Meet The Team

Our team consists of experts committed to transforming education through innovative practices, research, and strategic initiatives.

Virgel Hammonds
Co-Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Beth Rabbitt
Co-Chief Executive Officer
Daniela Bocanegra
Specialist, Partnerships & Development
Dr. Megan Benay
Partner, Practice and Implementation
Deme Banks
Associate Director, Operations
Ashley Fellows
Managing Director, Practice and Implementation
Michael Ham
Partner, Research & Policy
Dr. Beth Holland
Managing Director, Research & Policy
Jennifer Kabaker
Chief Partnerships and Growth Officer
Dr. Rae Lymer
Partner, Research & Policy
Brittany McCullough
Chief Operating Officer
Dr. Jilliam N. Joe
Managing Director, Research and Evaluation
Kelly Organ
Partner, Evaluation and Measurement
Kathleen Poliski
Specialist, Practice and Implementation
Jessica Stamper
Senior Associate Director of Convenings and Special Events
Jazminn Williams
Communications Manager

Board of Directors

Our Board of Directors comprises leaders from various sectors who guide FullScale’s strategic vision and ensure we achieve our mission. Their expertise and leadership are instrumental in driving the organization’s efforts to foster educational innovation and equity.

Al Motley
Co-Chair
Tom Rooney
Co-Chair
Amy Anderson
Member
Jackie Statum Allen
Member
Anpao Duta Flying Earth
Member
Virgel Hammonds
Member Ex-Officio
Sandra Licon
Member
Rebecca Midles
Secretary
Cary Matsuoka
Vice Chair
Nikolaus Namba
Member
Matt Noble
Finance Chair
Dr. Beth Rabbitt
Member Ex-Officio
Danny Rojas
Member

Learn More About
FullScale​

Our History
Learn more
About FullScale
Learn more
Partner With Us
Learn more

Learn More About
FullScale​

Our History
Learn more
About FullScale
Learn more
Partner With Us
Learn more
Scroll to Top

Virgel Hammonds

Co-Chief Executive Officer

Virgel Hammonds is the Co-Chief Executive Officer of FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). Virgel, a nationally recognized leader in education innovation, originally joined the Aurora Institute as CEO in 2024 with over two decades of experience working alongside young people, educators, communities, districts, and policymakers as they endeavor to become more learner-centered. Having previously served as Chief Learning Officer at KnowledgeWorks, Virgel has forged partnerships with national policymakers and local learning communities across the country to redesign learning systems to become more learner-centered. Prior to his time at KnowledgeWorks, Virgel served as superintendent of the RSU 2 school district in Maine, where he collaborated with five communities to develop and implement a curriculum designed to ensure mastery of standards by all students. Before serving as superintendent, Virgel was a high school principal at Lindsay Unified School District in California. There, Virgel helped implement a personalized learning model where learners didn’t earn letter grades, but rather are awarded mastery for subjects in which they’ve proven to be proficient.

Currently, Virgel also serves on the PBLWorks Board, the Learner-Centered Collaborative Board, and Jobs for Maine Graduates Executive Board. Additionally, he is Board Chair Emeritus of the Aurora Institute and a former member of the CompetencyWorks Advisory Board. 

Virgel holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and a Master of Education from Fresno Pacific University.

Pronouns: he/him/his

Dr. Beth Rabbitt

Co-Chief Executive Officer

Beth Rabbitt is Chief Executive Officer of The Learning Accelerator (TLA). She is a nationally recognized expert in education innovation and improvement, with over 20 years of experience in the K-12 nonprofit, philanthropic, and private sectors. 

Prior to becoming CEO in 2016, Beth was a Partner on TLA’s start-up team, leading the organization’s work to develop educator training systems and research on emerging teaching and learning models and practices. She also was a Doctoral Resident and Director of Human Capital at a start-up school system in Newark, NJ, an Associate Partner at the NewSchools Venture Fund, a consultant to and with Education Resource Strategies, and the founding Doctoral Fellow at the Harvard Innovation Lab. 

Beth is a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow and serves on the board of several nonprofits, including Catalyst:Ed, GiveThx, and Portland Parks Conservancy. She earned a B.A. from Dartmouth College and a doctorate (Ed.L.D.) from Harvard University, where she was an inaugural cohort member in the University’s Doctor of Education Leadership program. 

