The $25 million, five-year All Children Succeeding program is designed to support Uzbekistan's mandate to improve teacher and paraprofessional training, revise education materials, update its curriculum, enhance educational access for all students, including those with disabilities.

Leading a doctoral seminar class in developing a conceptual framework of equity-oriented change and carrying out Equity Audits in selected organizations. Teaching Organizational Theory, Communications & Community Engagement, and Leadership & Problems of Practice, foundation courses for the Ed.D. in Leadership for Organizations.The Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Leadership for Organizations from University of Dayton’s School of Education and Health Sciences (SEHS) prepares graduates to enact positive change through service-based leadership. Designed for professionals who already hold a master’s degree, this rigorous academic program supports leaders of mission-driven organizations to success through an emphasis on research, collaboration, social justice, and applied practice.

USAID’s Education in Crisis and Conflict Network (ECCN) advances scholarship and thought leadership in education in crisis and conflict contexts, supports capacity development, engages members in peer-to-peer learning opportunities, and provides opportunities for professional development through formal tools, informal networks, and connection to mentors. In addition, ECCN supports knowledge generation, synthesis, translation, and usage by identifying and engaging experts to advance adaptive/responsive learning agendas and questions regionally and globally.

Teaching MEd students in Global Education Leadership at Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College to develop a research-focused literature review and to complete an applied research project proposal for IRB review.Arizona State University’s Master of Education (MEd) in global education equips graduates with the research and analysis skills needed to gather evidence to inform, design, and improve practices to strengthen systems that provide quality education for diverse populations in the field of international education.

Our mission was to make the right to education meaningful with grant making and advocacy focused on good governance and protection of public goods locally and globally, amplifying and uniting grassroots voices for justice across constituencies, and supporting local models of inclusive pedagogy and praxis.As deputy director, I led the implementation of portfolios focused on good governance and inclusive education in our 2017-21 education strategy, managing and mentoring senior a dispersed team of program staff working on education governance, grassroots activism, and the equity effects of privatization with portfolios in Asia, Africa, and Europe & Eurasia. With primary responsibility for operations, I designed the process for developing our next strategy and led efforts to forge a shared vision of team culture and positive environment by co-constructing restructuring strategies across education programs to better address challenges identified by the global board. In my role as senior contributor to strategy, I spearheaded a vision of empowerment and collective action to fight corruption, playing a key role in developing the Health and Education Working Group’s reserve fund project to break down silos among grassroots, local and national civil society focused on education or health in Kenya, Ukraine, West Africa, and Western Balkans.By engaging in service beyond my daily responsibilities to my program, I strengthened the institutional, programmatic, and financial integrity of the Open Society Foundations. This has included serving as Co-chair of the Foundations Program Partnership Initiative, a working group charged with developing recommendations for collaborative strategy development, implementation, and impact assessment between thematic programs and geographic foundations. In addition, I served on the Sabbatical Committee and the Disability Inclusion Working Group, to assist the COO and HR to improve internal support for staff members affected by disability.

Based in Istanbul, Turkey for most of this time, I led a multi-million dollar portfolio focused on inclusive education in Europe & Eurasia with responsibility for grant making, managing research, evidence and advocacy initiatives with partners ranging from community associations and independent researchers to the OECD, supporting coalition building, and designing learning and professional development opportunities for researchers, policymakers and practitioners.

From a home base with Soros Foundation Kyrgyzstan, I worked across two thematic programs to develop and lead program’s portfolio of grants in inclusive education totaling between $1M - $1.3M annually. I reviewed, shaped, and managed grants in education and early childhood with a focus on access to services for marginalized or vulnerable children totaling $2.3M per year as well as leading the development a $1.3M Emergency Fund initiative with Soros Foundation Kyrgyzstan and UNICEF bringing together early learning, parent education, and nutrition to address micro-nutrient deficiency in young children. I also coached OSF daughter NGO and grantee staff so that they could implement high-quality education programs and manage effective, transparent NGOs under varying local conditions.

Working in Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, I managed a matrixed team of 27 dedicated to developing and organizing professional development education. In this role, I held primary responsibility for structuring the $3.2 million program, teaching, and supporting teachers to work with Russian-speaking classrooms. This team trained over 4,000 teachers, school directors, and educators across four countries in interactive, child-centered teaching methods, community mobilization, and democratic school management.

“Power, Migration, and Climate Change” Plenary contribution on re-imagining teaching and learning for the UNESCO Forum on Inclusion and Equity in Education; Cali, Colombia; September 13, 2019.“Inclusive Education and Early Childhood Development,” Introductory remarks and moderations on an expert panel side event to the High Level Political Forum on the Sustainable Development Goals; July 12, 2019.“Opening doors and mediating practice: Working toward inclusion in Tajikistan” in the panel Inclusion and Diversity in Local and Global Educational Contexts at the Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society, April 2019.“Exclusionary mechanisms in inclusive education: The integrity perspective” panel discussant at CIES, April 2019.“Diversity, sustainability, and education 25 years after the Salamanca Statement” moderator for plenary panel at the Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society, April 2019.“Empowerment of parents of children with disabilities in Tajikistan” in the Highlighted Session Focus on parents and early education at CIES, March 2014.Chair and organizer of the panel Privatization in the post-Soviet states at CIES, March 2014.“Policy Challenges for Inclusive Education” invited presentation at the Regional Ministerial Education Conference in Istanbul, Turkey, December 2013.“Learning to See Invisible Children: Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Central Asia” at the European Conference on Education Research, September 2013“Open Society and Children with Special Education Needs” invited presentation at UNICEF Geneva Meeting on Inclusion, May 2010.“Protecting Investments in Early Childhood Development in Eastern Europe,” invited plenary presentation at the Int'l Conference on Meeting Education for All and Millennium Development Goals through Strengthening Partnerships in Early Childhood Development; Oct. 13, 2009.

Facilitated a workshop to benchmark the MDGs in appropriate local context in the Republic of Altai. Worked as part of a team of graduate students from SIPA, Columbia University to design the workshop and produce a manual for future facilitators under the auspices of the Applied Workshop in Economic and Political Development.

Delivered training sessions on organizational marketing, financial compliance and grant management for IREX staff in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.Led a qualitative evaluation for the Internet Access and Training Program (IATP) in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

Directed the Community Connections - Russia Program with staff of 8 local and expatriate employees responsible for recruiting and vetting 500-800 exchange participants per year. Identified target regions for program activity and presented selections to the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy and the Ministry of Labor and Social Development.Developed new themes for the Community Connections – Russia program in response to changing needs in the field. New themes included historical/cultural preservation, information access, public health, and youth advocacy in addition to previous themes of NGO development, education administration, small business development and entrepreneurship.Managed the activities of IREX’s network of 11 field representatives throughout the Russian Federation and identified strategically important regions for representation. Acted as liaison for IREX/Vladivostok while the office filed for official registration in a challenging political environment. Oversaw the development of comprehensive Standard Operating Procedures for IREX/Moscow in compliance with local labor and tax law and USG contract requirements.

Coordinated all aspects of recruitment for Community Connections in several regions of Russia, piloted the Presidential Management Training Initiative (PMTI) and implement the pilot round of recruitment in Armenia.Coordinated all aspects of the Community Connections - Russia program in several regions of Siberia, including establishing a local office, hiring local staff and managing a local partnership with the Federal Employment Service. Organized a Career Forum and Job Fair for alumni of the Edmund S. Muskie and FSA Graduate Fellowships.