in 2008 to build and direct Education Pioneers' recruitment and admissions. During Anne's tenure, Education Pioneers has tripled its applications for the Graduate School Fellowship and Analyst Fellowship while improving applicant quality and the number of African American and Latino Fellows.

Anne came to Education Pioneers from the NYC Department of Education where she was the Chief of Staff for the Office of Accountability. In this role, Anne managed the operations, budget, and recruiting for the 200+ staff office. Previously she was a Team Leader for an HR transformation project at the NYC Department of Education. Anne started her career at Morgan Stanley where she managed associate recruiting for North America and later worked in London supporting the recruiting efforts for the European office. Anne received her bachelor's degree in political science from Trinity College, CT and her masters in Higher and Postsecondary Education at Columbia University's Teachers College.

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With an early passion for education reform, Jason has dedicated his career to eliminating injustice in America's education system.  As Director of Network Strategy, he goes to work to build the country's most powerful professional network.  Jason began his career serving youth as a treatment provider in a residential crisis unit and then as a middle school Language Arts and Social Studies teacher, both in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  Most recently, he served as Education Pioneers' Bay Area Program Director from 2007-2010. A 2007 alumnus of Education Pioneers, Jason spent his summer fellowship at Envision Schools, where he created and implemented a performance management system. Jason earned his Bachelor's degree in Secondary Education and Environmental studies from Western Michigan University. He earned his Master's in Education from Stanford University with a concentration in Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies.

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Lauren Andrews joined Education Pioneers as she believes that strong leaders outside the classroom can help ensure that all children have access to an education of the highest quality.  An alumna of the Graduate School Fellowship, she has seen Education Pioneer's tremendous impact, and believes strongly in the organization's ability to attract top talent to the education sector.

Lauren spent her 2010 Fellowship summer at Boston Public School's TechBoston division, assisting with the development and marketing of a by-kids, for-kids cyber safety curriculum. Previously she was Partnership Manager for iMentor, where she worked with education and youth development organizations across to country to help develop school-based mentoring programs using technology. Prior to that, Lauren spent almost two years living and working in Santiago, Chile with VE Global, an international volunteer organization providing educational and recreational programs in Santiago's poorest neighborhoods. As VE's Director of Development and Public Relations, she supported global, grassroots fundraising and marketing initiatives, and volunteered at a local school implementing a reading program for students with developmental and learning disabilities.

Lauren received her BA in English literature and rhetoric from Binghamton University, NY and MS in public policy and management from the Heinz College at Carnegie Mellon University. Outside of work, she serves on the Board of Directors of VE Global.

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Valerie joined Education Pioneers because of her dedication to providing high-quality, free educational opportunities to traditionally underserved young people and her understanding that many of those involved in this endeavor do not necessarily carry out their charge in a classroom or even within a school.  She relishes the opportunity to work with talented individuals and organizations to think outside of the box in finding creative and viable solutions for ongoing educational issues.
 
Valerie was previously a middle school English and reading teacher at Roxbury Preparatory Charter School in Roxbury, MA.  She has also served as Student Life Coordinator for the middle and high school girls' afternoon and evening program at the SEED Public Charter School in Washington, DC.  Most recently, Valerie has worked as a Relationship Manager for the Gates Millennium Scholars Program, which provides cost-of-attendance assistance and leadership development opportunities to college and graduate students of color who exhibit high potential and financial need.  She is also a co-founder and a founding board trustee of Achievement Preparatory Academy, a charter middle school in Southeast Washington, DC.  Valerie majored in English at Spelman College and earned a Master of Arts degree in Education from the University of California at Berkeley.

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As an alumna of the Education Pioneers Graduate School Fellows 2005 Bay Area cohort, Eugine is a firm believer in Education Pioneers’ mission and its powerful impact it can have on individuals who want to make a difference in the education sector. With a passion in developing leaders who can transform organizations to help provide high quality education for all children, Eugine joined Education Pioneers as the Director of Data Leadership.

Eugine began her career as a management consultant at the Seoul Office of McKinsey & Company. For the past seven years, she has been serving clients in Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, and the U.S. with a deep expertise in organization transformation, leadership, education, and capability building. Since returning from graduate school, with the summer experience at Envision Schools through Education Pioneers, she has served several clients in the education sector, including: Seattle Public Schools, Palo Alto Unified School District, KIPP Bay Area, and Breakthrough Collaborative.

Eugine received an MBA and Master’s degree in Education from Stanford University. She attended Yonsei University in Korea, where she graduated with Highest Distinction with a dual degree in Business Administration and Applied Statistics.

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Tina joined Education Pioneers because she was drawn to its mission, vision, and values. Her background reflects a passion for protecting children by ensuring they have access to a quality education & the tools and resources that support their personal and professional development. As a member of the Human Assets team, she is excited to support the thriving, sustainable growth of Education Pioneers through the development of strategic human capital programs for the organization's internal talent.

Most recently, Tina worked for BMO Capital Markets where she led the firm’s 8-week summer development program for US junior professionals. Prior to that, she evaluated and developed corporate salary structures and executive pay programs for Towers Watson & Co.’s Chicagoland clients and worked as an Associate at Aon Corporation in Communications Consulting, Corporate Compensation, and as an HR Generalist. Outside of work, she is a passionate community philanthropist and has worked with INROADS Chicago, Chicago Cares, and The Metropolitan Board of the Chicago Urban League.