Beth is based in Portland, Maine, where she lives with her husband and two daughters. As a parent and educator, she is inspired daily and urgently to create school experiences that better meet the needs of every child, everywhere.

Personal pronouns: she/her/hers

Daniela Bocanegra

Specialist, Partnerships & Development

Daniela Bocanegra is a Partnerships and Development Specialist at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). With experience supporting public policy initiatives, non-profit organizations, and government teams, Daniela is committed to continue supporting educational outcomes through FullScale’s fundraising and partnerships efforts. 

Prior to joining FullScale, Daniela was a Program Associate for the Education Policy team at the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative. At this national philanthropy, she managed grants, maintained relationships with grantees, and supported dynamic projects working towards equity in education. Daniela also has experience in local and state government affairs, working as a Policy Analyst at Florida’s Department of Education, supporting the state community college system. 

Daniela earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Florida and master’s degree in Education Policy and Leadership from Florida State University. Daniela is based in Miami and enjoys staying active, reading and exploring local coffee shops.

Pronouns: She/her

Dr. Megan Benay

Partner, Practice and Implementation

Megan Benay is a Partner on the Practice and Implemenation team at FullScale.

Immediately prior to joining FullScale, Megan worked as an education consultant, collaborating with the New York State Department of Education, Literacy Academy Collective, Educator Preparation Program (EPP) leaders, and other key stakeholder groups to transform literacy instruction. Her focus was ensuring EPPs provide effective, culturally responsive evidence-based literacy instruction grounded in the science of reading to all students. 

Previously, Megan served as the Senior National Director of Data & Research at the Great Oaks Foundation. In this role, Megan led work to build data and research systems to drive continuous improvement efforts across the organization. She also led initiatives to support schools across the Great Oaks network to improve social, emotional, and academic outcomes for students with diverse learning needs as the Director of Inclusive Education. Megan has served in many positions in education throughout her career, including as a Teaching Assistant for Johns Hopkins University’s education doctoral program, as a Program Analyst at the Carnegie Corporation of New York, as a special education and music teacher in New York City Public Schools, and as an English teacher in Chile as part of the United Nations Development Programme.

Megan holds an Ed.D. in Entrepreneurial Leadership in Education from Johns Hopkins University, an Ed.M. in Organizational Leadership Technology, Innovation, and Education from Columbia University’s Teachers College, an M.S. in special education from Hunter College, and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Vermont Honors College. 

Megan is based in a small New York town just north of NYC where she lives with her husband Jeremy, her threenager Miles, and golden retriever Bel. Outside of work, you can find Megan engrossed in elaborate craft projects, singing/performing anywhere that will let her, and perfecting her chocolate chip cookie recipe.  

Personal pronouns: she/her/hers

Deme Banks

Associate Director, Operations

Deme Banks is the Associate Director of Operations at FullScale. In this role, Deme leverages her extensive experience in strategic operations and project management to drive organizational efficiency.

Before joining FullScale, Deme held various leadership roles that honed her expertise in operations and program management. At Instruction Partners, she served as Program Operations Lead, where she was instrumental in overseeing program services, enhancing cross-functional collaboration, and developing leadership pathways. Deme also gained valuable experience as a Data Analyst, conducting detailed evaluations to inform program improvements, and as a School Operations Manager at KIPP: New Orleans, where she managed key aspects of school operations including budgeting, human resources, and facility maintenance.

Deme holds a bachelor’s degree from Xavier University of Louisiana and is currently pursuing a Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification to further hone her skills. She is also committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, actively incorporating these principles into her work.

Based in New Orleans, Louisiana, Deme is married to Dale and is the proud mother of two teenagers: Dillon and Dakota. Outside of work, she enjoys cooking, gardening, outdoor activities, reading, and vacationing. Deme is deeply passionate about ensuring equitable education access for all students and brings this commitment to her work every day.

Personal pronouns: she/her/hers

Ashley Fellows

Managing Director, Practice and Implementation

Ashley Fellows is the Managing Director, Practice & Implementation, at FullScale. Since joining FullScale, Ashley has supported the organization’s programmatic work, ensuring learning services and products result in shareable, applicable learnings for the education sector. An experienced educator and school leader, Ashley brings valuable skills and perspective to the field as we work to create the next chapter in American K-12 education.  

