Faculty
When the Essex County Learning Community (ECLC) launched in 2018 at New Profit through the Reimagine Learning Fund, we were fortunate to draw on the many national experts who were in the Reimagine Learning network. During our inaugural year, we selected eight of these experts to constitute a founding faculty group of advisors who helped design the ECLC, and who convened both in person and virtually. As the ECLC grows and evolves, we continue to add to our faculty roster, based on the emerging needs of the ECLC school districts. Our access to national expertise on ECLC districts’ behalf helps to ease their “vendor fatigue,” because they can count on the ECLC to vet for quality.
The current roster of faculty represents a range of areas of expertise, including learning differences, learning and attention issues, social and emotional development/learning (SEL), cultural responsiveness, trauma, and more. Some of the faculty members also provide specific technical experience and/or give presentations at ECLC's District Lead Team meetings, Teacher Leadership Council meetings, Summer Institutes, and other events. For a look at our most recent ECLC Faculty Partners who contributed to the Annual ECLC Summer Institute held in August 2020, please visit our official conference website.
The current roster of faculty represents a range of areas of expertise, including learning differences, learning and attention issues, social and emotional development/learning (SEL), cultural responsiveness, trauma, and more. Some of the faculty members also provide specific technical experience and/or give presentations at ECLC's District Lead Team meetings, Teacher Leadership Council meetings, Summer Institutes, and other events. For a look at our most recent ECLC Faculty Partners who contributed to the Annual ECLC Summer Institute held in August 2020, please visit our official conference website.
Bob Broudo
Headmaster/President, Landmark School (ECLC Founding Faculty)
Bob Broudo met Dr. Charles Drake, Landmark's founder, while he was a student at Bates College, and worked in "pre-Landmark" summer programs held in Maine. Bob then became a founding faculty member of Landmark when the school opened in Beverly, Massachusetts on the present High School site in 1971. At Landmark, Bob's roles have evolved over the years from teacher, supervisor, department head, house parent, residential coordinator, founding Director of Outreach, founding Director of the Prep Program, to Head of the High School. He was elected as Landmark's President and Headmaster in 1990.
Bob also served as Director of Special Education and Assistant High School Principal at the Walworth-Barbour American International School in Israel for two years. He received his undergraduate degree from Bates College and his Master's Degree from Boston
University in Psychoeducational Training.
Bob sits on several national and local non-profit boards and advisory boards, lives in the headmaster’s home on campus, and enjoys hiking, kayaking, traveling, and being with family and friends. Landmark, established in 1971, is a leader in the field of serving students in grades 2–12 with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities. The school has campuses in Prides Crossing and
Manchester, MA.
Headmaster/President, Landmark School (ECLC Founding Faculty)
Bob Broudo met Dr. Charles Drake, Landmark's founder, while he was a student at Bates College, and worked in "pre-Landmark" summer programs held in Maine. Bob then became a founding faculty member of Landmark when the school opened in Beverly, Massachusetts on the present High School site in 1971. At Landmark, Bob's roles have evolved over the years from teacher, supervisor, department head, house parent, residential coordinator, founding Director of Outreach, founding Director of the Prep Program, to Head of the High School. He was elected as Landmark's President and Headmaster in 1990.
Bob also served as Director of Special Education and Assistant High School Principal at the Walworth-Barbour American International School in Israel for two years. He received his undergraduate degree from Bates College and his Master's Degree from Boston
University in Psychoeducational Training.
Bob sits on several national and local non-profit boards and advisory boards, lives in the headmaster’s home on campus, and enjoys hiking, kayaking, traveling, and being with family and friends. Landmark, established in 1971, is a leader in the field of serving students in grades 2–12 with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities. The school has campuses in Prides Crossing and
Manchester, MA.
George M. Batsche, Ed.D., NCSP
Professor Emeritus, University of South Florida
(ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Dr. George M. Batsche, Ed.D., NCSP is a Professor Emeritus and previous Professor and Coordinator of graduate programs in School Psychology at the University of South Florida (USF). He was the Co-Director of the Institute for School Reform at USF. The Institute houses grants and projects totaling $14 million annually and focuses on an integrated service delivery model to improve academic and behavioral/social-emotional outcomes for all students.
