Moises Silva is a Class of 2012 Alumnus of Alliance Stern MASS. In 2016, he graduated from Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering with both a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Engineering. He is currently a Structural Engineer at Northrop Grumman. Moises previously served on Alliance’s Young Professionals Board from 2016 to 2020 and chaired a committee and has spearheaded raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for scholarships for Alliance alumni. Moises is passionate about leveraging data to make informed decisions and drive growth, and values diversity in the workplace, opportunities for professional development, and giving back to the community.

Email: [email protected]

For over 20 years, Janette Rodriguez-Pack has worked as an educator in some of the most impoverished communities throughout Los Angeles. Under her leadership as Assistant Principal and Principal, Alliance Dr. Olga Mohan High School was acknowledged as the California Charter School of the Year in 2011 and received the California Distinguished Schools Award in 2009 and 2013. Prior to becoming the Chief Academic Officer of STEM Prep Schools comprehensive TK-12 instructional programming, Ms. Rodriguez-Pack was the founding principal of Math and Science College Preparatory, which received the California Gold Ribbon Award in 2015.

Email: [email protected]

Dr. Clarence G. Miller was born in Greensboro, North Carolina and is the youngest of four brothers and two sisters. At the age of 10, he moved with his family from the segregated South to a more inclusive community in Long Island, New York where he attended and graduated from elementary and high schools. He graduated from the State University of New York, Plattsburgh with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in History. While there he captained the basketball and track teams his junior and senior years, chaired the Black Student Union and co-authored the proposal (Project New City) for the school’s Educational Opportunity Program (EOP). Upon graduation, he accepted the position as Founding Director of the EOP at Plattsburgh State University. He later graduated from City University of New York, Queens College with a Masters of Science (M.S.) degree in Counseling Psychology and the University of Texas with a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Educational Administration. While attending Texas, he founded the Tutoring for Reading Improvement Math Achievement and Counseling Services (TRI-MAC) non-profit organization to provide academic, social and emotional support to African American students as they integrated the Austin Independent School District.

Shortly after meeting his future wife, he relocated to Los Angeles, California and began a career in telecommunications with Pacific Bell (AT&T) where he led high performing teams in publishing, sales and government affairs. In 1995, he retired from Pacific Bell and began a career leading public secondary schools in Long Beach, California and later Houston, Texas. He retired from the Texas Public School System in 2010 and moved back to Los Angeles. However, his retirement lasted only one year and in 2011 Clarence began leading the development of a charter high school (Cindy and Bill Simon Technology Academy) in the Watts area of Los Angeles with The Alliance for College Ready Public Schools, in 2016, Simon Technology Academy was recognized by Newsweek as one of the top high schools in America. He retired on July 1, 2016.

His memberships have included Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity (The Boule), 100 Black Men of Los Angeles, Wescom Credit Union Board of Directors, Crenshaw Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce, Inglewood Chamber of Commerce, West Angeles Church of God in Christ, Mount St. Joseph Grand Lodge A.F.A.M. and the Texas Council for the Preparation of Personnel for the Handicapped.

Clarence currently lives in Frisco, Texas with his wife of 37 years, Patricia Howell Miller and is the father of Jeremy Miller of San Antonio, Texas and Cameron Miller of Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Email: [email protected]

Since 2012 Heymann has led the National Notary Association which has trained, served and advocated for nearly 200 million Notaries Public since 1957. He also oversees the following enterprises operated by NNA Services LLC: Trusted Notary Solutions for Employers, SigningAgent.com, RealstateBackgrounds.com, and NNASuretyBonds.com, NNA Insurance Services, LLC, the California Notary Association and Immigration Forms Specialist Training & Support. Heymann has more than 40 years of experience in executive management and corporate governance in operationally complex, service intensive environments spanning a variety of industries including education, retail, technology and restaurant.

In education he served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Knowledge Learning Corporation, the nation’s largest private provider of early education. In retail, Heymann served as President of Disney Stores, Inc., which included their global presence in retail, online and catalog enterprises. In technology, he has served on the boards of several public technology companies, including MP3.com, Loudeye Technologies, Atari and Tickets.com. Additionally, he was the managing director and co-founder of venture capital firm Digital Coast Ventures. In the restaurant industry, he served as President of The Levy Restaurants and Mastro’s Restaurants, LLC. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Northwestern University.

Email: [email protected]

Virgil Roberts is currently the managing partner of Bobbitt & Roberts, a law firm which he helped form. Mr. Roberts is also the co-creator of UCLA’s African American Studies Center. Mr. Roberts has a background in the entertainment industry as he previously formed the law firm of Manning & Roberts, which represented a number of entertainment clients primarily from the recording industry and he once served as president of Solar Records. Mr. Roberts has given many lectures and speeches to lawyers and law students interested in the entertainment industry. He has participated in panel discussions for such organizations as the National Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the National Association of Black-Owned Broadcasters, the Black Entertainment & Sports Lawyers Association, the National Association of Securities Professionals, and the American Law Institute.

Currently, Mr. Roberts is a member of the Audit Committee of Broadway Federal Bank, he also serves as Trustee of the James Irvine Foundation; Trustee and Audit Committee member of the Claremont Graduate School; Director and Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Bridgespan Group; Chairman of Families In Schools; Director of Southern California Public Radio, the Community Foundation Land Trust, the Fedco Foundation, Community Build, and the Alliance for College Ready Public Schools. In recognition of his philanthropic work, Mr. Roberts was honored by the Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Los Angeles Chapter with the 2011 Spirit of Philanthropy Award.

Email: [email protected]

Joe Drake is a leading entrepreneur and one of Hollywood’s most respected studio executives. As Chairman of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, Mr. Drake is responsible for overseeing the Company’s feature film business, including acquisitions, production, marketing and distribution. He leads a team responsible for a portfolio of films that has generated over $10 billion at the worldwide box office over the past six years.