Tina’s passion for excellence in education and development was fueled by her college experience as an Instructor for Temple Youth VOICES, a youth civic engagement program focused on education, leadership development, and collaborative research. Tina earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in International Business and Human Resources Management from Temple University and maintains a Professional Certification in Human Resource Management.

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After developing a passion for accelerating excellence in education and transforming our education system as an Alumnus of the 2009 D.C. cohort, Brandon spent the last two years serving as the Director of School Operations for Achievement First Bridgeport Academy.  Prior to moving into the education sector, Brandon worked at Brady Corporation fulfilling the role of a senior analyst in the Treasury Department working on foreign exchange, cash repatriation, budgeting and inter-company loans.  Preceding Brandon's work for Brady, he was the manager of a chain of multimillion dollar retail stores.  In addition, Brandon worked as the General Manager of Klink Properties and Management, a construction and property management company he co-founded in 2004.  He has also served as the Production Control Manager for L & P Machine, Inc. a leading supplier of high tolerance machined parts.  From 1998 - 2002, Brandon served in the United States Air Force where he received numerous awards and recognition for his service.

Brandon received his MBA from Carnegie Mellon University and graduated with a BS in Finance from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.

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Kris joined Education Pioneers because she believes that committed and passionate people working towards excellence for all students can change the face of public education. Kris is excited to support Education Pioneers' vast professional network of reform-minded partners and alumni and help them leverage their collective knowledge and talent to deepen the impact of the entire network.

Prior to joining Education Pioneers, Kris held a variety of positions in school-based and youth development programs throughout the Bay Area. Most of her work has been focused on creating learning opportunities that reach beyond the classroom and reduce common barriers to learning that many underserved children face. At different times over the past 10 years you may have seen Kris launching new 21^st Century after school programs, teaching teens in San Francisco and Richmond, CA how to create and use media as a tool for educating their peers, evaluating learning supports in Berkeley schools, counseling middle school students and their parents, or designing community-accessible tools and presentations for parents and early childhood educators in Contra Costa County.

Kris earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication studies from the University of Minnesota and a Master's degree in Social Welfare with an emphasis on management and planning and school-to-community partnerships from the University of California, Berkeley.

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Namrata's goal is to make a transformative impact in K-12 education to help close the nationwide achievement gap. She is motivated by the opportunity to help every student gain access to quality educational opportunities to achieve his/her full potential. At Education Pioneers, she is excited to empower and develop a new generation of leaders to make a lasting impact in education.

Namrata joins Education Pioneers following a consulting career at Stroud Consulting. At Stroud, she helped client organizations in industries such as energy and consumer products to achieve 20-50% improvement to their production, environment, and safety performance. Her role also included coaching client teams in problem-solving and leadership skills to help them establish and sustain a culture of continuous improvement in their organizations. Namrata also has professional experience as an engineer at two major consumer products companies. She is a graduate of Cornell University with a degree in Chemical Engineering.

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Emily joined Education Pioneers because she believes that collaborative and diverse leaders can have a transformative impact on urban education.  She is excited to work with the EP team to inspire and develop emerging leaders committed to education reform.

Prior to joining Education Pioneers, Emily served as a Teaching Fellow at Citizen Schools, where she developed and led out-of-school time educational programming for students in the Roslindale and Mattapan neighborhoods of Boston.  As a Teaching Fellow, Emily supported a team of 15 sixth graders as they transitioned into middle school and partnered with adult volunteers to design and teach hands-on learning projects. She also worked with Citizen Schools' Staff Alumni Engagement Team, coordinating the organization's efforts to mobilize and support former staff members as they continue their careers in education.  Emily is a graduate of Columbia University, where she earned a B.A. in English.

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Kendra joined Education Pioneers because she believes that education is one of the most exciting, rewarding, and meaningful sectors to work. As Manager of National Communications, Kendra works to raise Education Pioneers' visibility to ensure that the nation's best and brightest leaders and managers continue to choose high-impact career paths in education and that all of America's students receive a world-class education that prepares them for college, career, and life.

Kendra started her career in communications at The Broad Foundation, and later served in various capacities at The Broad Center for the Management of School Systems.  She received her B.A. in English from the University of California, Los Angeles, where she graduated cum laude and with highest departmental honors.        

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Grounded in a commitment to provide every child with the quality education they deserve and a belief that talent has transformative potential, Sarah joined Education Pioneers. She is grateful to contribute to a leading, high-growth organization in education reform, and is encouraged by the talent, commitment, and energy of her colleagues.

Prior to joining the Education Pioneers team, Sarah spent six and a half years as a Consultant with Mercer’s Human Capital business advising clients on a range of HR issues including compensation strategy, program design and performance measurement. She had a broad client portfolio spanning mid-size non-profit and healthcare organizations to Fortune 500 technology companies. She is a graduate of the University of Southern California, holding a BA in Global Business.

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Bonnie Donigan joined Education Pioneers because she is excited about the opportunity to recruit leaders who can facilitate change in the education sector. 