Prior to joining FullScale, Ashley was a High School Director in Training at the Denver School of Science and Technology (DSST). In this capacity, she coached both teachers and school leaders, supported strategic planning, conducted professional development, played a key role in day-to-day operations, and led her school’s pandemic response. Before working at DSST, Ashley served as a sixth-grade math teacher and coach in Phoenix, AZ, followed by a role in which she designed training materials for Teach for America’s national teacher preparation team.

Ashley earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Denver and a master’s degree in educational leadership (M.Ed.) from Arizona State University. She lives in Denver, CO with her husband and two sons. As a woman of color and a first-generation college student, she is deeply committed to disrupting inequitable outcomes for students and brings that passion to her work at FullScale.

Personal pronouns: she/her/hers

Michael Ham

Partner, Research & Policy

Michael Ham is a Partner at FullScale, leading policy initiatives to foster equity-driven innovation in K-12 education. He collaborates with sector leaders nationwide to create conditions that enable transformative learning and equitable access for all students.

Michael’s career in K-12 education began in high-need Title I public schools, where he scaled impactful instructional practices alongside school and district leaders. His passion for human-centered systems improvement and leveraging technology evolved into leading broader systemic change efforts. As a Partner of Research & Policy at FullScale, he works with state and federal leaders to implement programs that scale evidence-based practices, focusing on sustainable models that prioritize equity and empower students.

Before this role, Michael served as an Associate Partner on The Learning Accelerator’s Programs team and a Fellow at the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology, where he contributed to national digital literacy and blended learning efforts. His career started in Jacksonville, Florida, where he taught middle school math and was recognized for his innovative approaches to teaching and school improvement.

Michael holds a Bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, he enjoys training for open-water marathon swims, practicing yoga daily, and traveling with friends in his spare time.

Personal pronouns: he/him/his

Dr. Beth Holland

Managing Director, Research & Policy

Beth Holland is Managing Director of Research & Policy at FullScale. Since joining FullScale, she has expanded the organization’s initiatives, building research partnerships with districts, systems, and other organizations to engage in program evaluation as well as specific areas of interest. She is a nationally recognized expert and thought-leader in the edtech and digital equity space, recently serving on a Technical Working Group to author the 2024 National Educational Technology Plan (NETP). 

Prior to joining FullScale, she completed a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Rhode Island, where she worked on a project funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Ready to Learn Initiative, and served as the Digital Equity and Rural Project Director at the Consortium of School Networking (CoSN). Beth also worked for six years as an instructor with EdTechTeacher, where she designed and implemented professional development workshops and blended learning courses with K-12 educators and leaders across the country and abroad. In addition, she served as the Director of Academic Technology at St. Michael’s Country Day School in Newport, RI. From these experiences, she brings both a rigorous academic background and practical experience to the team’s research efforts.

Beth is also a prolific author and public speaker. She has previously published regular columns for Getting Smart and EdWeek and has had her work featured on Edutopia, MindShift, and EdSurge, as well as in scholarly journals. She holds an Ed.D. in Entrepreneurial Leadership in Education from Johns Hopkins University, an Ed.M. in Technology, Innovation, and Education from Harvard University, as well as a B.S. in Communications from Northwestern University.

Currently based in Newport, RI, Beth lives with her husband and two crazy canines. When not working, she can be found sailing her boat “Fidget” or stand-up paddling along the East Coast. Beth’s lifelong dream is to someday be a Muppet. She believes that nothing could be more rewarding than dedicating her life to educating the world’s children – and being a furry monster would be fun, too.

Personal pronouns: she/her/hers

Jennifer Kabaker

Chief Partnerships and Growth Officer

Jennifer Kabaker is the Chief Partnerships and Growth Officer of FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). In this role, she oversees organizational strategy and programs focused on effective and aligned growth, in addition to overseeing partnerships with funders, policymakers, non-profit partners, and others.

Prior to joining the Aurora Institute in 2021, Jennifer served as Chief of Staff at TEACH, a non-profit start-up that works with states and school districts to implement technology-forward teacher recruitment systems. She also served as the Director of Educator Micro-credentials at Digital Promise, where she developed an ecosystem to provide teachers with competency-based recognition for their knowledge and skills. Prior to that, Jennifer served as Associate Director of Foundation Relations and External Engagement at KIPP LA Schools. She started her career in education policy and research at the Urban Institute and the New America Foundation. She holds a Masters degree in Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies from the Stanford Graduate School of Education.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Dr. Rae Lymer

Partner, Research & Policy

Rae Lymer is a Partner on the Research and Policy team at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). They are a seasoned education leader with expertise in advanced learning, innovation, and leveraging research to disrupt education inequities and propel systems change.   