Lionsgate’s upcoming film slate includes Roland Emmerich’s epic action film ​Midway​, the whodunit murder-mystery ​Knives Out​ directed by Rian Johnson, Jay Roach’s timely drama starring Margot Robbie, Charlize Theron, and Nicole Kidman, I Still Believe​ ​, the follow-up to the Erwin Brothers’ faith-based hit ​I Can Only Imagine​, a re-imagining of ​Saw​ starring Chris Rock, ​Hitman’s Bodyguard 2 and ​John Wick 4​.

Mr. Drake returned to Lionsgate in October 2017 when the Company acquired Good Universe, the production and distribution company that he co founded and ran with partner Nathan Kahane, who is now President of Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group. During his previous tenure as head of Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group from 2007-2012, Mr. Drake and his team launched the studio’s global blockbuster Hunger Games franchise, which grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide, the box office smash Expendables films, multiple Oscar® winner Precious, and Tyler Perry films.

One of the industry’s foremost innovators, Mr. Drake has launched two companies of his own, Good Universe and Mandate Pictures. At Good Universe, he shepherded the company’s overall business and was responsible for building key financial, creative and strategic partnerships. While there, he partnered with Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver’s Point Grey Pictures on a series of critically acclaimed comedy hits including ​Neighbors ​and ​The Night Before, ​that partnership has now carried on to Lionsgate. As head of Mandate Pictures from 2004-2007, Mr. Drake produced the Academy Award​®​-winning blockbuster ​Juno​,​ ​the​ ​Golden Globe®​ -​nominated ​Hope Springs ​and ​50/50, ​and​ ​the breakout Seth Rogen comedy ​This Is The End​.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Drake held executive positions at Rysher Entertainment and Moviestore Entertainment.

Email: [email protected]

Dea Tramble is the principal at Alliance Ouchi High School. Prior, Ms. Tramble served as Assistant Principal for Sutter Middle School and then as an Operations Administrator for Local District 1 to train over 100 elementary, middle, and high school administrators on LAUSD policies and procedures. Ms. Tramble began her career in education as a teacher and guidance counselor in LAUSD at Carver Middle School for seven years.

Coming Soon!

Evelyn Garcia is the principal of Alliance Tenn Tech and has spent over 17 years working as an educator. In 2019, Mrs. Garcia transitioned to Assistant Principal for Alliance Tenn Tech, moving from NY to LA. As an Assistant Principal, she helped shift the culture of assessments and developed the instructional capacity of teachers after completing the Relay School of Education program. She completed the Aspiring Principal’s program through Alliance in 2021. She transitioned to the role of Principal in Residence and in 2022 was named Principal of Alliance Tenn Tech. Ms. Garcia started her career in education as a Teach for America corps member, teaching grades 9-12 in the South Bronx. She later became a master teacher for the Lessons in Navigating College Transitions (LINCT) program. She later became an instructional coach, leading professional development and culture of intervisitations for her school community. As Principal, she is focused on establishing Tennenbaum as a community school, partnering with UCLA Beyond the Bell, Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, Cal State LA and other local organizations. She deeply believes in the importance of family and community partnerships and strives to create equitable outcomes and opportunities for her scholars. As Mrs. Garcia says…”every scholar counts, day in, day out.”

Justin Shahbaz is the principal of Alliance Richard Merking Middle School. He started his career in education as a math teacher at Alliance Richard Merkin Middle School and later became a principal at Westbrook Middle School in South LA. After three years he was deeply honored and excited to return to Alliance Richard Merkin Middle School as a principal. With commitment, passion and service being his guiding principles, he sees schools as places where scholars can truly thrive.

Amy Lozano is the principal of Alliance Luskin High School. She is a first-generation college student and identifies as Chicana. She is the proud daughter of two hard working Mexican immigrants and believes that a great education is a fundamental human right. Ms. Lozano was a founding teacher at Alliance Luskin High School and taught English and AP Psychology. She later transitioned to assistant principal before becoming principal. She has committed over ten years to this school community.

Candice Dagnino is the Principal at Alliance Patti & Peter Neuwirth Leadership Academy. She began her career in education teaching Spanish and Math in grades K-12. She later moved to Brazil as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant where she coached and helped mentor English teachers. At Alliance Neuwirth, Candice joined an incredible team of teachers and staff who model the same drive and commitment to our scholars and families. Together, they ensure that scholars graduate from college so that they may live their best life – a life full of choice and expanded opportunities. She knows that their success relies on the promise to provide high-quality, meaningful learning experiences that will prepare them for college and beyond.

Rosa Menendez is the principal of Alliance Morgan McKinzie High School and has worked in education for the past fifteen years. She has served in a variety of roles, including a classroom teacher for ten years and an administrator for the past five years. Ms. Menendez served as an assistant principal for PUC Lakeview Charter Academy before coming to Alliance. She served as an administrator at Alliance Richard Merkin Middle School and later at Alliance Renee & Meyer Luskin Academy High School. Ms. Menendez has always had the goal of serving the community in which she grew up, East LA. She strives to ensure a quality education is accessible to all scholars.

Erik Carlstone has worked in education for 20 years ever since he volunteered in schools and tutoring programs while a student at UCLA. He joined Alliance as an assistant principal before becoming a principal at Alliance MIT Valera Middle Academy. Mr. Carlstone continues to focus on creating growth for ALL scholars. Prior to joining Alliance Mr. Carlstone taught high school English for 8 years, later coordinated the reading intervention programs for Green Dot Public Schools before becoming an assistant principal with the Partnerships to Uplift Communities CMO. When he’s not on campus, Mr. Carlstone loves spending time with his family, coaching his daughter’s soccer team, and going on food adventures. Volemos Valera!

Vanessa Sandoval is the principal at Alliance Bloomfield High School. She started her teaching career at Alliance Neuwirth High School. Ms. Sandoval later earned her masters in educational administration and became an assistant principal prior to becoming principal. She leads with integrity, empathy, and holds high expectations for all.