Bonnie worked previously at Liberty Mutual where she oversaw the campus recruiting effort for the Personal Markets division nationwide.  In this role, Bonnie was responsible for the planning and execution of recruiting for both full-time and internship programs.  Before Liberty Mutual, she was responsible for all levels of campus recruiting and internship programming for The Monitor Group.

Bonnie is a graduate of Brigham Young University with a BA in Marketing and Advertising Communications.

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Christine joined Education Pioneers because of her passion for education reform and her belief in the need for talented and innovative leaders outside the classroom. She believes that Education Pioneers addresses the education deficit in a powerful way and is excited to a part of such a dynamic organization.

After earning her B.A. in Psychology from The George Washington University, Christine launched her career as a client coordinator and licensed real estate agent in the commercial real estate sector. At Cushman & Wakefield, she provided marketing and analytic support to a retail leasing team and helped with business development and strategic growth to new markets. Recently, Christine was selected as a Rotary Scholar and spent one month in Sao Paulo, Brazil examining their schools and youth development initiatives. This unique vocational exchange provided her with a greater insight into the international education deficit and gave her a renewed energy to make positive changes in her local community.

Outside of work, Christine is a chair on the Legacy Board for the GLIDE Foundation and is an active mentor with City of Dreams, where she previously served as the Director of Fundraising.

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Carrie joined Education Pioneers because she is passionate about education reform and closing the achievement gap. She is excited to impact the pipeline of talented and dedicated future education leaders.

Carrie started her career in the classroom as a Teach for America corps member teaching 6^th grade in Camden, New Jersey. Working within a school increased her passion for affecting education on a larger scale. Since teaching, she managed an AmeriCorps Program working with recent graduates to engage youth and adults in their communities. Most recently, she recruited, trained, and developed instructors throughout New England for a test preparatory company.

Carrie received a Bachelor of Arts in economics and international relations from Connecticut College and a Master of Business Administration and Master Public Policy from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. 

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Emily joined Education Pioneers due to her passion for increasing academic excellence in public education and motivation to bring innovative change through empowerment. She believes that every child deserves a quality education and is excited to work with an organization that is making this a reality.

Prior to joining Education Pioneers, Emily worked at PATH, a global health non-profit located in Washington DC serving developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. In this role, she worked as a Program Assistant supporting and managing maternal and child health and nutrition projects around the world. She also worked on project start-up and implementation, business development and grant writing for a variety of international donors, and partner collaboratives. Prior to PATH, Emily worked as a Research Assistant at the George Washington University School of Public Health in the Environmental Health Department. Emily received her B.A. in Psychology and minor in Political Science from The George Washington University in Washington, DC.

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MK joined Education Pioneers because of her passion for children and belief that every child deserves a high quality education. She is confident that identifying and fostering great leaders in education who will create valuable systematic changes will frame practices within the classrooms that ensure students’ success.

Prior to joining Education Pioneers, MK served as an AmeriCorps State member at Generations Incorporated where she managed a literacy program for K-3 students at two sites in Greater Boston. She supported 20 older adult volunteers and 60 students by implementing strategies for effective and engaging reading sessions. She graduated from Duke University with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Political Science.

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Stephanie joined Education Pioneers because of her passion for education equity. She believes that an excellent public education extends beyond the classroom and that there needs to be a strong network for impactful systemic reform.  Moreover, Stephanie recognizes that closing the achievement gap is a solution to many of our nation’s most pressing social challenges.

Prior to Education Pioneers, Stephanie spent two years as a Teach For America corps member in Philadelphia, PA. As both a Special Education and General Education high school math teacher, she quickly realized that strong district and school-based leadership is imperative for successful academic achievement of all students.

Stephanie received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology from The George Washington University. While a Teach For America corps member, she also earned her Masters in Education from Chestnut Hill College.

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Nariko joined Education Pioneers because of her passion to make a difference in people’s lives through the education sector. She is excited to be a part of the work at Education Pioneers to bring about equal access to education and to foster leaders that’ll make a huge impact in education.

In college, Nariko interned at Lighthouse Community Charter School where she served as an after school program assistant to 20 second graders. Her primary responsibilities included helping students achieve academic success through homework tutoring, provide higher education guidance, and assist with program implementation. After graduating from college, she worked at Google as a data, reports, and metrics analyst. She spent her time there improving processes, data accuracy, and efficiency.

Nariko earned her B.A. in sociology from the University of California, Berkeley.

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Cesar Luna believes that Education Pioneers is heading in a positive direction at a rampant speed and is excited to be a part of the organization’s successful growth.

Cesar has dabbled in unique mix of professional fields including: lobbying, nonprofit, education, and most recently he completed a two-year term as a Field Representative for a now-former Member of the California State Assembly. While immensely grateful for the substantive experience that he was afforded with the State Legislature, Cesar is enthused to bring his diverse slate of experiences to his long-time passion of the Human Assets field.

Cesar is a firm believer that “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” and therefore he uses his spare time, albeit scarce these days, to loyally follow the San Francisco 49ers, strum his acoustic guitar and attend a multitude of local stand-up comedy shows. Friends of Cesar would describe him as an easy-going professional who is curious to learn as much as he can about the world around him.