Prior to FullScale, they spent over a decade as an educator and district administrator for Baltimore City Public Schools. In their tenure, they led the expansion of the CTY Baltimore Emerging Scholars Program, developed and scaled instructional tools to accelerate learning, and launched The Analogy Project, which closes opportunity gaps for early learners to more accurately identify students for advanced learning. Rae also serves as the president of the professional learning nonprofit, Maryland Educators of Gifted Students, and is member of the Gifted and Talented Advisory Council for the Maryland State Department of Education.

Rae earned a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Linguistics and Gender and Women’s Studies, an M.S.Ed. in Urban Education, and an Ed.D. in Urban Education Leadership from Johns Hopkins University. Rae is based in Baltimore and enjoys rowing, tropical plants, and woodworking.

Pronouns: they/them/theirs

Brittany McCullough

Chief Operating Officer

Brittany McCullough is the Chief Operating Officer of FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). She leads the development and implementation of operational strategies, building and managing strategic processes to drive communications and development functions, and overseeing both financial and talent management.

With over a decade in education operations, Brittany is committed to her belief in the importance of education and that strong operations are critical in transforming the education system. Most recently, Brittany served as the Managing Director of Growth and Operations at Educators for Excellence (E4E). Brittany led fundraising operations and training, including implementing a new CRM to support fundraising activities. She also helped lead the organization’s growth initiatives to identify fee-based service options. 

Prior to working at E4E, Brittany was the Director of Operations at Instruction Partners. She served as the project manager for the organization’s largest cross-district event, leading talent recruitment, logistics, communications, and scaling across states. Additionally, Brittany led nationwide operations for the partnership team. 

Brittany also helped found a school in her hometown of Nashville, TN. As the Founding Director of Operations at Purpose Preparatory Academy, she led all business and school-based operations. During her time at Purpose Prep, the school was recognized as a Tennessee Reward School and remains within the top 5% of schools in Tennessee for academic performance. Brittany currently serves on the Board of Directors for Encompass Community School. 

Brittany graduated from Belmont University with a B.B.A. She holds an MBA from Trevecca Nazarene University.  In her spare time, Brittany spends time in church, listening to music, reading, cooking, watching television and movies, and hanging with family, friends, and her pups!

Personal pronouns: she/her/hers

Dr. Jilliam N. Joe

Managing Director, Research and Evaluation

Dr. Jilliam N. Joe is the Managing Director of Evaluation and Measurement at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). In this role, she oversees the design and execution of large-scale educational research and evaluation, as well as studies on measures of student-centered learning. 

Dr. Joe first joined the Aurora team in 2024, and is an experienced psychometrician and program evaluator with a demonstrated history of working in nonprofit and startup environments. Dr. Joe is the founder and president of the consultancy Measure by Design and has served as the Vice President of Learning Insights at LEAP Innovations and, before that, as an Associate Research Scientist at ETS. She has designed, managed, and provided technical guidance for applied research projects and assessment programs within the large-scale testing industry, state education agencies, and university settings. Dr. Joe has contributed to projects, consultations, and studies that have impacted the measurement of performance-based assessments and, in particular, classroom observation practices, including an IES measurement grant focused on formative assessment and the Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Additionally, Dr. Joe is a contributing author on a number of classroom observation implementation reports and books.

She earned her Ph.D. in Assessment and Measurement from James Madison University, an M.S. in Urban Studies from the Strome College of Business, and a B.S. from Old Dominion University.

Pronouns: She/Her

Kelly Organ

Partner, Evaluation and Measurement

Kelly Organ is a Partner on the Evaluation and Measurement team at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). She originally joined the Aurora Institute in August 2024. Previously, she served as the Director of Research Partnerships at a national nonprofit connecting school districts and researchers to study youth well-being, social-emotional learning, and whole child development. Throughout her career, she has worked for a wide variety of experiential education, youth development, service-learning, and civic engagement programs, in roles ranging from educator to curriculum developer to program manager to evaluator. A throughline in her work has been her commitment to figuring out how to support the diverse needs of diverse learners as they develop as whole people in a pluralistic society, and how to build best practices into programs that are culturally responsive and adaptable yet replicable.