Dr. Veronica Elias is the principal of Alliance Stern MASS and joined the school community nearly a decade ago as an assistant principal. Prior to joining Alliance Dr. Elias served as an administrator and data coordinator within a Los Angeles Charter network and Los Angeles Unified School District, respectively. She first began her career in education as a teacher and department chair at an LAUSD high school in the San Fernando Valley.

Talin Darkjian has spent over a decade working as an educator. She has been serving the Alliance Leichtman-Levine Community since 2019, when she joined as an Assistant Principal. Since then, she has advocated for diverse learners through expanding intervention courses and implementing the full inclusion model. She fosters a school environment that is culturally responsive, where each scholar’s social and emotional needs are met and every teacher and staff member is enabled to do their best in partnership with other teachers, staff, scholars and families. Before joining Alliance, Ms. Darkjian worked as a history teacher then Interim Dean of Instruction and later as an Assistant Principal at PUC Nueva Esperanza Charter Academy in San Fernando, California. Prior to that she was an English teacher at Alice Deal Middle School in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Abeni Carr-Johnson has spent over 18 years working as an educator and activist. Described as a servant leader, Dr. Johnson has focused on leaning into a joy to foster a student-centered school. Dr. Carr-Johnson believes that a culturally responsive, project-based learning environment helps remove barriers to learning. Before joining Alliance, Dr. Carr-Johnson has led in various arenas of education, such as high school teacher, dean of scholars, after-school coordinator, college counselor, philanthropist, Justice, Diversity, & Equity (JDE) consultant, and board member for several youth organizations. She has spent years working with and advocating for unaccompanied youth and students experiencing homelessness in order to ensure that they receive the services and resources to close the equity gap and help all scholars attain postsecondary collegiate success.

Rogelio Sanchez, Jr. is the principal of Alliance Judy Ivie Burton Technology Academy High School. Before joining Alliance Burton Tech, Mr. Sánchez spent five years at Alliance Patti & Peter Neuwirth Leadership Academy, where he began as a physical education teacher, and later became the school’s assistant principal. Previously, Mr. Sánchez served as an athletic coach for various teams at South East High School and James A. Garfield Senior High. Mr. Sanchez is also on the Los Angeles City Section CIF Board of Managers, as well as on the Executive Committee.

Jarred Tsai is the principal at Alliance MIT and started his career in education nearly 20 years ago. He joined Alliance as a teaching assistant at Alliance Collins High School and later became a teacher at Alliance Gertz-Ressler High School. He also joined Alliance Leichtman-Levine High School and led as an instructional coach, department lead, director of instruction and assistant principal.

Jamal Richardson is the principal of Alliance Jack H. Skirball Middle Academy and has worked in education for over twenty years. He started his career in education as a middle school teacher at Collin Powell Academy. He later became a history department head, assistant director and assistant principal there. Mr. Richardson first joined the Alliance Jack H. Skirball Middle School community as an assistant principal for eight years. He went to be an assistant principal with the Long Beach Unified School District for a few years after which he was excited to return to this school community as a principal. Mr. Richardson believes every scholar should be equipped with the skills and knowledge that are necessary to succeed in an ever-changing world.

Gwen Braude first joined Alliance Gertz-Ressler High School as an assistant principal and has been serving this school community ever since. Prior to joining Alliance, Ms. Braude was an assistant principal at Central City Value High School where she also served as a teacher and new teacher coach. Previously she was a teacher at Washington Middle School.

Young Mi Kim is the principal of Alliance CRMA 8. She started her career in education as a teacher at The Accelerated School in South Los Angeles, where she taught middle school science and high school biology. Ms. Kim then moved to New York City and worked at Manhattan Hunter Science High School, an early college high school where students took both high school and college classes at the same time. She joined Alliance as a founding teacher at Alliance Leichtman-Levine Family Foundation. She later helped open Alliance CRMA 8 by serving as an instructional coach for two years, working with both beginning and experienced teachers.

Coming Soon!

Alberto Oros is the principal of Alliance Simon Tech High School and is driven by the belief that all scholars and staff ‘can’ and oftentimes, it’s only a matter of figuring out the ‘how’. He has spent nearly 20 years serving the South LA community as a teacher leader, instructional coach and administrator.

Zachary Perkins is the principal at Alliance O’Donovan Middle Academy and has over a decade of education experience and a track record of results. He started his career in education as a teacher in New York and when he returned to Los Angeles to teach he joined the team at Alliance Ted K. Tajima High School. He enrolled in Alliance’s Aspiring Principal Program and took the reins as Assistant Principal at Alliance College-Ready Middle Academy 4.

Bridget Bones is Alliance’s Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Talent team. In this role she works closely with the Chief People Officer and the Talent Vice Presidents to support the team’s long term strategic planning, cross-functional project management, and metric monitoring. Her time at Alliance involved developing and launching new initiatives like the transition from 11 to 12 months of pay for teachers, streamlining the Employee Agreement distribution process, Home Office performance evaluations, and overseeing the network’s transition from 14 legacy software systems to Workday. Bridget has over ten years of experience working in classrooms, with educators, and in school districts. Prior to working at Alliance Bridget managed a cadre of Los Angeles educators to publish a policy brief addressing the persistent lack of diversity in the teaching force. She began her career as a classroom teacher in the United States and South Korea, and is an alumna of Teach for America and the Coro Fellows Program in Public Affairs.

Angela is the Vice President of Staffing at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, where she oversees the staffing program for Alliance’s Home Office and 26 schools.

Prior to Alliance, Angela served as the Executive Director at Palm Lane Elementary Charter School located in Anaheim, CA. In this role, not only did Angela oversee Palm Lane’s academic program, but she also oversaw the school’s budget and school operations.

Her success today is the result of over twenty years of education experience serving in past roles as classroom general education and special education teacher; district and site administrator over state testing, curriculum, information/educational technology, and instruction; curriculum coordinator; assistant principal; and principal.