The Institute houses grant projects that focus on statewide school improvement teams, student support services, Title I, statewide Title I technical assistance centers, HIV/AIDS education, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) and MTSS Technology, and 21st Century Community Schools. In addition, the Institute is responsible for projects related to Specific Learning Disability (SLD) and Emotional-Behavioral Disability (EBD) eligibility, evidence-based instructional practices for students with disabilities, chronic absenteeism, early warning systems, and systems coaching. Although the Institute houses diverse projects, the central focus of the Institute is the use of MTSS as the most efficient and effective model to integrate all services in educational systems. The majority of Dr. Batsche's work has focused on systemic district and statewide school reform and improvement initiatives with an emphasis on improving the performance of students with disabilities and at-risk populations.
Currently, Dr. Batsche is working with a number of state education agencies to develop, implement, and evaluate statewide school improvement plans and technical assistance protocols to improve outcomes for students in Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) and Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI)-designated schools. Specific action plans are developed as an outcome of a systems-level problem-solving process (8-Step) to identify both root causes of the low performance of designated student groups and to implement statewide infrastructures to provide technical assistance efforts to increase the capacity of districts to improve student outcomes. These efforts focus on students at-risk for school success, including students with disabilities, English learners, students impacted poverty, and addressing the needs of students from diverse backgrounds.
Dr. Batsche has authored more than 75 publications (journal articles, book chapters, books, technical reports) related to his work. Dr. Batsche also serves on numerous state departments of education advisory boards and is the Vice-Chair of the Professional Advisory Board for the National Center on Learning Disabilities (NCLD.) Dr. Batsche’s experience includes serving as a building principal and a district administrator.
Professor Emeritus, University of South Florida
(ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Dr. George M. Batsche, Ed.D., NCSP is a Professor Emeritus and previous Professor and Coordinator of graduate programs in School Psychology at the University of South Florida (USF). He was the Co-Director of the Institute for School Reform at USF. The Institute houses grants and projects totaling $14 million annually and focuses on an integrated service delivery model to improve academic and behavioral/social-emotional outcomes for all students.
The Institute houses grant projects that focus on statewide school improvement teams, student support services, Title I, statewide Title I technical assistance centers, HIV/AIDS education, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) and MTSS Technology, and 21st Century Community Schools. In addition, the Institute is responsible for projects related to Specific Learning Disability (SLD) and Emotional-Behavioral Disability (EBD) eligibility, evidence-based instructional practices for students with disabilities, chronic absenteeism, early warning systems, and systems coaching. Although the Institute houses diverse projects, the central focus of the Institute is the use of MTSS as the most efficient and effective model to integrate all services in educational systems. The majority of Dr. Batsche's work has focused on systemic district and statewide school reform and improvement initiatives with an emphasis on improving the performance of students with disabilities and at-risk populations.
Currently, Dr. Batsche is working with a number of state education agencies to develop, implement, and evaluate statewide school improvement plans and technical assistance protocols to improve outcomes for students in Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) and Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI)-designated schools. Specific action plans are developed as an outcome of a systems-level problem-solving process (8-Step) to identify both root causes of the low performance of designated student groups and to implement statewide infrastructures to provide technical assistance efforts to increase the capacity of districts to improve student outcomes. These efforts focus on students at-risk for school success, including students with disabilities, English learners, students impacted poverty, and addressing the needs of students from diverse backgrounds.
Dr. Batsche has authored more than 75 publications (journal articles, book chapters, books, technical reports) related to his work. Dr. Batsche also serves on numerous state departments of education advisory boards and is the Vice-Chair of the Professional Advisory Board for the National Center on Learning Disabilities (NCLD.) Dr. Batsche’s experience includes serving as a building principal and a district administrator.
Bob Cunningham, Ed.M.
Chief Executive Officer, International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and Senior Advisor, Understood (ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Bob Cunningham, Ed.M., serves as Chief Executive Officer at the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and Senior Advisor on learning and attention issues for Understood. He has also served as head of school at the Robert Louis Stevenson School and a member of the leadership team at the Purnell School. He also advises for the venture philanthropy firm New Profit.