Cesar Luna is 2010 graduate of the University of the Pacific with a B.A. in Political Science and is currently working towards completing his M.S. in Human Resources Management at Golden Gate University.

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Nate joined the Education Pioneers recruiting team because he believes that in order to give all students the opportunity to pursue a great education, we must continue to attract great and diverse leaders to the sector.

An alumnus of the 2012 Texas cohort, Nate worked with the College and Career Readiness team in the Houston Independent School District, where he developed marketing content, training guides, an operations manual, and support systems in preparation for the launch of an online mentoring program at six district high schools.

Prior to his EP Fellowship, Nate received a Master's degree in Higher Education Administration and Policy from Northwestern University, where he worked in a variety of roles, including admissions and marketing, health promotion and wellness, student affairs assessment, and change management. A graduate of Middlebury College with a degree in Film and Media Culture, Nate spent two years after college teaching English at a high school in Crema, Italy.

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Jessica is excited to help Education Pioneers build up and empower a new generation of leaders and change agents committed to creating greater and more equal access to education.

Jessica began her career in public relations, providing communications support for a broad spectrum of organizations in the public, private and social sectors. In these roles, she focused on the non-profit, food and wine, and technology industries and was responsible for branding development, working with media, pioneering social media efforts, and event planning. Prior to this, she was a consultant and project leader for The Berkeley Group, an organization dedicated to providing pro-bono consulting services to nonprofits in the Bay Area.

Jessica earned her B.A. in political science and mass communications from the University of California, Berkeley. While there, she actively worked with several Bay Area education and mentoring organizations.

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Scout joined Education Pioneers because she is passionate about increasing academic excellence as a tool for economic and social equality. She is excited to work in the Bay Area office to help recruit new talent and bring innovative ideas to the field of education.

Scout graduated from Stanford University in 2011 with a degree in Economics. At Stanford, Scout directed Women and Youth Supporting Each Other (WYSE), an all-female student group that mentors 7th and 8th grade girls in East Palo Alto, CA. Scout interned at the U.S. Department of Education in the Office for Civil Rights, where she analyzed teacher quality and student demographic data from the nation's largest school districts. She has also served as a Summer Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute Campus Network, a progressive policy think tank for college students. Outside of work, Scout tutors high school students for the SATs and is excited to explore mentoring opportunities in the Bay Area.

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Samantha joined Education Pioneers to recruit the very best professionals in leading change and to continue the progression of education reform. She is excited to take part in the great and valiant efforts that Education Pioneers has consistently spearheaded since 2003. 

Samantha joins Education Pioneers after a successful freshman recruiting cycle with Stetson University’s Office of Admission. At Stetson, Samantha delivered frequent presentations on campus and off, executed student interviews, application file review, provided assistance in event coordination but above all, gave consistent and professional contact with students and parents through all phases of the college selection process. Her outreach efforts in the Southeast Florida region resulted in fulfilling her assigned enrollment goals by 139%. Prior to that, she worked within higher education at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University of Daytona Beach and the University of Central Florida in Orlando. 

Samantha received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Radio-Television at the University of Central Florida in May 2010.

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Amata joined Education Pioneers because of her longstanding commitment to education equality and public service. 

In 2006 Amata served a 10-month commitment with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps working on hurricane recovery projects in Louisiana and Mississippi. Following her service, she returned to the Bay Area where she worked as a nanny for four years before returning to school to complete her bachelors at the University of California, Berkeley. At Berkeley, Amata ran the student group Education Undergraduates, a mentorship program that connected graduate and undergraduate students with similar interests in order to support career exploration and professional growth. She also served as a research assistant in the Infant Studies Lab investigating whether infants respond with differentiated behaviors to distinct emotions, such as joy and disgust.

Amata graduated with Highest Distinction from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Education.

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Taylor joined Education Pioneers because of her commitment to attaining education equality and developing strong leaders, both in and out of the classroom. Taylor's interest in education reform sparked when she was an intern for Education Pioneers, where she was consistently inspired by the impressive work of our Fellows. Taylor enjoys working in the high-energy environment full of driven individuals committed to education reform.

Taylor graduated from the University of Southern California with a B.A. in Social Sciences (Economics) and a minor in Business. While at USC, she not only enjoyed interning for the Education Pioneers, but was also involved in student government, helping to start a mentoring program at two local schools. She was the president of the USC Women's Club Water Polo team and was involved with the USC Helenes, an all-female service organization.

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John joined Education Pioneers because of his passion for improving our nation's education system and his belief that talented leaders are necessary to ensure every child receives an exceptional education. A 2008 New York City Education Pioneers alumnus, John spent his summer fellowship at Achievement First Charter Schools, where he wrote a new business plan that both guided the organization's rapid growth and served as a fundraising tool to make that growth possible. Having experienced the power of the fellowship firsthand, John is excited to help grow the organization in the DC Metro Area and ensure more students can have a similar experience as well.

John began his career as an investment banking analyst at Citigroup in New York. Out of a desire to utilize his business skills to benefit the local community, John switched to the non-profit sector where he ran a community service non-profit named EPIC Adventures, served as the Director of Community Service and Finance at The Journey Church in Manhattan, and helped start Church Leader Insights, an organization dedicated to equipping pastors with the leadership and organizational skills necessary to effectively run their churches. After New York, John spent a year studying Spanish and volunteering in orphanages in Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina before returning to earn his MBA.