Kelly holds an Ed.M. in International Education Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.A. in International Relations from Calvin College. She lives with her family outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she can often be found tending to her overgrown garden or exploring nearby trails.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Kathleen Poliski

Specialist, Practice and Implementation

Kathleen Poliski serves as a Practice and Implementation Specialist at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). Kathleen plays a crucial role in managing and enhancing our online resources and tools, supporting program reporting, conducting research, leveraging social media for program promotion, and fostering partnerships. Before joining the TLA in 2024, Kathleen held the position of Instructional Technology Coordinator at Continued, a provider of higher learning and CEU accreditation for Speech Pathologists and Physical Therapists. Her expertise also extends to her time at Jefferson University, where she served as a Medical Media Specialist, offering media production services and valuable support to distance learners, professors, students, and medical staff.

Kathleen earned her Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Media Arts from Neumann University. She furthered her education by completing a Master’s in Mass Communication from South Dakota State University. 

Based in Philadelphia, Kathleen finds joy in immersing herself in the city’s local music and restaurant scene. Her passion for media and diverse technology experiences in education excite her about contributing to FullScale’s program team.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Jessica Stamper

Senior Associate Director of Convenings and Special Events

Jessica Stamper is the Senior Associate Director of Convenings and Special Events at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA). Jessica first joined the Aurora team in 2014. Now as Senior Associate Director of Convenings and Special Events,  In this role, she works to spearhead the strategic development and implementation of FullScale’s strategic events, including the Symposium, webinars, and other special convenings. Through her work, FullScale is the “connective tissue” for future-focused, equity-driven education partners across the country.

Pronouns:  she/her/hers

Jazminn Williams

Communications Manager

Jazminn Williams serves as Communications Manager at FullScale, the national nonprofit formed by the merger of the Aurora Institute and The Learning Accelerator (TLA).  In this role, she manages digital communications including social channels, email marketing and amplifying FullScale’s work through storytelling. Jazminn joined the Aurora Institute as a Communications Associate in 2022.

Prior to pivoting into the digital creator realm, Jazminn worked in higher education for over six years. She is an alumna of Florida Gulf Coast University where she received a bachelor’s of social work and a master’s of education from Loyola University Chicago. Jazminn’s approach to communications is centered in personalization, intersectionality and identity consciousness. When she isn’t keeping up with all things social, Jazminn is spending time with her family in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania or trying sweets around the city.

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Al Motley

Co-Chair

Al Motley is a technology thought leader and also the founder and CEO at Techademics, a technology company focused on innovation in education, social impact, philanthropy, and the nonprofit sector. Al is a nationally recognized expert in the intersection between responsible and innovative use of technology to deliver online learning for K-12, higher education and workforce for adult learners. Al supports many organizations through his CIO & CTO as a service model where he embeds himself in organizations in a part-time role to build the internal capacity for a high-level technology executive or department. An example of this service is his role as the Chief Technology Officer Lead for Gallaudet University, a university for deaf and hard of hearing students in Washington DC. He also has served as CIO for Philanthropi a national Fin-Tech platform that seeks to democratize Donor Advised Funds. Al is a partner or part-owner of several companies located in The United States, Canada, Argentina, and Botswana in Africa. 

A mission-driven leader with extensive experience in executive management, Al has served as chief technology officer for Matchbook Learning, a national education management company, and has provided information technology leadership for Philadelphia’s Mastery Charter Schools, technology services for government clients, and venture investment analysis for various tech companies and young entrepreneurs. He also served as a key technical advisor for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation from 2013-2016 and as the Vice President of Technology Systems & Data for The United Way of Greater Philadelphia & Southern NJ.

Al is also a Pahara Aspen Institute Fellow and holds a certification in Agile CSM project management. In addition, Al serves on the board of trustees as chair for The Learning Accelerator and also serves on the board of The Education Law Center in Pennsylvania. Al also has served as an instructor and mentor for the University of Pennsylvania’s Capstone Education Entrepreneurship Masters Program at the Graduate School of Education.