Angela has a smart and handsome 9-year-old Son named Jeremiah, is a newlywed to a wonderful husband named Sean, and has a beautiful 2-year-old Siberian Cat named Sir Fritz. Angela is also an active member of Pi Sigma Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. where she dedicates time serving the community near and around Cerritos, CA. In her spare time, she loves to go to amusement parks, build Lego sets, and cook.

Education Ed.D., Instructional Leadership, Argosy University, Los Angeles, CA M.A., Education, National University, San Diego, CA B.A., English, California State University, Northridge, Northridge, CA

Liza Williams serves as Vice President, Performance Management at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. In this role she is responsible for developing, communicating and executing a comprehensive performance management and compensation strategy for the network. Foundational to this work is determining the values Alliance uses to reward, compensate, advance and retain our employees.

Liza began her career in education twenty-five years ago as a high school English and ELD teacher. From that role she moved into the position of ELD Coordinator and worked with the district to design and lead staff development for all teachers across the organization. Based on her interest in teacher education she made the decision to transition to higher education where she served as an affiliate faculty member and Director of the Elementary and Secondary Teacher Education programs at Loyola Marymount University.

Liza moved to Los Angeles from Sweden when she was 11 years old. Her experience as an English Learner is what drove her passion for a career in education and working with immigrant students specifically. She is married and a mother to four teen daughters and two dogs.

Education Ed.D., Educational Leadership, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA M.Ed., Secondary Education, English, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA B.A., Women’s Studies, Education Minor, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA M.P.A., Domestic Policy, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ B.A., Political Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ Professional Clear Single Subject Teaching Credential in English with CLAD Certification, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Danielle leads the vision and strategy behind the Employee Relations and Engagement teams as the Vice President, Employee Relations and Engagement at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools.

Prior to joining Alliance, she led transformative work as a Human Services Administrator for the Project Management Office of a large public service agency for the County of Los Angeles. Her efforts in the Project Management Office resulted in grant funding to improve services delivered and bolster the department’s capacity to lead and manage large scale projects. During her tenure at the County of Los Angeles, she also oversaw the Leave Management program for a portfolio of public service offices, ensuring state and federal leave compliance, to mitigate departmental risk, impacting over 1k staff.

Danielle’s interest in improving workplaces with a focus on human behavior and equity.

A fun fact about Danielle is that her favorite thing to bake (and eat) is a cream cheese pound cake, which is often devoured by her children before she’s able to cut a slice for herself.

Education M.A., Psychology, Industrial/Organizational concentration, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA B.A., Black Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA

Chris Reynoso (he/him/él) is a passionate educator and advocate focusing on ensuring equitable outcomes for all students. He currently serves as the Vice President of Innovation & Impact at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, where he leads long-term strategic planning, policy, advocacy, and community engagement as well as marketing and communications in partnership with the Chief of Innovation & Impact. He previously served as the Director of Strategic Initiatives at Alliance, where her served as a strategic advisor to the Chief. Previous to Alliance, he served as Sr. Manager of External Impact for the KIPP Foundation, where he worked alongside school districts nationwide on sharing and improving postsecondary resources and outcomes for their communities. Before joining the KIPP Foundation, Chris held the role of College Counselor at KIPP SoCal. Chris finds inspiration for the work from his own experiences as a first-generation college graduate from a working-class family and his identity as a queer, immigrant, man of color. Chris holds a dual bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Chicanx/Latinx Studies from Loyola Marymount University and a master’s degree in Educational Foundations from California State University, Los Angeles. He lives in Los Angeles with his partner and enjoys all things travel, food, and Disney.

Jass Stewart is the Chief of Innovation & Impact and oversees strategy, innovation pilots, advocacy and political engagement, stakeholder engagement, and communication.

Previously, he was the Deputy Chief of Staff at the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). The department provides oversight to 400 school districts, and Jass’ portfolio included business and IT strategy, communication and marketing, talent management, operations management, and funder development.

Before joining DESE, Jass held a broad range of public- and private-sector leadership positions. Most recently, he served three terms as a City Councilor at Large in Brockton, MA. He was the first person of color to serve on the City Council and the first openly gay elected official in the city’s history. He ran and governed on a platform focused on reform, accountability, and innovation.

Other professional highlights include his roles as Vice President of Communication and Technology at Jobs for the Future in Boston, National Director for School Advocacy at Big Picture Learning in Providence, and Senior Director of New Media and Public Engagement at Blackside Productions (producer of the TV documentary series Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years) in Boston. Jass has traveled to 36 states in the U.S. and over 20 countries.

Jass is an Emmy-winning writer and director, and has received three Emmy nominations. He holds B.S. and M.Ed. degrees from Boston University and an M.B.A. from Fitchburg State University, and served as a Senior Fellow in urban studies and planning at MIT.

Nichole Johnson is Alliance’s Director of Strategic Initiatives for Operations. As the strategic advisor for the Chief Operating Officer, Nichole facilitates strategic planning, data monitoring and continuous improvement across operational processes and supports staff onboarding and development. Much of her role focuses on support to the COO’s leadership team, aligning their teams’ work with network and operational goals, utilizing data to inform decision-making, and regularly evaluating and reporting on the results of their efforts. Prior to Alliance, Nichole led strategic planning, performance management and continuous improvement in operations, and school accountability as a director for school districts in Baltimore and Houston. Before transitioning into education, Nichole led large, transformational projects, strategy development and organizational change across HR, finance and operations for Dell, Target Corp, and consulting clients at Cap Gemini. Nichole is a self-confessed reality TV and political junkie! She is also a staunch advocate of youth mentoring, sharing her free time with organizations such as the Y, Big Brothers Big Sisters, National Cares Mentoring, Black Girls Leadership Academy, and her beloved Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She has a BS in Finance and Economics from Georgetown University and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business. She is also an alumna of the Broad Center at the Yale School of Management, with a Master of Education in Educational Leadership.

