Areas of Practice
New School Design & Strategy
The original promise of the charter school movement was that communities could design and lead the schools they wanted for their kids. Many district have moved away from this approach, instead focusing on replicating models that aren't necessarily responsive to the needs of the community. If you're a community group interested in building a new school, or you're a district interested in building a more autonomous system of schools, I can partner with you and your team to strategize, design, and execute a great application to your authorizer. Clients include Empower Community High School, the American Indian Academy of Denver, and the Empower Innovation Network, Moonshot EdVentures.
Research & Analysis
Making sense of complex education systems, trends, and policies takes time that large organizations don't always have. This doesn't change the fact that policymakers, community members, school operators, and funders all need as much clear and understandable information they can to make their decisions. My projects have included original research for A+ Colorado, an education advocacy organization, and analysis of survey results for the Office of Family and Community Engagement in Denver Public Schools that supported school redesign, a principal search, and school integration efforts. Clients include Denver Public Schools, A+ Colorado, and the Donnell-Kay Foundation.
School Evaluation
External reviewers can offer a fresh and objective perspective to any school evaluation process. Professionally, I have led site reviewers for district-run and charter schools in Denver Public Schools, led or supported new school authorization processes in Colorado, Florida, and Tennessee, and served on the State Review Panel in Colorado, reviewing Unified Improvement Plan (UIPs) for schools on the statewide accountability clock. I have also "pre-reviewed" applications for charter applicants and Innovation Zones, greatly improving their ability to edit and revise their applications prior to officially submitting to the authorizer. Clients include the Colorado Dept. of Education, the Florida Dept. of Education, Shelby County School District.