Organizational leader for AppleTree, an innovative nonprofit that develops and provides proven early childhood education programs to the most underserved three- and four-year-olds to erase the achievement gap before children enter kindergarten.Children who graduate AppleTree preschools have the strong academic and social skills needed to succeed in grades K-3. We change children’s lives through our entrepreneurial enterprise consisting of a nonprofit institute and a public charter preschool with seven campuses serving as prototypes for effective teaching and learning. AppleTree is expanding and scaling Every Child Ready—a national prototype for improved teacher effectiveness. In September 2010, the U.S. Department of Education awarded a $5 million Investing in Innovation (i3) development grant to AppleTree to foster this expansion. Leading national and DC-based foundations and corporations funded AppleTree's $1.5 million i3 private sector match, including the W.K Kellogg Foundation; JP Morgan Private Bank; Fight for Children, Inc.; Boeing Corporation; PNC Bank; CityBridge Foundation; The Eugene and Agnes Meyer Foundation; and the Foundation for the National Capital Region. AppleTree is implementing a five-year business plan developed with McKinsey & Company to increase its impact on the quality of early learning. The plan includes creating new preschools in partnership with high-performing charter schools, working to define quality early learning in terms of outcomes and disseminating Every Child Ready as a comprehensive early learning instructional model. Venture Philanthropy Partners, the Stranahan Foundation and New Schools Venture Fund are key early investors.

Organizational and board leader for AppleTree Early Learning PCS, a charter school network in the nation' s capital that implements an evidence-based, early intervention program using a data-driven, response-to-intervention model. AppleTree uses a continuous improvement model to constantly update instruction to meet students where they are in their learning. At the heart of the school is Every Child Ready, a national prototype for improved teacher effectiveness. Every Child Ready is a comprehensive instructional model that drives what to teach, how to teach and how to tell it’s being done. AppleTree is expanding and scaling Every Child Ready through a U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation (i3) development grant,and funding from leading national and DC-based foundations and corporations.It is amazing to see the teaching and learning that takes place, and the results are real - especially for the most underserved students: children who are most at risk for reading difficulties make the greatest gains in AppleTree’s program.In 2014, AppleTree Early Learning PCS opened a new site in Southwest Washington, DC at Jefferson Middle School Academy. AppleTree also opened a partnership preschool with Democracy Prep at the Old Congress Heights Elementary School. Groundbreaking for partnership schools with Achievement Prep PCS and Rocketship Education PCS took place in 2015. AppleTree Early Learning preschools will educate 880 three and found year old children in 2015, growing to 1200 children in 2016.

One day our nation's leaders and citizens will work together to foster innovation and high impact results in the social sector, identify what works, and grow the most effective solutions to wherever they are needed.

I taught Creating US Education Policy (GOVT-396-004) Education is the key to competing effectively in our technology-driven, hyper-connected global economy, sustaining a vibrant democracy and maintaining a strong national defense. Throughout our history, Americans believed that the next generation would have better, fuller and richer lives than the current generation, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement regardless of social class or circumstances of birth. In short, Americans have believed that a good education provided every citizen with a part of the American dream.Yet, for many in America’s cities and rural communities today, their zip code equals their destiny. A great disparity in access to quality education exists--despite sixty years of reform stimulated by federal US education policy that intended to improve access to quality education. Worse, no one leader or institution seems to have the answer to what will raise the trajectory of learning for all American students.So we have lots of different initiatives and ideas, competing for attention, funding and votes in America’s education policy arena. Some are in direct conflict with each other. Some initiatives and ideas are based on research evidence; many are not.Common Core standards, the achievement gap, charter schools, school vouchers, teacher pay and effectiveness, the role of unions, universal preschool and changes to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (NCLB) are among some of the initiatives, ideas, issues and reforms being fiercely debated by policy makers, advocates and practitioners across America today.This course examines the origins and characteristics of the federal role in the US education system; how K-12 education policy is created, implemented and shaped by decision-makers and influencers at the federal, state and local levels; and the key education issues and debates today—as well as what all this means for improving student outcomes.

Participated in this group of education stakeholders to make policy recommendations to improve and align education reform efforts in Washington, DC.

One of the first and largest (at the time) public charter schools in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.This project was cutting edge in that we developed a twelve-story building (250 Stuart Street, Boston) into a public charter school by securing a $12 million loan and $800,000 in private support--in five months time! It was the most exciting project I'd ever been involved with. The night of the Boston Renaissance Lottery was my paradigm shift with school choice. We had 1600 families apply for 600 seats. When the last name was called, 1000 people were crying because they didn't get into the school. It was that point at which I recognized that if I ever had the opportunity to create another charter school--I'd have to.

Provider of equity to developers of commercial and residential rehabilitation tax credit properties. My experience at Boston Bay Capital helped me understand what happens to projects when they go into workouts. I was there during the last great real estate recession when banks were failing across the country. i believe if you can understand how to work out a project that is failing, you know how to structure a project that is being created. This was essential experience for developing charter school facilities.

McCarthy and Company provided consulting services to a variety of businesses in the area of strategic marketing.

At Direct Marketing Group I worked with the New Hampshire Republican State Committee and the Connecticut Republican State Committee on direct response annual fundraising campaign. I also developed fundraising plans and strategies for a number of federal and state candidates for office.