Tom Rooney

Co-Chair

As the former Superintendent of Lindsay Unified School District, Tom Rooney has engaged in the system-wide transformative work of building a learner-centered Performance Based System throughout the entire K-12 learning community. In June 2016, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative announced a partnership with the Lindsay Unified to advance the Performance Based System in the district and beyond.

Tom is highly knowledgeable of research-based instructional practices, and is a key leader involved in work related to the development, evaluation and modification of all aspects of the Performance Based System in Lindsay Unified. He maintains a strong track record of successful and committed leadership at the site and district levels focused on serving the learners and families of the Lindsay community. Beyond the Lindsay Unified School District, Tom has become a nationally recognized voice for all matters related to mass customized learning, competency-based learning, and personalized learning. Tom has provided multiple keynote addresses, webinars, and formal training sessions throughout the country on the topics of transformational leadership, performance-based learning, and systems change.

Tom is also a certified trainer and professional coach with The Breakthrough Coach. Prior to his position as Superintendent, Tom served as the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, elementary Principal, elementary Assistant Principal, and classroom teacher.

Amy Anderson

Member

In her role as Executive Director of RESCHOOL Colorado, Amy is responsible for leading the discovery-driven process that results in the vision, design and strategy for the organization. With a broad array of expertise, Amy has focused on the policy aspect of creating a new education system and the system components that requires us to reimagine, such as governance and finance.

Prior to launching RESCHOOL, Amy was Associate Commissioner at the Colorado Department of Education where she created and led the Division of Innovation, Choice and Engagement. Her work there resulted in the creation of a statewide vision and strategy to personalize learning and ignite the unique potential of each student through Expanded Learning Opportunities.

Before her time at CDE, Amy had her first stint with the Donnell-Kay Foundation as the Director of Strategic Partnerships where she launched the Foundation’s work on blended learning. She also worked as a senior consultant with Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, and led new school development efforts for the Colorado League of Charter Schools.

Amy is a founder of The Odyssey School, a Denver charter school started in 1998 where both her children attended and she served for many years on the board of directors. Amy holds a Ph.D. and M.Ed. from the University of Colorado and a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin.

Jackie Statum Allen

Member

Jackie is the Grantmaking Director for the Bush Foundation. She manages the strategy, programs, and partnerships for the Foundation’s education initiative, which focuses on making education more relevant for students in terms of who they are, how they learn, and where they want to go.

Prior to her current role, Jackie spent more than a decade working in public school district administration. Most recently, she led the Office of Strategic Planning, Policy and Grants Development for Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS) in Minnesota. In that role, she led several high-impact projects including developing and implementing multiple district strategic plans, developing inclusive policies, and managing informational campaigns for referendum ballot issues. Prior to SPPS, she worked in operations and budget management with Chicago Public Schools. She also has experience working in brand marketing and manufacturing engineering.

Jackie is originally from St. Louis, Missouri. She has a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and a master’s degree from Northwestern University – Kellogg School of Management. She lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two daughters.

Anpao Duta Flying Earth

Member

Anpao Duta Flying Earth (Lakota, Dakota, Ojibwe, Akimel O’odham) is the former Executive Director of the Native American Community Academy (NACA), a charter school in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the current Executive Director of the NACA Inspired Schools Network (NISN), a network that assists communities in implementing structures of Indigenous education. Duta assisted in the creation of the charter school in 2006 and the network in 2014.

In his capacity as Executive Director at NACA & NISN, Duta has been instrumental in representing NACA as a premiere example of Indigenous education nationwide that combines academic preparation for higher learning, grounding in culture and identity, and holistic wellness together for community transformation through young people. He has been named as a Pahara Next Gen fellow, a Pahara-Aspen fellow, an Albuquerque 40-under-40 recipient, and a W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Leadership Network fellow. Duta grew up on Standing Rock Reservation in South and North Dakota. Duta is the youngest of three siblings and a third-generation college graduate. He graduated from Cornell University with a B.A. in Government and earned a Master’s in Business Administration as a Woodrow Wilson Fellow at the University of New Mexico.

Sandra Licon

Member

Sandra Licón is an educator and advocate dedicated to empowering kids and families from underserved communities. She has worked as a classroom teacher, non-profit leader, and funder, developing strategies and new ideas to improve public education in the U.S. and globally. She is an experienced bilingual facilitator and coach with a proven track record of building highly effective teams and forging partnerships across sectors and cultures.