Cunningham consults with schools, organizations, and families on matters related to learning and attention issues. He is a professional advisory board member for the National Center for Learning Disabilities, the Non-Verbal Learning Disability (NVLD) Project, Story Shares, and several other education-related nonprofit organizations. Previously, he was head of school for the Gateway Schools in New York City.
Cunningham has been a teacher, evaluator, and administrator in several public school districts. He holds a B.S. in education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and two master’s degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University, where he has also served as an instructor in the learning disabilities program and the department of curriculum and teaching.
Chief Executive Officer, International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and Senior Advisor, Understood (ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Bob Cunningham, Ed.M., serves as Chief Executive Officer at the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and Senior Advisor on learning and attention issues for Understood. He has also served as head of school at the Robert Louis Stevenson School and a member of the leadership team at the Purnell School. He also advises for the venture philanthropy firm New Profit.
Cunningham consults with schools, organizations, and families on matters related to learning and attention issues. He is a professional advisory board member for the National Center for Learning Disabilities, the Non-Verbal Learning Disability (NVLD) Project, Story Shares, and several other education-related nonprofit organizations. Previously, he was head of school for the Gateway Schools in New York City.
Cunningham has been a teacher, evaluator, and administrator in several public school districts. He holds a B.S. in education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and two master’s degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University, where he has also served as an instructor in the learning disabilities program and the department of curriculum and teaching.
Kamilah Drummond-Forrester, M.A., C.A.G.S.
Speaker, Consultant and Workshop Presenter (Current Faculty Partner)
Kamilah Drummond-Forrester, M.A., C.A.G.S., is a speaker, consultant and workshop presenter on topics of educational equity, anti-racism, self-care and social and emotional learning. She has written about these topics in the Women Change Worlds blog and in esteemed educational publications such as EdSurge, The 74million, and the Hechinger Report. Most recently, Kamilah was the Director of Open Circle a social and emotional learning program for children in elementary schools. She is a board member of the state social and emotional learning advocacy organization, SEL4MA and a steering committee member of the national SEL Providers Council. In all of her roles, Kamilah’s passion for social justice and the social and emotional wellbeing of children fuels her commitment to advocating for and educating others about the inextricable connections between social and emotional learning (SEL), social justice and anti-racism. Kamilah is also a trained leader with the National SEED Project where she has led cohorts of colleagues, educators and parents through year-long community building experiences that leverage the power of story-telling, self-reflection and truth-telling to bridge build and empower.
Prior to joining Open Circle, Drummond-Forrester was a co-founder and director of wellness at a Boston charter school and director of an award-winning, educationally-based reentry program at Suffolk County House of Correction. Her professional experiences have fueled her passion for social and emotional learning (SEL), equity, and youth development, affording her unique insight into the importance of SEL in the lives of children and the adults who care for them.
Speaker, Consultant and Workshop Presenter (Current Faculty Partner)
Kamilah Drummond-Forrester, M.A., C.A.G.S., is a speaker, consultant and workshop presenter on topics of educational equity, anti-racism, self-care and social and emotional learning. She has written about these topics in the Women Change Worlds blog and in esteemed educational publications such as EdSurge, The 74million, and the Hechinger Report. Most recently, Kamilah was the Director of Open Circle a social and emotional learning program for children in elementary schools. She is a board member of the state social and emotional learning advocacy organization, SEL4MA and a steering committee member of the national SEL Providers Council. In all of her roles, Kamilah’s passion for social justice and the social and emotional wellbeing of children fuels her commitment to advocating for and educating others about the inextricable connections between social and emotional learning (SEL), social justice and anti-racism. Kamilah is also a trained leader with the National SEED Project where she has led cohorts of colleagues, educators and parents through year-long community building experiences that leverage the power of story-telling, self-reflection and truth-telling to bridge build and empower.
Prior to joining Open Circle, Drummond-Forrester was a co-founder and director of wellness at a Boston charter school and director of an award-winning, educationally-based reentry program at Suffolk County House of Correction. Her professional experiences have fueled her passion for social and emotional learning (SEL), equity, and youth development, affording her unique insight into the importance of SEL in the lives of children and the adults who care for them.