Sheeva Halati is Alliance’s Vice President, School Operations. She leads the strategy and direction for school site operations and leadership. She supports and leads our enrollment team, business operations team, and network operations lead team. Prior to Alliance, Sheeva served in a variety of school site leadership roles in several different settings. Most recently, she was founding Director of Operations in the Bay Area. Prior to that, she was Director of Student Supports in Nashville, TN. Sheeva started her career as a high school science teacher in Atlanta, GA. A southern California native, Sheeva enjoys day trips around the city with her family.

Tiffany D. Wilson is the Chief Operating Officer and oversees data & systems, information technology, business operations, facilities, school operations, governance, compliance & enrollment.

Tiffany was a 2002 Washington, D.C. Teach For America alumna who, after teaching for three years, spent 6 years practicing law in the nation’s capital. Tiffany is a first-generation college graduate who’s passion for education inspired her to return to the field as an Assistant Principal of Operations for a public charter school in Southeast Washington, D.C. for three years. In her role, she created, implemented, and refined sustainable school operations systems with a focus on facilities, whole school events, supply chain management, student and staff attendance, human resource functions, procurement and vendor relationships, state reporting, finance, and data management. By the beginning of her final year, the school earned, for the first time, the top Tier 1 rating on the D.C. School Quality Report.

Prior to assuming her current role, Tiffany served at Alliance as the Vice President of School Operations overseeing enrollment, compliance, governance, advocacy, and in-the-field operations supports.

Tiffany holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Howard University and a Juris Doctor from Rutgers Law School. She is currently barred to practice law in Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.

Amber Diaz is an Instructional Superintendent who oversees and collaborates with five Alliance High School leaders to develop and monitor a strong School Strategic Instructional Plan to achieve school goals and improve student outcomes. A proud native of Los Angeles and a first-generation college graduate, Amber is motivated by her own experiences growing up. She believes deeply that every student deserves a quality education and the opportunity to pursue post-secondary education. Before her current role, Amber co-founded Alliance Ted K. Tajima School in 2011, serving first as Assistant Principal and later as Principal. Her vision was to create a school with high expectations for all students, where they felt valued, seen, supported, and where their needs were met holistically. Amber has been with Alliance College Ready Schools since 2009 and is committed to the organization’s mission of preparing scholars for college and beyond, and ensuring that every student receives a quality education. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Sociology from the University of California, Irvine, a Master’s in Counseling from the University of Southern California, and an Administrative Credential from Loyola Marymount University.

Chris Bostock has been in education since 2006 when he began his career as a Teach for America Corps Member in New Haven, Connecticut. After his corps member experience, he joined Achievement First Amistad High School as an AP U.S. History teacher, where he later became Principal. He led the school for several years and the school was named the #1 school in Connecticut according to U.S. News and World Reports. After leading a second high school for Achievement First in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, he worked at the KIPP Foundation. At KIPP, he developed KIPP’s approach to high school design, arc-of-the-year leadership, and the first set of common academic policies for KIPP nationwide. Most recently, he served as the Managing Director of High Schools for KIPP New Orleans, where he led the region’s high school expansion, founded the high school curriculum team, and managed college access and alumni success teams. While Chris grew up outside of Philadelphia, he’s been happy to call Los Angeles his home since 2021 with his wife Taylor and dog Bodhi. He enjoys running, gaming, the Philadelphia Eagles, and has recently gotten super into cooking. Chris completed his B.A. at Trinity College and his M.A. at Columbia University.

Stephanie Tsai is an Instructional Superintendent at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. On the School Management Team, she participates in Home Office Implementation Teams, Leadership Development planning, and Working Groups to drive our network-wide priorities and initiatives forward. She supervises a Collaborative Principal Group of 6 Principals in implementing strategies to support our beautiful school communities.

A proud native of Los Angeles, Stephanie began her career in charter school education as a founding Teacher at the first school opened by Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, Alliance Gertz-Ressler High School. She has previously served as an Instructional Coach, Assistant Principal, and Principal.

As a fun fact, Stephanie had 3 babies within a span of 14 months – her children bring her a lot of joy. She enjoys adrenaline-inducing activities like horseback riding, water skiing, snow skiing, bungee jumping, skydiving.

Education M.A., School Administration, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA M.A., Secondary Education and Teaching, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA B.A., History, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Omar Reyes is an Instructional Superintendent that works with a cluster of school leaders to develop, sustain, and monitor effective instructional systems.

Omar is a proud product of Alliance’s talent pipeline. He began his teaching career as one of the founding teachers at Alliance Cindy & Bill Simon Technology Academy High School where he was also promoted to Assistant Principal. Prior to his role as Instructional Superintendent, Omar proudly served the Florence- Firestone community as the Principal of Alliance Kory Hunter Middle School.

When he is not supporting school leaders, Omar enjoys coaching his two girls on the soccer field and the basketball court.

Education M.A., School Leadership, California State University, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA B.A., Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Evelyn is an Instructional Superintendent at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. She is currently supporting the development of school leaders at Alliance by helping to define the metrics for success for schools, designing and implementing strategies and systems to achieve their goals, and professionally developing principals into strong instructional leaders.

Helping and supporting leaders in Los Angeles is important to her because of her own background.

Evelyn grew up in the City of Pacoima as an immigrant student and had the opportunity to attend traditional public schools that cared for her educational experience.