As a consultant, Sandra partners with a variety of funders, non-profit, and system leaders, coaching them on strategy, program development, and impact. Most recently, Sandra served as Vice President of Global Learning at the National Geographic Society, building partnerships to help build the next generation of young leaders. Previously, she spent more than a decade in various roles at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where she managed grant portfolios focused on improving college readiness and teacher effectiveness. She also worked at Teach For All, supporting social entrepreneurs in Latin America and Southeast Asia to launch social enterprises to address educational inequity. Sandra has received several fellowships recognizing her leadership, including the Eisenhower Zhi-Xing China Fellowship, the Graduate Congressional Hispanic Caucus Policy Fellowship, and Aspen Ideas Festival Fellow. She proudly started her career as a bilingual second-grade teacher in Los Angeles. Sandra holds a master’s degree in International Education Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.S. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.

Rebecca Midles

Secretary

Rebecca currently serves as Vice President of Learning Design at Getting Smart, where she supports and advises schools, districts, and learning organizations on the path forward for education. Rebeca is committed to putting learners first through the creation of a learner-centered educational system that empowers leaders and educators to meet the individual academic and social-emotional needs of all learners. She is known for guiding district level transformation as a leader and as a consultant and has led this work as a teacher, site leader, district leader and board member in four states.

She has worked in several transformational systems in Alaska, California, and Colorado that represent different scaling challenges from demographics to charters and comprehensive systems. Starting with some of the first district work nationally on competency-based/personalized learning in Alaska, Rebecca then helped design and create the first competency based high school. As a national consultant, she supported the most often cited CBE/PL districts and schools across the country. Rebecca was the district lead for competency-based learning in Lindsay Unified School District in California, as well as the Executive Director of Teaching and Learning for Mesa County School District 51 in Colorado, a district of 43 schools. 

Rebecca has an M.Ed in educational leadership and an MA in Education. She has worked in charter systems, public comprehensive systems, non-profit and state organizations, and has contributed or co-authored national white papers, blogs and published works on personalized learning.

Cary Matsuoka

Vice Chair

Carry Matsuoka is retired after a 40-year career in education, having served as superintendent of the Santa Barbara Unified School District. Matsuoka has been a lifelong learner in both formal and informal settings. He studied nutrition science at UC Davis and also received his teaching credential there. He earned his master’s degree in educational administration from San Jose State University. Along the way, he taught himself computer science and cabinetmaking, mostly by tinkering and learning-by-doing. He has a passion and talent for design and has applied those skills to the design of creative learning spaces in schools and the structure of school organizational systems.

In addition, Matsuoka is a lifelong educator. He spent 17 years as a teacher, mostly in a high school setting, and 23 years in administrative leadership roles. He taught chemistry, physics, and AP computer science at Saratoga High School in the Silicon Valley area. After he went into administration, he served as a high school assistant principal, district coordinator, high school principal, and superintendent of three school districts. He served 14 years as superintendent of Los Gatos-Saratoga High School District (5 years), Milpitas Unified School District (5 years), and superintendent for Santa Barbara Unified School District (4 years).

Nikolaus Namba

Member

Nik is a Managing Partner at Transcend. He has spent his entire career in education as a teacher, academic coach, principal, and leader in school districts and charter organizations focused on personalizing learning using a competency-based systems approach. Nik maintains a strong track record of successful and committed leadership focused on serving learners first. Prior to Transcend, he was the Director of 21st Century Learning for Lindsay Unified School District, where he was engaged in the system-wide transformative work of building a learner-centered, performance-based system. At Lindsay, Nik led several exciting projects focused on defining personalization, increasing staff capacity to deliver personalized curriculum, refining the community’s WiFi project to ensure Lindsay families were provided access, hardware, and installation free of charge, and developing and future-visioning the district’s learning management system. Prior to this leading role at Lindsay, Nik served as the principal of a K-8 school for the district.

Before his time at Lindsay Unified, Nik worked as Chief Academic Officer of Ingenium Schools, a charter management organization in the Los Angeles area, where he led a grassroots development of a system-wide, personalized, and competency-based learning approach. Prior to this, he was an academic coach and a teacher in the Westminster 50 school district in Colorado. Nikolaus holds a Master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Colorado at Denver and a Bachelor’s degree in liberal studies from California Lutheran University. Nik currently lives in the Los Angeles area with his wife, son, and daughter.