Judy Elliott, Ph.D.
Founder/Principal, EduLead (ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Judy Elliott is the former Chief Academic Officer of the Los Angeles Unified School District where she was responsible for curriculum and instruction from early childhood through adult, professional development, innovation, accountability, assessment, afterschool programs, state and federal programs, health and human services, magnet programs language acquisition for both English and Standard English learners, parent outreach, and intervention programs for all students. Before that she was the Chief of Teaching and Learning in the Portland Oregon Public Schools and prior to that an Assistant Superintendent of Student Support Services in the Long Beach Unified School District in CA. Judy also worked as a Senior Researcher at the National Center on Educational Outcomes at the University of Minnesota.
She started her career as a special education classroom teacher and then school psychologist. During this time she was an adjunct Professor at the State University College at Buffalo New York where she taught graduate courses in curriculum and instruction and applied behavior analysis in the Department of Exceptional Education. In 2012, she was appointed by Commissioner John King as the first ever New York State “Distinguished Educator” to help support and oversee the Buffalo City School District Priority Schools.
Judy continues to assist districts, cooperatives, schools, national organizations, and state and federal departments of education in their efforts to update and realign systems and infrastructures around curriculum, instruction, assessment, data use, leadership, and accountability that includes all students and renders a return on investment.
Her research interests focus on systems change and leadership, equitable and accessible effective instruction for all students, data based decision making, and accelerated student achievement. She has trained thousands of staff, teachers, and administrators in the U.S. and abroad in areas of integrated service delivery systems, multi-tiered system of supports, effective use of data, linking assessment to district and classroom instruction and intervention, strategies and tactics for effective instruction, curriculum adaptation, collaborative teaching and behavior management.
She has published over 51 articles, book chapters, technical/research reports and books. She sits on editorial boards for professional journals and is active in many professional organizations. Judy is nationally known for her work in Multi-Tiered System of Supports/Response to Instruction and Intervention. She has led many successful projects in this area and actively continues to support school districts and national organizations in this work.
Founder/Principal, EduLead (ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Judy Elliott is the former Chief Academic Officer of the Los Angeles Unified School District where she was responsible for curriculum and instruction from early childhood through adult, professional development, innovation, accountability, assessment, afterschool programs, state and federal programs, health and human services, magnet programs language acquisition for both English and Standard English learners, parent outreach, and intervention programs for all students. Before that she was the Chief of Teaching and Learning in the Portland Oregon Public Schools and prior to that an Assistant Superintendent of Student Support Services in the Long Beach Unified School District in CA. Judy also worked as a Senior Researcher at the National Center on Educational Outcomes at the University of Minnesota.
She started her career as a special education classroom teacher and then school psychologist. During this time she was an adjunct Professor at the State University College at Buffalo New York where she taught graduate courses in curriculum and instruction and applied behavior analysis in the Department of Exceptional Education. In 2012, she was appointed by Commissioner John King as the first ever New York State “Distinguished Educator” to help support and oversee the Buffalo City School District Priority Schools.
Judy continues to assist districts, cooperatives, schools, national organizations, and state and federal departments of education in their efforts to update and realign systems and infrastructures around curriculum, instruction, assessment, data use, leadership, and accountability that includes all students and renders a return on investment.
Her research interests focus on systems change and leadership, equitable and accessible effective instruction for all students, data based decision making, and accelerated student achievement. She has trained thousands of staff, teachers, and administrators in the U.S. and abroad in areas of integrated service delivery systems, multi-tiered system of supports, effective use of data, linking assessment to district and classroom instruction and intervention, strategies and tactics for effective instruction, curriculum adaptation, collaborative teaching and behavior management.
She has published over 51 articles, book chapters, technical/research reports and books. She sits on editorial boards for professional journals and is active in many professional organizations. Judy is nationally known for her work in Multi-Tiered System of Supports/Response to Instruction and Intervention. She has led many successful projects in this area and actively continues to support school districts and national organizations in this work.
