Marlene Castro Email & Phone Number

San Leandro, Ca, Us

Washington, District Of Columbia, Us

As VP of Programs & Innovation, I direct our portfolio of Fellowship & Grant Programs and investments. Our Programs aim to recruit, train, support, and enable young people looking to enter and establish their careers in the policy field through rigorous research and policy decision making. I also drive our Product Development, building a platform for organizational and programmatic efficiencies and evolving how we support mentors and mentees and track the impact of our mentoring network.About: TPA is shaping a fair, just, and fully inclusive future by cultivating a new generation of policy leaders who reflect our multiracial Democracy and who will strengthen and protect its institutions.

Menlo Park, Ca, Us

Envisioned and led the scaling of global operations and directed the end-to-end program management for the 2022 & 2023 Community Accelerator Programs, selecting and supporting two cohorts of 140+ Group Admins each across 25+ countries and 5 languages. Program activities included product trainings, grant management ($30K per participant plus additional funding opportunities), leadership development trainings, and team and vendor management.

Menlo Park, Ca, Us

Reported to Director, and role spanned multiple teams as a subject matter expert for program strategy and inclusion & belonging topics. Advised on identifying gaps and priorities across teams within the department, and spearheaded developing strategies and implementation plans for priorities. Project 1 - Developing and publishing business education training content through user round tables I designed and facilitated. The content launched on the Meta for Business learning platform with a reach of 14K+ Facebook Group Admins/community leaders in the first weeks. - Project 2 - Establishing the first Partnerships Framework for the Meta Elevate Program team by directing the strategic planning, leadership socialization, and sourcing and launching internal and external partnership solutions. Framework included: methods to evaluate partner solutions through defined partner criteria, alignment to company & program priorities, audience & market fit, and operational excellence needs.

Menlo Park, Ca, Us

Designed, launched, and managed the first scaled program for “Tech Prep”, providing free computer science coding workshops to 4th-12th grade youth. Year 1 success included designing & launching scaled training, new instructional curriculum, and the infrastructure to train 50+ employee volunteers across 5 U.S. offices resulting in reaching 1,000 students via 26 Coding Workshops with a net promoter score of 30. Managed one direct report as a short-term employee. Directed program presence and visibility opportunities at critical company events like the F8 Developers Conference and the South Africa Youth Digital Skills Day.

San Francisco, Ca, Us

• PROGRAM MANAGEMENT & DEVELOPMENT – Hired to develop & scale the third annual Tech Trek student program and move from pilot to concrete vision and strategy for scaling & growing. College student program aimed to facilitate a space for early career exploration of Computer Science majors to meet with technology companies. For Company Partners, the program provided key workforce culture data on their equity and inclusion efforts. - Built a new 2018 Tech Trek online application with Product Development Team.- Developed Partnerships with Partner Tech Companies to co-design sessions for student participants that met the goals of the program curriculum & their company's investment in the program. - Designed, implemented, and managed an Admissions & Selection Committee Process in collaboration with the Volunteer & Recruitment teams. Recruited 14 Volunteers, organized & delivered volunteer training, and revamped Evaluation Rubric & process. - Created critical program collateral to support business development and increase Partner Tech Company sign-ups and sales/investment in the program. • PROJECT MANAGEMENT – Built comprehensive Program documents including data dashboards, curriculum, & event management, and utilized Salesforce for partner case management. • HIRING MANAGER - designed & managed a hiring process to screen and hire a Program Coordinator. Coordinated interview stages and created candidate evaluation plan which included a demonstration of work, hiring committee rubric, and questions to measure core competencies and skills.• INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN FOR ADULT LEARNING – Served on special projects in a content consultation role with Senior Directors at Code2040. Projects included building ways to engage employees on providing input, building organizational understanding on internal communications, performance management efforts, and goal-setting processes, and advising on digital tools and facilitation techniques to achieve outcomes.

Oakland, California, Us

6th Grade Math Teacher; Data & Technology Lead• MATH INSTRUCTION & COMMUNITY FACILITATION IN TITLE I SCHOOL - Bilingual instructor for Math 6, Advisory Class, and small group Math Intervention. Implemented and adapted a district instructional scope and sequence, assessed students through formative and summative tasks, and implemented standards based grading. Delivered Advisory sessions on identity development, understanding equity & building tolerance, developing cultural humility, and building community. • ADULT LEARNING & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT – designed instructional learning for founding staff on Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium testing administration and how to coordinate equitable opportunities to prepare all students for technology on state-mandated exams. • CURRICULUM & FRAMEWORK DEVELOPMENT - Collaborated with founding staff to develop school’s academic support systems and behavior management systems, including establishing a socio-emotional framework tied to academic evaluations and rooted in equity and inclusion.