Education Ed.D., Loyola Marymount University, School of Education, Los Angeles, CA M.Ed., Loyola Marymount University, School of Education, Los Angeles, CA B.A., Spanish and Chican@ Studies, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Dr. Andre Lawe is the Managing Instructional Superintendent at the Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. In this role, Andre has worked extensively on curriculum development and implementation; and mentoring and developing educators to effectively handle the challenges of the 21st century which include helping them to develop their teaching and pedagogical efficacy. Dr. Andre Lawe spent most of his life in New York city until 2018 when he relocated to California. He has been an educator for 21 years, serving as a middle and High school teacher, Math coach, Math Department chair, Director of Mathematics, Assistant principal, and principal, and now he currently serves as an Instructional Superintendent at Alliance. Throughout his career, he has worked extensively on curriculum development and implementation. Most notably though, is his success with raising student achievement in Mathematics and Literacy. Dr. Lawe is excited about the opportunity to work collaboratively with all stakeholders to create an organizational culture that is most conducive to the academic and personal success of all students. He sees himself as a partner in the organization’s mission of disrupting systems and structures that serve as barriers to the success of Black and Brown scholars. Moreover, he is extremely passionate about creating the right conditions that acknowledge the brilliance of all Black and Brown children while ensuring that they can thrive. He has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Columbia University, a Masters’s Degree from Jones International University and St. John’s University; A certificate of advanced study in Educational leadership, and a Doctorate of Education degree from St. John’s University. He is interested in building capacity/efficacy in teachers and administrators, and ascribes to shared leadership, and philosophy.

Sara is the Director of Strategic Initiatives on the Schools Strategy Team, supporting our Chief Instructional Officer. She has led the strategic planning and implementation for a number of initiatives, including those related to academic intervention, independent study, summer school, and our transition to virtual education during the COVID-19 pandemic. She facilitates cross-collaboration and stakeholder engagement to inform key systems and policy decisions, particularly those impacting instruction. She has also overseen a number of key academic program and partnership pilots.

Prior to Alliance, Sara worked in education policy and advocacy spaces working to advance educational equity and opportunity in New York and across the country. She has written state education policy, led communication efforts in close collaboration with education reporters, planned and implemented nationwide advocacy strategies, facilitated education conferences, and supported community organizing efforts. She was also a founding teacher at an Achievement First elementary school in Brooklyn, NY. Sara loves hosting a Cocktail Club with her husband, but has temporarily paused it to welcome their first baby in April 2023. Cheers!

Education BA in International Relations, New York University, College of Arts & Sciences, New York, NY MPA in Education Policy, New York University, Wagner Graduation School of Public Service, New York, NY MA in Teaching, Relay Graduate School of Education, New York, NY.

Megan McGrail is the Vice President of Teaching and Learning. Megan is deeply committed to aligning instructional program at Alliance across all content area, cultivating environments where all scholars excel and their identities are celebrated. Prior to this role, Megan served as the Director of ELA at Alliance. Megan started her career as a classroom teacher and went on to serve as a literacy specialist, principal, mentor principal and network educational leader. As Alliance’s ELA director, she focused on collaborating with the ELA community to make curriculum more culturally relevant and supporting educators with data-driven strategies. Education: M.A. Teaching and Teacher Education, UC Davis, Davis, CA B.A.: Liberal and Civic Studies Saint Mary’s College of California, Moraga, CA

Kirsten Woo is the Vice President, Leadership Development at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, and oversees professional development opportunities for school leaders, network leaders, and aspiring leaders across our network.

Kirsten’s leadership career has been with the Alliance. She was the Principal of Alliance Marc and Eva Stern Math and Science School for twelve years and led school-wide practices to increase teacher instructional strategies and practices, technology integration in classrooms, and leadership opportunities. Through the collaborative staff culture, Stern MASS has been recognized as a California Distinguished School, California Gold Ribbon School, Title I Achievement Award Recipient, and by US News and World Report as part of America’s Best High Schools. She has also served as Assistant Principal and Director of Assessment and Data Services.

Kirsten enjoys spending time with her family, reading, and watching her daughter dance and play the violin.

Education M.A. in Education, Claremont Graduate University B.A. in English and Asian American Studies, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA

Courtney Vickers is the Vice President, Diverse Learners at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. In this role, Courtney is passionate about ensuring greater access to grade-appropriate materials is an urgent priority for all students, no matter what their race, income level, or current designation. Prior to this role she served as the Director of Special Education at Alliance.

She started her educational career as a Paraprofessional working 1:1 with a pre-verbal student with autism; she has worked as a teacher, school leader, and network leader along the way. She currently sits on the Board of Directors for City Charter Schools and California Creative Learning Academy, as well as the co-chair for the Program Development Grant Committee via Charter Operated Programs (COP). Courtney founded YEAH! 20 years ago, alongside two other feminist leaders, and then went to sit on the Board of Directors until she retired in 2018 when her own son began attending the programming.

Education M.A., Special Education, Grand Canyon University, Phoenix, AZ B.A., English, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN

Vivian Valencia is the Vice President of Fiscal Strategy and oversees major workstreams critical to Alliance’s fiscal operations, including procurement and payroll.

Prior to her current role, Vivian served as Alliance’s Director of Business Strategy, leading cross-functional teams and developing strategies for improving organization-wide fiscal compliance.

Previously, Vivian has held various operational leadership roles in organizations such as The Princeton Review and McMaster-Carr. Vivian has also served as a classroom teacher and is a Teach for America alum.

Vivian loves game night, running, and trying to coax her 11 year-old dog, Sunny, to go on a walk.

Education M.A., Urban Education and Leadership, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA B.A., English and History, Smith College, Northampton, MA

Kathryn (Katie) Corbett is the Vice President of Accounting and oversees all of Alliance’s accounting and accounts payable.

Prior to her current role, Katie supported accounting services at a number of organizations, including Green Dot Public Schools and KIPP SoCal Public Schools. Previously, Katie was the Director, Finance for Anthem, Inc. and a small business owner among other private sector work.

In her free time, Katie loves to hike up the Verdugo mountains.

Education B.S., Accounting, Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, MA

Danna Renteria Serna is the Vice President of Finance and oversees all of Alliance’s finance, budgeting and restricted funding compliance workstreams. Prior to her current role, Danna served as Alliance’s Director of Finance, leading cross-functional budgeting processes for schools and home office, lender relations as well as fiscal compliance. Previously, Danna served in the non-profit industry in several accounting and fiscal compliance roles at Child360. Prior to entering the non-profit industry, Danna was an financial auditor at Ernst & Young where she worked with clients in the healthcare, non-profit and entertainment industries.