Jenee Henry Wood
Partner, Transcend Education (ECLC Founding Faculty)
Jenee Henry Wood is a Partner at Transcend Education. For four years prior to that, she worked in knowledge development and strategy at Teach For America, an education non-profit. She was the Managing Director of Strategic Clarity, which focuses on the organization’s
learning and knowledge infrastructure as well as national strategic planning initiatives.
Prior to leading this team, she managed the national Knowledge Development team, which focused on evolving the organization’s core teaching and learning frameworks. Before leading the team, she served as the Chief of Staff to the Senior Vice President of Knowledge Development (Chief Knowledge Officer) where she led project management and other strategic efforts.
Before joining the staff at Teach For America, Jenee worked as a special education teacher, and in 2011, Jenee was awarded the Sue Lehmann Award for Excellence in Teaching. She studied Economics and Russian language at Sarah Lawrence College in New York and Wadham College, University of Oxford in England. While living in the United Kingdom, she also worked as a consultant intern on strategy and online communications at Oxfam Great Britain, an international development charity, and served as a cellist in the Oxford University Orchestra.
Partner, Transcend Education (ECLC Founding Faculty)
Jenee Henry Wood is a Partner at Transcend Education. For four years prior to that, she worked in knowledge development and strategy at Teach For America, an education non-profit. She was the Managing Director of Strategic Clarity, which focuses on the organization’s
learning and knowledge infrastructure as well as national strategic planning initiatives.
Prior to leading this team, she managed the national Knowledge Development team, which focused on evolving the organization’s core teaching and learning frameworks. Before leading the team, she served as the Chief of Staff to the Senior Vice President of Knowledge Development (Chief Knowledge Officer) where she led project management and other strategic efforts.
Before joining the staff at Teach For America, Jenee worked as a special education teacher, and in 2011, Jenee was awarded the Sue Lehmann Award for Excellence in Teaching. She studied Economics and Russian language at Sarah Lawrence College in New York and Wadham College, University of Oxford in England. While living in the United Kingdom, she also worked as a consultant intern on strategy and online communications at Oxfam Great Britain, an international development charity, and served as a cellist in the Oxford University Orchestra.
Lindsay Kruse, M.B.A.
Education Consultant/Former Vice President, Understood
(ECLC Founding Faculty)
Lindsay Kruse was the Vice President for Understood, an organization dedicated to optimizing the talents and meeting the needs of children and young adults who learn and work in non-traditional ways. Prior to Understood, Lindsay was Vice President for PreK-12 Education Initiatives for the National Center for Learning Disabilities, after spending more than a decade building programs to address and support educators in reaching full equity and opportunity in schools.
Lindsay served as the Managing Director of the Leverage Leadership Institute for the Relay Graduate School of Education where she helped design and launch a program for top principals and superintendents across the country to diversify proof points and create a larger bench of leaders who can develop others to drive strong instruction. Prior to this, she designed and helped launch the National Principals Academy Fellowship for Relay, a program that began with 100 principals and has since grown to serve close to 500 superintendents, principals, vice principals and teacher leaders.
As an independent consultant, Lindsay worked with a variety of large urban districts, charter networks and education organizations to tackle human capital challenges focused on learning and development. Through this work, she had the privilege to support organizations such as Newark Public Schools, Hawaii Department of Education, Acelero Learning, Achievement First, and the Holdsworth Institute. In her previous role as Senior Director of Human Capital for Uncommon Schools, she built a new team to help grow the organization from 5 schools to what is now 52 schools. In this role, she built a strategic professional development plan for organizational content development and development programs ranging from master teachers to leaders.
Lindsay is a graduate of the Broad Residency in Urban Education, a two-year management development program that trains graduates of business, public policy, and law schools for leadership positions in school districts. She previously worked as a management consultant for Capgemini (Ernst & Young) and was on the founding team for the School Evaluation Services tool for Standard and Poors. Lindsay received her bachelor’s degree in Communication from Cornell University and a Masters in Business Administration from Columbia Business School with a concentration in social enterprise.