Matt Noble

Finance Chair

Matt Noble has more than two decades of leadership experience in student enrichment and experiential learning. He is CEO of Galileo Learning, a national organization that runs STEAM-focused summer programs for K-8 students at more than 75 locations in partnership with schools, districts, and local communities. Galileo’s mission is to develop innovators who envision and create a better world, which it does through its award-winning Galileo Innovation Approach: a proven pedagogy combining mindset, process, and knowledge.

Prior to joining Galileo, Matt held a variety of leadership roles within EF Education First’s educational travel group, including heading up business units in the U.S. and Canada that served educators and students in both the K-12 and post-secondary segments. 

Matt worked in a number of education-focused startups beginning in the late 1990s. He was an early employee at Revolution Prep, where he managed the development and growth of Revolution’s e-learning offerings addressing SAT/ACT preparation, California High School Exit Exam intervention, Algebra Readiness support, and more. He worked closely with districts, schools, and educators in systematically underserved communities to implement some of their earliest edtech efforts with a focus on adoption, educator support, and student outcomes.

Matt holds a bachelor’s degree in Government from Harvard University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Dr. Beth Rabbitt

Member Ex-Officio

Beth Rabbitt is Co-Chief Executive Officer of FullScale. She is a nationally recognized expert in education innovation and blended and personalized learning. Prior to becoming Co-CEO, Beth was a Partner on The Learning Accelerator’s start-up team, leading the organization’s work to develop educator training systems and research on emerging teaching and learning models and practices. 

Beth brings over 20 years of experience in the K-12 nonprofit, philanthropic, and private sectors, having worked as a teacher, consultant, researcher, and funder. Most recently, prior to joining FullScale, Beth was a Doctoral Resident and Director of Human Capital at a start-up school system in Newark, NJ, an Associate Partner at the NewSchools Venture Fund, a consultant to and with Education Resource Strategies, and the founding Doctoral Fellow at the Harvard Innovation Lab. 

Beth is a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow and serves on the board of several education nonprofits, including Catalyst:Ed and GiveThx. She earned a B.A. from Dartmouth College and a doctorate (Ed.L.D.) from Harvard University, where she was an inaugural cohort member in the University’s Doctor of Education Leadership program. 

Beth is based in Portland, Maine, where she lives with her husband and two elementary-age daughters. As a parent and educator, she is inspired daily and urgently to create school experiences that better meet the needs of every child, everywhere.

Danny Rojas

Member

Danny Rojas is the Executive Director of All Star Code, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to creating economic opportunities for young men of color by developing their entrepreneurial mindset, skills, and networks needed to succeed in a technological world. Since joining All Star Code in May 2018, Danny has spearheaded the organization’s strategic growth, program development, and operational excellence.

Under Danny’s leadership, All Star Code has achieved financial resilience and significant growth. Since taking the helm as Executive Director, Danny has increased the organization’s revenue by securing $11 million in multi-year commitments from strategic donors. He has also managed the organization’s finances responsibly, navigating economic downturns and ensuring long-term sustainability. Danny has led All Star Code through transformative changes, including adapting to the challenges of the pandemic, advancing racial justice initiatives, and transitioning to digital-first program delivery. His efforts have expanded the Alumni base to 1,600 Scholars, with 325 Scholars securing meaningful employment in tech.

Prior to All Star Code, Danny held several senior leadership roles at General Assembly, where he managed enterprise tech talent pipeline solutions for Fortune 100 clients and pioneered accelerated training models for underrepresented communities in tech. His career also includes serving as Principal, Strategic Advising at Bellwether Education Partners, Senior Manager at Deloitte & Touche LLP, and roles at Deutsche Bank, Bloomberg, and General Electric.

Danny’s commitment to social justice and community empowerment is reflected in his board memberships with The Learning Accelerator, New Immigrant Community Empowerment, and Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He is a lifetime member of ALPFA and was elected as a Council Member for Community Education Council District 30 in New York City.

Danny holds a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Boston University and has completed the Senior Leaders Program for Nonprofit Professionals at Columbia Business School’s Tamer Center for Social Enterprise. His core values guide his mission to create a more equitable and inclusive society, making a lasting impact on the communities he serves.