Danna loves spending time with family and current hobbie include chasing after her toddler. Education Masters in Business Administration, California State University Los Angeles, CA; B.S. Accounting with a Minor in Hispanic Business, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA and is Certified Public Accountant in the State of California.

Coming Soon.

Coming Soon.

Erin Diaz is the Vice President, Scholar, Family, and Community Services at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. She leads the team responsible for strategy and supports related to mental health, family empowerment, community engagement, scholar culture, trauma informed practices, homeless and foster youth, alternatives to suspension, and chronic absenteeism. Prior to this role, Erin served as Alliance’s Director, Scholar Services, supporting scholar culture and effective behavior practices across all 26 Alliance schools. Prior to Alliance, Erin was the Senior Service Director at City Year L.A., an education based nonprofit providing intervention for students with early warning indicators for not completing high school. There she oversaw the Whole School Whole Child service model implemented by close to 300 AmeriCorps members in 32 high need schools across LAUSD in South L.A., Watts, Boyle Heights, and Pico Union. Before City Year, Erin held various school roles including founding school director and teacher with Equitas Academy, KIPP, and Teach for America. Erin was born in Gardena and has roots both in Boyle Heights and Delano, California, and in her free time she enjoys dance classes, reading, and the beach.

Education B.A., Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA; Post Baccalaureate Credential, Teaching, California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA

Sally Vo is the Vice President, Counseling and College Success at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, and leads efforts for implementing and developing secondary and post-secondary support strategies and programs for scholars with an emphasis on the academic and social emotional development of scholars.

Prior to this role, Sally served as Alliance’s Director of School Counseling, supporting middle school and high school counseling programs across all 26 Alliance schools. Before joining Alliance, Sally worked for Green Dot Public Schools as a Counselor Support Specialist, coaching and supporting counselors at all schools and as a high school counselor at Alain Leroy Locke College Preparatory Academy. Sally is a Los Angeles native who attended LAUSD schools in Cypress Park (right by Alliance Tennenbaum and LL/ESAT schools) prior to becoming a first-generation college graduate. In her spare time, Sally is lovingly raising 3 kids, 3 chickens, 1 puppy, and many fish with her middle school sweetheart, usually with a cup of boba in hand.

Education M.A., PPS Credential, Educational Counseling, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA B.A., Psychology and Education Studies, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA

A native Angeleno from Southeast Los Angeles, Raquel is a first-generation college graduate whose educational journey extends beyond a degree. Raised in a single-parent household by an undocumented immigrant mother, Raquel overcame the challenges of the 90s era broken school system that marginalized Black and Brown kids and set expectations dismally low. Her journey involved overcoming societal and internalized barriers to achieve higher education. With grit and determination, Raquel graduated from UC Berkeley at the age of 30 with a bachelor’s degree in linguistics. This milestone marked a pivotal shift, leading her from a career in business management within the for-profit sector to a more meaningful path in education. After graduating, she worked abroad in South America where she taught English as a foreign language and this set the path for a career in the education sector. At Alliance, an organization committed to serving children with similar lived experiences, Raquel found alignment with her values. Progressing from coordinator to manager, she now serves as the Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Chief of Staff. In this role, she supports the implementation of Home Office initiatives, manages cross-functional network-wide projects, and designs collaborative learning spaces for the Home Office team.

As VP of Strategic Initiatives, Sonja leads cross-functional, Network-wide strategic initiatives. Sonja collaborates with school and home office leadership to design, implement and evaluate critical initiatives that advance Alliance’s strategic plan.

Prior to Alliance, Sonja led operations as well as school design at Success Academy Charter Schools in New York City. In these roles, Sonja worked with Network leaders to design and implement new processes, programs, policies, staffing structures, curriculum, and other initiatives. She also led continuous improvement efforts, to help existing efforts reach intended outcomes. Prior to her work at Success Academy, Sonja led the Superintendent’s Office at the Newark Public Schools, in which capacity she managed the staff that supported the Superintendent, and led District-wide strategic initiatives.

Sonja is half German and half Jamaican, and grew up in Echo Park, Los Angeles.

Education M.B.A., Yale School of Management, New Haven, CT B.A., Economics, Scripps College, Claremont, CA

As Interim General Counsel at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, Clara oversees many legal matters impacting Alliance, including all legal matters related to special education, school operations, scholar discipline as well as many other areas of charter school operations.

Prior to this role, Clara served as a tax attorney for Morrison & Foerster, LLP in its Los Angeles office, and for Shearman & Sterling, LLP in its New York office. In these roles, Clara advised multiple tax-exempt non-profit organizations such as Alliance on their formation, operations and compliance obligations. Before becoming an attorney, Clara was a licensed Korean-English simultaneous interpreter in Seoul, Korea. Clara lives in Los Angeles with her husband, two sons and two labrador retrievers.

Education J.D., Columbia Law School, New York City, NY M.A., Simultaneous Interpretation and Translation, Graduate School of Interpretation and Translation, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Seoul, Korea B.A., English Language and Literature, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, Korea

Kristen Kruger Byler is Vice President, Strategic Implementation at Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. The Strategic Implementation Team leads Alliance’s annual strategic planning process; facilitates cross-functional implementation of annual network priorities and goals, including through Priority Working Groups; drives major network cross-functional processes such as the Academic Calendar, Master Operating Calendar, and Principal Weekly Newsletter; and, in partnership with the Schools Strategy Team, supports data-driven progress monitoring and action planning across the system, including KPI Stepbacks.

In Kristen’s previous role at Alliance, she was the Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Schools Team, which included leading the Reopening Working Group in planning and implementing Alliance’s COVID-19 response efforts and the safe and healthy return to schools. Prior to Alliance, Kristen worked in the Office of the Superintendent at Los Angeles Unified School District.