Education Consultant/Former Vice President, Understood
(ECLC Founding Faculty)
Lindsay Kruse was the Vice President for Understood, an organization dedicated to optimizing the talents and meeting the needs of children and young adults who learn and work in non-traditional ways. Prior to Understood, Lindsay was Vice President for PreK-12 Education Initiatives for the National Center for Learning Disabilities, after spending more than a decade building programs to address and support educators in reaching full equity and opportunity in schools.
Lindsay served as the Managing Director of the Leverage Leadership Institute for the Relay Graduate School of Education where she helped design and launch a program for top principals and superintendents across the country to diversify proof points and create a larger bench of leaders who can develop others to drive strong instruction. Prior to this, she designed and helped launch the National Principals Academy Fellowship for Relay, a program that began with 100 principals and has since grown to serve close to 500 superintendents, principals, vice principals and teacher leaders.
As an independent consultant, Lindsay worked with a variety of large urban districts, charter networks and education organizations to tackle human capital challenges focused on learning and development. Through this work, she had the privilege to support organizations such as Newark Public Schools, Hawaii Department of Education, Acelero Learning, Achievement First, and the Holdsworth Institute. In her previous role as Senior Director of Human Capital for Uncommon Schools, she built a new team to help grow the organization from 5 schools to what is now 52 schools. In this role, she built a strategic professional development plan for organizational content development and development programs ranging from master teachers to leaders.
Lindsay is a graduate of the Broad Residency in Urban Education, a two-year management development program that trains graduates of business, public policy, and law schools for leadership positions in school districts. She previously worked as a management consultant for Capgemini (Ernst & Young) and was on the founding team for the School Evaluation Services tool for Standard and Poors. Lindsay received her bachelor’s degree in Communication from Cornell University and a Masters in Business Administration from Columbia Business School with a concentration in social enterprise.
Gabrielle Rappolt-Schlichtmann, Ed.D.
Executive Director & Chief Scientist, EdTogether
(ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Gabrielle Rappolt-Schlichtmann, Ed.D., is Executive Director and Chief Scientist at EdTogether, a not-for-profit organization working to empower youth with disabilities to thrive in learning and life. Over her career Dr. Schlichtmann has developed a strong program of research and development that re-imagines the design of educational settings to support and empower youth with learning disabilities.
She is committed to bringing evidence-based solutions from the learning sciences to practical implementation at scale. Dr. Schlichtmann's work has been supported through funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, the National Institutes of Health, the Oak Foundation, and others.
Her research has been published in many refereed journals, and she is a co-editor of A Research Reader in Universal Design for Learning (Harvard Education Press, 2012). She is often invited to speak nationally and internationally with recent engagements including: Dyslexia Day on Capitol Hill and testimony at the Aspen Institute’s Senior Congressional Education Staff Retreat, “New Directions in Educational Innovation and Implications for Federal Policy.” She is an adjunct lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where she teaches the course “Emotion in Learning” and is herself a person with dyslexia.
Executive Director & Chief Scientist, EdTogether
(ECLC Founding Faculty & Current Faculty Partner)
Gabrielle Rappolt-Schlichtmann, Ed.D., is Executive Director and Chief Scientist at EdTogether, a not-for-profit organization working to empower youth with disabilities to thrive in learning and life. Over her career Dr. Schlichtmann has developed a strong program of research and development that re-imagines the design of educational settings to support and empower youth with learning disabilities.
She is committed to bringing evidence-based solutions from the learning sciences to practical implementation at scale. Dr. Schlichtmann's work has been supported through funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, the National Institutes of Health, the Oak Foundation, and others.
Her research has been published in many refereed journals, and she is a co-editor of A Research Reader in Universal Design for Learning (Harvard Education Press, 2012). She is often invited to speak nationally and internationally with recent engagements including: Dyslexia Day on Capitol Hill and testimony at the Aspen Institute’s Senior Congressional Education Staff Retreat, “New Directions in Educational Innovation and Implications for Federal Policy.” She is an adjunct lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where she teaches the course “Emotion in Learning” and is herself a person with dyslexia.
Gisele Shorter, Ed.D., M.P.A.