John has a Bachelor's of Business Administration from Texas A&M University and a Master's of Business Administration from Duke University, where he served as President of the Net Impact Club.

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Leniece joined Education Pioneers because of its commitment, in mission and practice, to ensuring all children have the opportunity to succeed in college and beyond. As a former student and teacher in New York City’s public schools, Leniece is deeply connected to the work of Education Pioneers. In 2005, she returned to her hometown, the Bronx, NY, as a Teach For America corps member. While teaching, she earned a Master of Science in Early Childhood Education from Bank Street College of Education and then went on to teach at Manhattan Country School. During her teaching career she led her students to achieve significant academic gains. As she considered the trajectory-changing implications of her students’ progress, she endeavored to broaden her impact. She enrolled in Columbia University's Sociology and Education master’s program to develop frameworks for building impactful solutions beyond the microcosm of her classroom. 

In the summer of 2009, she became an Education Pioneers Fellow where she piloted the launch of a new course, Diversity in the American School with Teacher U. Her experience coaching and mentoring teachers led to her subsequent work as an adjunct lecturer at Hunter College’s Graduate School of Education and further piqued her interest in developing human capital. She is thrilled to share her passion and experience with the Houston team.

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Debbie joined Education Pioneers because she believes strongly in the mission of transforming education and inspiring the next generation to do the same. She understands that talent and leadership are necessary to bring about big change. She believes education is the great equalizer and that all children deserve the opportunity to have a quality education.

She comes to Education Pioneers from America’s Promise Alliance, where she set the strategy for mobilizing 400 national partners to end the dropout crisis.  Prior to America’s Promise, she worked for the CityBridge Foundation, leveraging the assets and talent of corporate partners to support local nonprofits and schools in DC.  Her previous experience includes City Year, Points of Light Foundation and the Institute for Educational Leadership. Debbie served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Lithuania.

She earned her MPA from American University and a BA from University of Florida. She currently serves on the board of a public charter school in Anacostia. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and two daughters.

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Michelle joined Education Pioneers because she has a true passion for education and seeing students reach their full potential. She believes that great leadership can create great change and is excited to be part of that at Education Pioneers. 

Prior to joining Education Pioneers, Michelle worked at Genesys Works in several capacities including managing student recruitment, executing special projects, developing curriculum and programs, and mentoring & training young professionals as they prepared for the workforce and college.  Michelle holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Texas A&M University.

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Laura, an alumna of the 2008 cohort of our Graduate School Fellowship in the DC Metro Area, was delighted to have the opportunity to once again work closely with the DC Metro Area site team - first as a short-term Program Consultant, and now as the Development Manager for the site.  Prior to rejoining Education Pioneers in Spring 2011, Laura had spent the previous three years working in the District of Columbia Public Schools administration after a transformative summer Fellowship experience with the organization. While at DCPS, Laura developed and oversaw processes and procedures related to special education dispute resolution, and launched and expanded new programmatic offerings for students with disabilities. She is thrilled to now leverage her resourcefulness, thought partnership, and project management skills to ensure that the DC Metro Area Education Pioneers site is well-positioned to continuously increase its local impact on key education organizations and the students they serve.

Laura’s passion for increasing academic excellence in public education was sparked by her experiences working with children with autism the summer before she left for college. She spent her undergraduate career at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, studying Psychology and Religion and continuing to provide classroom- and home-based educational interventions to students with autism and severe emotional and physical disabilities. After moving to Washington, DC to pursue her Master of Public Policy degree at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute, her work with special education legal advocates and supplemental service providers serving local families grounded her policy and management studies in the realities of her underserved clients. Laura believed then, and believes now, that the amazing students in her adopted city deserve – and can, through bold collaborative action, receive – an excellent education from their public school system.

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Candace joined Education Pioneers because she believes that all children deserve a quality education, regardless of economic and/or social status.  As a product of the New York City public school system, Candace recognized and sought to educate herself on the imbalanced educational landscape that divides many public and private school students.  She is thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of an organization that strives to close our nation’s educational opportunity gap.

A 2011 graduate of Babson College with a Bachelors of Science in Business Management, Candace has had the opportunity to combine her passion for education with her business experience.  During the winter of 2010, Candace taught Entrepreneurship and Marketing to Ghanaian high school students and consulted local villagers on financially expanding their businesses.  

Additionally, Candace has served as a mentor to Boston Public High School students through the Babson Peer Consulting initiative, preparing students for the college application process, their SATs and one-on-one tutu ring.  She has also volunteered her time to the Let’s Get Ready organization, preparing rising high school seniors for the writing, reading and essay portion of the SATs.

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Kendall joined Education Pioneers because of her belief in the transformative power of education. She is excited to be part of an organization working to ensure that all children receive a world class education.

Prior to joining Education Pioneers she completed a J. William Fulbright scholarship, spending a year in Argentina teaching English language and American culture. During this time, she taught courses at a local college, led discussion-based teacher training activities, and assisted with conferences and other activities sponsored by the Argentine Ministry of Education. In her spare time, she volunteered at area elementary schools and high schools and founded a web-based study group for English learners of all ages.