Oakland, Ca, Us

• COMMUNITY BUILDING & MOBILIZATION - Lead point of contact between School Grantees and XQ. Managed daily communication, coordinated monthly programmatic visits & consultations between Grantees and Organization leaders. Managed an online “Slack” community. Advised on building and maintaining relationships with school-based educators and leaders and advocating for their needs at the organization. • PROJECT MANAGEMENT ACROSS TEAMS AND FUNCTIONS - collaborated across Legal, Communications, Campaigns to track & complete work with Grantees in a timely manner, through coordinated communications efforts & building project management tracker tools. • CASE & GRANT MANAGEMENT - Created and developed case management systems to support the 10 XQ Super School Project Grantees in collaboration with School Support Strategist to identify and provide supports and resources, support grantees in navigating grant management process, and maintain record-keeping systems with updated portfolios that supported key advisement in school design recommendations.• FACILITATION, EVENT MANAGEMENT & PROGRAM OPERATIONS - Led operations, implementation, and supported design, session facilitation, & successful completion of events and programming for the 10 Schools. Managed three in-person summit events with 70+ attendees and special guests. Facilitated resource webinars on youth voice and agency & school-based resources for sanctuary schools/cities/districts.

Oakland, Ca, Us

Manager, (07/2015 – 08/2016)• FACILITATION & EVENT DESIGN: Organized national student voice listening tour/campaign. Planned & designed a creative lab experience, coordinated & facilitated the XQ Student Roundtables in 27 U.S. cities with over 200 students. Recruited diverse populations of students; Roundtables included elected officials, VIPs, parents/families, community leaders, & educators. Managed project deliverables with multiple vendors on event management, marketing, content development, and community organizing efforts for two national tours.• PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT & DESIGN: Coordinated opportunities and professional development for XQ Student Ambassador Program to represent the movement in social media campaigns with Univision, panel speakers at SXSWedu and Clinton Global Initiative University. Directed the vision, preparation, and logistics for Ambassadors' presence at four major conferences in Spring 2016. • TEAM MANAGEMENT - Managed and supported team of four employees for the national campaign tour, maintained team communication systems, work plans, coordinated travel and logistics for events, and provided employees opportunities for project leadership.• COMMUNITY MOBILIZATION & DATABASE MANAGEMENT – Managed community outreach efforts, building relationships with communities for events, supervising the creation and management of a community ecosystem/database spreadsheet, & facilitating strategic partnerships for the campaign events in each city. Partnered with Data Lead to measure the impact of our campaign with city-wide data and student-level audience data.• ACCOUNT MANAGER FOR STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP - Led partnership between Univision’s Quiero Aprender Campaign and XQ. Facilitated reaching 2016 goals and outcomes of the partnership within budget, providing consultation to align visions for both organizations and campaigns, and supervise the development of media and communications content, multiple campaign events, and event follow-up efforts.

5th Grade Teacher, Instructional Technology Teacher Leader, TFA Corp Member• MULTIPLE SUBJECTS CLASSROOM TEACHER IN TITLE I SCHOOL – instruction based in Common Core State Standards, socio-emotional development, and leadership skills development, prepared through Teach for America and Oakland Unified SD.• COMMUNITY BUILDING & MOBILIZATION; BILINGUAL FACILITATION - Coordinated and facilitated monthly parent meetings for all 5th grade families to share resources, plan for major 5th grade events and academic milestones, outsource and provide application support for summer programming, etc. Supported the creation and development of professional development groups for educators of color with Teach for America Oakland to support teacher development through sessions on critical inquiry projects, classroom management, culturally-responsive curriculum design, and literacy skills development. • ADULT LEARNING & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT – trained on the use of technology and digital tools for student. Created & managed Chromebook laptop check-out system, coordinated and facilitated professional development opportunities for 11 teachers on cyber safety in their classrooms, using Google Drive, and planning & integrating computer science opportunities.