Program Officer, Raikes Foundation
(ECLC Founding Faculty)
Over the past 15 years, Dr. Shorter has led youth development, education and community-based organizations through programmatic resets, large-scale culture change initiatives, and strategic re-engineering. Currently a program officer for the Raikes Foundation, she was previously the Vice President for Policy and Partner Engagement at Turnaround for Children, where she led efforts to build awareness, credibility, and ensure Turnaround achieved broader impact.
Dr. Shorter's career has been underscored by a deep commitment to affecting positive change in the lives of young people and families. She was a founding member the executive leadership team at ROADS Charter High Schools, second-chance charter high schools designed to serve the most at-risk young people. She has served on the NYC Mayor’s Office Community School Advisory Board; NYC Administration for Children’s Services Commissioner’s Advisory Panel on Education; and the Juvenile Justice Education and Prevention Workgroup. She is co-author of the PEAK Negotiated Acquisition, a contracted program with the NYC Department of Probation that provides meaningful alternatives to incarceration for juvenile offenders.
Dr. Shorter earned her Ed.D. in health education from Columbia University Teachers College. She holds an M.P.A. from Long Island University and a B.A. from Amherst College. She is a 2014 Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow at the Aspen Institute and an active member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Program Officer, Raikes Foundation
(ECLC Founding Faculty)
Over the past 15 years, Dr. Shorter has led youth development, education and community-based organizations through programmatic resets, large-scale culture change initiatives, and strategic re-engineering. Currently a program officer for the Raikes Foundation, she was previously the Vice President for Policy and Partner Engagement at Turnaround for Children, where she led efforts to build awareness, credibility, and ensure Turnaround achieved broader impact.
Dr. Shorter's career has been underscored by a deep commitment to affecting positive change in the lives of young people and families. She was a founding member the executive leadership team at ROADS Charter High Schools, second-chance charter high schools designed to serve the most at-risk young people. She has served on the NYC Mayor’s Office Community School Advisory Board; NYC Administration for Children’s Services Commissioner’s Advisory Panel on Education; and the Juvenile Justice Education and Prevention Workgroup. She is co-author of the PEAK Negotiated Acquisition, a contracted program with the NYC Department of Probation that provides meaningful alternatives to incarceration for juvenile offenders.
Dr. Shorter earned her Ed.D. in health education from Columbia University Teachers College. She holds an M.P.A. from Long Island University and a B.A. from Amherst College. She is a 2014 Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow at the Aspen Institute and an active member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Juanita Zerda, J.D., M.A.
Founder/Principal, JZ Consulting
Former Director of Implementation & Chief Program Officer, The Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy (ECLC Founding Faculty)
Juanita joined the Rennie Center with experience in outcomes management of privately and publicly funded programs. Her multidisciplinary experience includes working with housing and community development, health and human services, and workforce training and education programs. Her expertise is data-informed decision-making and translating policy into practice to help organizations increase their impact on communities, individuals, and families.
Juanita’s consulting portfolio included working with funders and providers from public agencies such as Massachusetts’ Executive Office of Health and Human Services and Rhode Island’s Department of Adult Education; and private funders such as the United Way of Massachusetts’ Bay and Merrimack Valley and Jobs for the Future. Prior to becoming a consultant, Juanita held management positions at the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development and Commonwealth Corporation. She holds a J.D. from Los Andes University in Bogotá, Colombia and an M.A. in Philosophy from Boston College.
Founder/Principal, JZ Consulting
Former Director of Implementation & Chief Program Officer, The Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy (ECLC Founding Faculty)
Juanita joined the Rennie Center with experience in outcomes management of privately and publicly funded programs. Her multidisciplinary experience includes working with housing and community development, health and human services, and workforce training and education programs. Her expertise is data-informed decision-making and translating policy into practice to help organizations increase their impact on communities, individuals, and families.
Juanita’s consulting portfolio included working with funders and providers from public agencies such as Massachusetts’ Executive Office of Health and Human Services and Rhode Island’s Department of Adult Education; and private funders such as the United Way of Massachusetts’ Bay and Merrimack Valley and Jobs for the Future. Prior to becoming a consultant, Juanita held management positions at the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development and Commonwealth Corporation. She holds a J.D. from Los Andes University in Bogotá, Colombia and an M.A. in Philosophy from Boston College.