Kendall holds a Bachelor of Arts from Rice University in Hispanic Studies and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. While at Rice, she is proud to have served as president of the Native American Student Association as well as a student board member of Houston Hillel. 

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Tanya Ramos has devoted her career to improving educational opportunity and life outcomes for young people in New York City's most disadvantaged communities for more than a decade.  Prior to joining Education Pioneers, Tanya served as Literacy, Inc.'s (LINC) Executive Director; first successor to the Founding Executive Director.  Ms. Ramos also served as Senior Manager of Strategic Corporate Partnerships at The Taproot Foundation, Director of the College Career Advisement Program, for ASPIRA, and was Director of the E.X.C.E.L. (Educational Excellence Creating Empowered Leaders) Program at the Children’s Aid Society (CAS).

Ms. Ramos received the Annie E. Casey Foundation Award, during her time at CAS, and was the recipient of a Jacob Kaplan Fellowship for her graduate work.  She is an alumna of the Civic Leadership Development Program (Coro) and INROADS and served as an Adjunct Professor for LaGuardia Community College. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from N.Y.U., her Master of Science in Urban Policy and Management from New School University, and in 2009 she became a graduate of the Executive Level Program at Columbia Business School’s Institute for Not-for-Profit Management.

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Kara Grieco joins the Education Pioneers NYC Metro Area team as a committed education reformer with over 8 years of experience working on issues of equity and access in school funding, schools of choice, charter school governance, teacher quality, parent education, and healthy school food.

Kara most recently served as the Director of Partnership Development at Revolution Foods, a mission driven social enterprise that seeks to increase access to healthy food for all children.  Kara was a founding  leader for the New Jersey region where she led expansion of the organization into New York and Pennsylvania, diversified program offerings, and tripled the number of meals served daily.  Previously, Kara served as the Director of Business Development for Victory Education Partners (formerly Victory Schools) where she was responsible for charter school development, board capacity building, grant writing, marketing and corporate communications. She began her career working as the Public Relations and Community Outreach Aide for a state senator in New Jersey.

Kara is an alumna of EP NYC 2010 cohort and was a founding EP NYC Metro Area Alumni Board member.  Kara also serves as founding member of Leadership Scholars Alumnae Board at Rutgers University Institute for Women’s Leadership. Kara received an MPA from New York University - Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and a BA from Rutgers University - Douglass College.

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Elliot Luscombe joined the Education Pioneers team because of his conviction that the challenges facing the education sector cannot be addressed without an infusion of new talent and interdisciplinary perspectives into the field.

He comes to Education Pioneers with a background in social work, youth development, and program management. He previously worked as a consultant, with various non-profit organizations and the New York City Department of Education, focusing on design, implementation, and management out-of-school time programs for adolescents in over 20 middle and high schools.  

Elliot holds a Bachelor’s of Arts in Communication from Stanford University as well as a Master’s in Social Work from the University at Albany, State University of New York.

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Marianne Nieman joins the Education Pioneers team with the belief that drawing talent to the educational leadership field is a key in closing the education gap, and is excited to bring her experiences to the NYC Metro team as Program Manager. Her career in education began as a second grade teacher in Atlanta through Teach for America. Interested in looking at education from a global perspective, Marianne moved to Saga, Japan as part of the JET Programme where she taught high school English. Alongside teaching she became an advisor for other English teachers in her region, providing leadership, professional development, and support. She has also spent time volunteering with non-profit organizations working in education around Southeast Asia. She most recently worked at Mercy Corps, running the operations and public programming at an education space. Marianne received her B.S. in Biology and Psychology from Tulane University and her M.A. in International Education from New York University.

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Marvin joined Education Pioneers because he was inspired by the organization’s innovative approach towards improving the educational system by infusing talented leaders into the urban education infrastructure. He is a product of the urban public school system and aspires to see all children afforded the opportunity to realize their academic potential and achieve their goals. Marvin is excited to serve as the National Development Associate and assist with increasing the organization’s capacity as it continues to grow.

Prior to joining Education Pioneers Marvin gained valuable development experience working with the International Union Against Cancer and as a United Nations Intern. Most recently, he worked at the Head-Royce School assisting with fundraising efforts for their annual fund and the Heads-Up program, which provides summer enrichment for public school children.

Marvin graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in History, Politics, and Spanish from Pitzer College and holds a Master of Arts in International Studies from the Graduate of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland.

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Rebekah joined Education Pioneers because she believes in education equality and promoting opportunities for those who aspire to be leaders in education. As a product of the San Francisco Public Unified School District, she understands first-hand the effects of a faulty leadership system and is excited to be part of an organization that is working to change that. She is based in the New York City office, where she supports a successful “dream” team that works to infuse top tier talent in education leaderships through creative and innovative action.

Rebekah holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, San Diego in Communication with a minor in Political Science. While at UC San Diego, she worked with student-led organizations focused on outreaching and empowering high school students to strive towards higher education. She proudly led the public relations and community outreach for several student-run productions and events for the greater San Diego community. Prior to joining Education Pioneers, she worked for a technology startup in her hometown of San Francisco.