New York, Ny, Us

• Selected from more than 45,000 applicants nationwide to join national teacher corps who commit two years to teach in under-resourced public schools. Taught in a summer school program for students in a Los Angeles public school, under the supervision of a faculty of experienced teachers. Engaged in a full schedule of professional development, including: seminars, workshops, individual and group reflections, readings, and ‘learning teams’ specific to teaching license area. Enrolled and completed a Multiple Subject Intern Credential program.

New York, Ny, Us

Worked for two years as a Campus Campaign Coordinator for Teach for America's Recruitment team at Cal. I had the role of Vice President of the team's Alumni Relations in 2011. I serve as the Vice President of Faculty & Staff Relations this year as well as Vice President of Diversity Projects. For both years, I have served as the primary Coordinator for Latino student outreach on Berkeley's campus. As a Coordinator, I am part of a 6-person team where we outreach to the entire campus through advertising campaigns and events, such as: classroom presentations, application workshops, information sessions, partnering with student organizations to have events, etc.

Oakland, Ca, Us

• CURRICULUM DESIGN: Developed a summer writing course based on 6+1 Writing Traits and Rubrics. Designed a unit plan, assessments, and rubrics aligned to 9th grade English Language Arts standards in order to prepare students for the transition to high school academics & skills, develop peer and self-editing skills, and understanding rubrics. • DATA ANALYSIS & FEEDBACK: Utilized curriculum data systems at College Track to track student achievement and areas for growth and evaluate my instruction throughout the summer. Designed feedback loops and provided students with the opportunity for peer and instructor feedback on their narrative and information-based essays.• FACILITATION: Facilitated a small Advisory group to orient students to becoming part of the College Track program. Facilitated sessions on identity development, public speaking skills, academic readiness.• MANAGEMENT: Supervised one intern/teaching assistant who supported with grading, instruction, and student feedback. Provided support on meeting project timelines and how to provide positive and constructive feedback based on rubrics.

Berkeley, Ca, Us

Academic Counselor Apprentice & Seminar Instructor (2012-2013)Peer Academic Counselor Coordinator (2011-2012)• ACADEMIC COUNSELING TECHNIQUES - Promoted by the Directors after two years of Peer Counseling to Academic Counselor Apprentice – managed a caseload of 80 Scholars as a part-time counselor, plus drop-in appointments as needed, serving first-generation & socioeconomically disadvantaged students through a holistic counseling approach. Trained on academic counseling methods including academic/course/career planning, higher education college access, mental health support, and multicultural competencies.• TEAM MANAGEMENT: Supervised and collaborated with three counselors/interns on peer advising techniques and to coordinate resource programming for students. Provided coaching and development through training cycles, master advising & project calendar, a communication system for advising students using Google Apps, and professional development.• PROGRAM EVALUATION: Conducted program evaluations for the IAP and EOP programs on first-year experiences and impacts on retention and 4- and 6-year graduation rates. Published findings with Directors to inform future programs & fundraising. • CURRICULUM DESIGN: Co-designed and facilitated curriculum plan for three courses targeting transitional support for incoming students and leadership development. Curriculum design based on latest research and practices supporting students on academic, personal, and social needs to address retention rates. Collaborated with campus partners to facilitate leadership development sessions on latest and proven theories in leadership identity, communication styles, public speaking, conflict resolution & management, and developing emotional intelligence.

Currently serve as the Presidential Advocate for an on-campus alumni coalition at UC Berkley: College Track’s Success Team at Berkeley. The organization also has partner coalitions at other UC campuses who work towards mobilizing our alumni-bases in an effort to address college-retention for students of our backgrounds with extenuating circumstances and provide social support for each others success

Washington, District Of Columbia, Us

Summer Academy Fellow 2011 in the Education Policy Center at the Urban Institute; my research project focuses on the implications of defining achievement and accountability through standardized test scores in disadvantaged and under-resourced schools & communities.

• College Advisor for freshman to senior high school students in the small school of Communication Arts and Sciences in Berkeley High School• Planned and executed educational workshops focused on the college application process (i.e. financial aid info sessions, personal statement writing workshops, social behavior awareness workshops, college campus tours, transcript reviews, etc.), all information specific and catered grade-level dynamics and providing resources to an under-resourced small school community deprived of certain educational opportunities• One of my bigger projects was creating and serving as a tutor in the student learning center for the same group of students to provide a center that wasn’t readily available anywhere else, and extending that into a one-on-one academic advisor position

Ba, Political Science & Rhetoric

Teaching Credential And M.A In Urban Education Policy & Administration, Primary And Urban Education