Before moving back west, Kristen worked in federal education policy in Washington, D.C. at the Office of Management and Budget and served two additional details with Reach Higher/Better Make Room and the Bureau of Indian Education. If you catch Kristen on Zoom, you will probably witness her black-and-white puppy Zoya up to all kinds of nonsense in the background.

Education M.P.A., Domestic Policy, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ B.A., Political Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ

David Lauck is Alliance’s Chief Financial Officer and is responsible for accounting, finance, payroll and procurement.

Prior to returning to Los Angeles in 2016, David served as Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director for Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy, a network of public charter schools in Rhode Island. There he oversaw the financial planning, budgeting, reporting and analysis functions for the organization, as well as provided support for several school leaders. Previously, David participated in The Broad Residency in Urban Education (Class of 2009-2011), serving his two-year Residency as the Director of Finance and Accounting at KIPP LA Schools – a network of public charter schools serving students in East and South Los Angeles. Prior to joining The Broad Residency, David filled a variety of transactional and analytical roles during more than ten years in the investment banking and asset management industries.

David holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the University of Virginia.

Pablo Cesar Villavicencio serves as CEO of Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, a nonprofit public charter school network in Los Angeles that serves 12,500 students across 26 high-performing charter public schools and has nearly 18,000 alumni.

Pablo is a first-generation college graduate and is a proud Los Angeles native. His deep experience in teaching and leading schools and school systems that serve underserved and marginalized children and families is grounded in his first-hand belief that all children, regardless of zip code deserve a high-quality education.

Most recently, Pablo served as Alliance’s President, where he oversaw the critical functions of school management, teaching & learning, and the work with diverse learners, school leadership development, counseling & college success, and Alliance’s focus on scholars, families and communities.

Pablo joined Alliance in 2017 as Chief Schools Officer. He has been responsible for setting the vision for coaching and development of Alliance’s school leaders. Pablo was integral in launching Alliance’s first Scholars, Families, and Communities team, which has focused on ensuring that Alliance schools address the whole child through social-emotional learning practices, and connections with families and the community. Pablo was integral in developing the School Instructional Support team, which was a school support model designed to improve teaching and learning. Most recently, Pablo oversaw Alliance’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the pivot to distance learning, and enacting comprehensive health and safety protocols, in addition to Alliance’s return to in-person learning in August 2021.

Like many children of immigrants, Pablo was underserved in low-performing urban schools in East Los Angeles. Pablo was the first in his family to graduate from college — the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to returning to Los Angeles, Pablo served as a Deputy Chief for the Oakland Unified School District where he focused on innovation for low-performing schools. He was also the Director of Principal Leadership and Support for High Schools in San Francisco Unified School District supervising principals. Before he dedicated time in Northern California, he served families in the Bronx, New York as a teacher and Academic Dean before becoming the Founding Principal of a New York City public school. Pablo holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Economy of Industrialized Societies from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Education in Dual Language/Bilingual General Education from the Bank Street College of Education. He is a Teach for America, New Leaders, New York City Leadership Academy, and Cambiar Catalyst Fellowship Alum.

Debra Griffith is Alliance’s new Chief Equity Programs Officer (CEPO), a role that will see her leading the vision, strategy, creation, and implementation of programs that improve equitable outcomes for all scholars, centering on the experiences of our black and brown scholars. Her decisive and collaborative leadership will help build a thriving school culture that is equitable and inclusive while ensuring our scholar’s graduate “college-ready.”

Debra has spent 25+ rewarding years in higher education as an executive, coach, trainer, and speaker. She brings deep, relevant knowledge and experience in equity, diversity, and inclusion that will support Alliance in achieving its strategic goals and transform the actions and behaviors of both school staff and scholars for the better.

Before joining Alliance, Debra held two roles at West Valley College (WVC)—first as the Dean of Equity and Success, then as the Vice President of Student Services, Diversity, and Inclusion—where she created and executed the university’s first Anti-Racism Action Plan (ARAP). The ARAP Debra created for WVC was a shining beacon of equity and anti-racism. She led and coached 60+ personnel as part of the 3-year action plan to ensure team leads had the structure and knowledge to properly achieve the plan’s 7 key goals. One notable goal saw the university establishing multiple centers—including the Center for Identity Exploration and Inclusion and the LatinX, African American, and Pride Resource Centers—as well as the university’s first Food Pantry (Roots). “[Debra] has truly shifted the culture of the campus,” WVC’s president said of the plan.

Prior to her time at WVC, she spent 16 years at San Jose State University serving in a number of progressive leadership roles, the last two of which were the Associate Vice President of Transition Retention and Director of the Educational Opportunity Program.

Education Ed.D., Organizational Leadership, Argosy University M.A., Student Counseling and Personnel, San Jose State University B.A., Sociology, LIU Brooklyn

Ryan D. Bennett is the Chief People Officer and oversees the staffing, human resources operations, performance management, and DEI, employee engagement & relations teams at Alliance.

Prior to this role, Ryan served as an Instructional Superintendent of Schools as well as the Director of Grow, Leadership Development at Alliance. Ryan is a first-generation college graduate of New York University and has focused his professional life on expanding opportunities for students. Ryan began his career as a high school math teacher in Reserve, LA in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and joined Alliance in 2018 after moving to Los Angeles with his partner, who is an Angeleno.

Prior to moving to L.A., Ryan worked at FirstLine Schools in New Orleans where he led network-wide teacher development work and served as School Director of Arthur Ashe Charter School. Other work has included the launch and expansion of youth development work in New York and Kansas–including starting the New York City Youth Congress, an opportunity for youth to engage with civic leaders and influence city and state-wide policy decisions. Ryan loves hiking, time at the beach, and traveling with his close friends and partner. A little-known fact about Ryan — in 5th grade, his bowling team, The Pinheads, was 8th in the nation!