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Kimberly Zouzoua is an accomplished non-profit executive with 20+ years of experience leading high-level operations, planning, and development functions for a diverse range of businesses and philanthropic organizations. Throughout her career, she has been recognize for her ability to launch innovative programs that have consistently helped organizations construct and implement strategic plans, expand their reach in the community, achieve financial stability, and create a strong and sustainable company culture.

Kimberly has a passion for urban youth and an undeniable belief in their ability to succeed when given the right opportunities. She has made a tremendous impact as an executive leader, consultant, volunteer, and advocate for numerous organizations across the Boston area, leveraging her numerous relationships with both civic, political, academic, and corporate organizations to achieve aggressive growth and fundraising initiatives.

Kimberly has a Master of Business Administration from Northeastern University, a Bachelor of Science in Management and an Associate of Science in Finance and Investments both from Johnson and Wales University. Additionally, she obtained the NASD Series 6 and 63 security licenses and a Training Specialist Certification from Langevin Learning Services. She is a member of various professional organizations and sits on numerous boards. Kimberly enjoys discovering different cultures and has traveled across the world to places such as South Africa, Central America, and Europe. 

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Sara joined Education Pioneers with the desire to leverage her policy and partnership-building expertise to help create systems change in the education reform sector.

With ten years of professional work experience, Sara Guderyahn has a strong track record of building powerful networks, developing strategic partnerships, reaching out to public forums and engaging the social entrepreneurship and philanthropic sectors.  In her seven years with The Sheridan Group, Sara partnered with non-profits in both the domestic and international sectors.  Some of her accomplishments include launching the nation’s first advocacy coalition against human trafficking, developing and passing federal policy authorizing state waivers to utilize federal funding to develop innovative alternative services for children in the foster care system and the renewal of a competitive program to provide accessible materials for students with disabilities.

Prior to coming to The Sheridan Group and as part of the ContactTrust in Cape Town, Sara helped bridge the divide between South African parliamentarians and newly formed nongovernmental organizations, building advocacy capacity for the organization's portfolio. Domestically, Sara worked for Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and focused her work on education and health care.

Sara has her undergraduate degree in government and economics and holds a Masters in Applied Political Science from American University.

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Sarah joined Education Pioneers with the desire to leverage her human capital expertise to help make an impact in the local education reform sector.  She comes to Education Pioneers from the KIPP Foundation, where she spent over two years as Talent Development Director, supporting the organization through work in performance management, employee surveying, and professional and manager development.  Prior to KIPP, she managed a number of organizational culture and employee engagement initiatives at Dun & Bradstreet in New Jersey.  Sarah started her career in client services and general management at a small test preparation company outside of Boston, where she also had the opportunity to tutor middle and high school students.  She earned a BA in Psychology from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business.

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Throughout her career, Monique has been driven by an intrinsic passion to reform educational systems so that all children can receive an excellent education. Monique was drawn to Education Pioneers after completing the Graduate School Fellowship and observing the transformative nature and innovative spirit that permeated staff, partners and Fellows.

Monique comes to Education Pioneers with extensive experience in classroom teaching and teacher leadership. She has achieved noteworthy social and academic results as a second and then third grade teacher in New York City public and charter schools. Throughout her teaching experience, Monique also mentored new teachers around best practices for cultivating a positive classroom culture. Following her roles in schools, Monique consulted for several nonprofit organizations to strategically develop and implement programs to manage relationships, recruit talent, raise funds and train Houston educators.

Monique’s professional career began as a Teach for America corps member after she completed her undergraduate studies at Temple University. Monique also earned two Master’s of Science degrees in Teaching and Early Childhood Leadership from Pace University and Bank Street College of Education.

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Scott joined Education Pioneers because he strongly believes that each child has a fundamental right to a first-rate public education. He sees Education Pioneer's program as an excellent opportunity to make real, systemic change in our education infrastructure that will eliminate the achievement gap in our public schools.

Scott has spent the past several years managing fundraising operations for challenger political candidates seeking public office. He most recently was the Deputy Finance Director for Jessica Ehrlich's bid for U.S. Congress in St. Petersburg Florida. Previously, Scott also had the opportunity to work for Susan Bysiewicz's race for U.S. Senate in Connecticut and for a series of state-level candidates in Wisconsin.

Scott earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As a student, he worked in program management for the Office of Student Affairs, in administration for the UW Hospital Cancer Clinics and in the legislative offices for several elected officials.

Scott is a proud product of the K-12 City of Pittsburgh public school system, and desires that all students are afforded the same opportunities to learn and grow that he was given as a child.

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Kate believes that by enhancing our educational system we will nurture a society that approaches daunting challenges through collaboration and compassion.  Additionally, she believes that access to an excellent education is not only a fundamental human right - but that with collaboration, courage, and ambition, it is an achievable goal to provide all children in the United States with an excellent education.

Kate joined Education Pioneers after spending two years teaching in rural New Mexico with Teach for America.  In New Mexico, she became interested in management and leadership issues as root causes of failing schools, and sought an avenue to contribute in bringing talented, dedicated leaders to education.

Kate attended Santa Clara University where she worked with youth to promote education, leadership, and environmental stewardship through a program she co-created, the Sustainability Decathlon. She completed her BA in Communication and Political Science at Western Washington University.

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Brandon joined the Education Pioneers team to be part of an organization which is increasing the efficiency and quality of programs serving children in a powerful way. He is extremely excited about his role in developing a talent pipeline for individuals with the skills and passion to drive positive change in the education sector.

Brandon has dedicated his career to building organizations that help meet the needs of underserved children and families. His passion for creating effective and efficient social and educational programs led Brandon to the UCLA Anderson School of Management where he earned an MBA with a focus on Entrepreneurship and Non-Profit Management. During his time at graduate school, he served as the Net Impact club President and as a leadership coach for executives leading Head Start and Healthcare organizations. Prior to business school Brandon worked in a series of management roles impacting youth. He was part of the leadership team of a startup camp serving children with severe behavior problems, managed a multi-site residential treatment facility, and served as interim-dean at a special needs school. 

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Celia joined Education Pioneers because she is committed to expanding educational opportunities for all children in the country independent of their race and socio-economic background.  She is passionate about coaching and developing reform-minded leaders who want to play a critical role in ending educational inequity from different vantage points in the education sector.

Celia began her career as an educator and taught for seven years in the Los Angeles Unified School District.  She then joined Teach For America where her most current role there, was responsible for leading a team, who supported close to 300 corps members in the areas of teacher effectiveness and leadership, who were teaching approximately 22,000 students in low-income communities. Currently, as the Senior Director for the Western Region, she oversees the planning and implementation of programmatic work and leads a team who is responsible for hitting strategic priorities and goals in alignment with EP’s short-term and long-term outcomes.

Celia received her B.A. from Stanford University, her Ed.M. from Harvard University, and Ed.D. from UCLA.  She is currently a part-time faculty member at Loyola Marymount University’s Graduate School of Education.

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Kelly Heineke is the Director – Partnership Development for the Western Region and is focused on Partner relationships across the region.

Kelly joins Education Pioneers from the Achievement Network in Chicago and has recently relocated to LA. At the Achievement Network, Kelly was the Director of School Support where she coached and partnered with school leaders in a variety of areas – including building strengths in data driven instruction.  She has held a series of exciting positions driving change in Chicago public schools at both Kaplan K12 Learning Services and as a staff member at the CPS central office. Kelly began her career in the classroom and primarily teaching in the 7th and 8th grades.

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Iman Mills, an alumna of the 2010 cohort of Education Pioneers in the Bay Area, has recently rejoined the Bay Area site team as the Program Manager. As a proud Oakland native, Iman is excited about contributing her energy, skills and insights to build and sustain the growing network of change agents committed to across-the-board equity and success in the urban education landscape of the Bay Area and beyond.

Through Ed Pioneers, Iman spent last summer working with UrbanEd Solutions, where she facilitated the strategic planning to launch the West Oakland Education Innovation Zone. Her projects included developing aspects of Oakland's city-wide Promise Neighborhoods application and leading the West Oakland Education Brain Trust's community-wide asset mapping committee. Iman recently served as a consultant for The California Endowment’s Boys and Men of Color Initiative. In this capacity, she aided Endowment staff in identifying the requisite conditions to create a viable infrastructure for collective action among all sectors: public agencies, the private sector, non-profits and the broader community, to ensure the life-long success of boys and men of color in Oakland.

Prior to earning her Master’s degree from UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy (w/ emphasis in education equity and education reform), Iman worked at PolicyLink as the Project Coordinator for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity. Iman managed and coordinated the Center's nineteen national grantees engaged in advancing the Foundation's overall strategy to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic by 2015. In addition to her Master’s, Iman holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Comparative Literature from Columbia University.

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Andrea Richie came to Education Pioneers with eight years experience in non profit development, event planning, donor relations and board support. She believes that an organization’s administrative team plays a key role in the success of programs and therefore has a passion for effectively organizing events and fundraising campaigns as a means to further develop program outcomes. Her passion within the education sector began when she became a parent. Andrea saw the need to educate, train and connect parents with opportunities to become active participants in their child’s education by bridging the gap between schools and families. She does this by organizing parents on a grassroots level, providing them with the knowledge and tools to effectively advocate for high quality and appropriate education. She also sits on the District Advisory Council and School Site Council for York Elementary in the Hawthorne School District. Andrea has worked with children and families as a Development Coordinator and Outreach Coordinator in several social service and school settings in Los Angeles and received her B.A. in Human Services from California State University, Dominguez Hills.

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Jeanette was drawn to Education Pioneers because of her passion to help underserved youth and her belief that the best way to solve any problem is to get motivated people working on it together.

Before coming to Education Pioneers, Jeanette was doing Neuroscience research, first at Rockefeller University in New York City and then at University of California, San Francisco where she got her Master of Science degree.  She never lost sight of her passion for working with children.  She has taught science, language and the arts to at-risk youth ranging from 2-17 years old in three countries in both English and Spanish. She most recently was involved in volunteer teaching at public schools in San Francisco.  In addition to her Master’s, Jeanette holds a Bachelor’s degree in Neurobiology from Harvard University.

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