“It was a phenomenal experience,” said Tammy Grimes, chairwoman of the special education department at the High School of Commerce, which was the first high school in the district to join the empowerment zone.
The Colorado Rural Collaborative Guide is designed to raise awareness and support rural communities in expanding college and career pathways through regional partnerships. Rural Collaboratives serve as intermediary organizations that bring together school districts, higher education institutions, and employers to create shared opportunities for students.
This guide covers:
By fostering cross-sector partnerships, Rural Collaboratives can improve student outcomes and strengthen local economies. This resource offers actionable strategies and real-world examples to help rural leaders navigate the process of building and sustaining collaborative efforts.
Brett Alessi
Co-founder & Partner
Brett is the co-founder and a Partner with Empower Schools. After supporting the design and launch of the nationally heralded turnaround of Lawrence Public Schools in Massachusetts, Brett led the organization’s expansion to Colorado and Texas where he partnered with state and local leaders to pioneer the first innovation zone in Denver and the Rural Schools Innovation Zone in South Texas. He continues to drive innovation in Colorado, as well as partnerships and policies in other states that scale what works, especially for rural students.
Prior to launching Empower Schools, Brett led the Greater Boston region for Education Pioneers. Previously he developed national youth service initiatives and policies, and led corporate social responsibility for a venture backed startup in Washington DC. Brett began his career in the classroom, teaching at the elementary and secondary levels.
Brett is a graduate of Middlebury College and has an M.A.T. from Brown University. He and his wife live in the Boston area where they are raising their three boys and are actively involved in the community.
Gordon Cromwell
Director of Strategic Finance and Operations
Gordon joined Empower as Director of Strategic Finance and Operations in January 2020 through the Encore Fellowship Program, an 18-month Fellowship opportunity. After a 25-year career in finance, the past 9 years at The Boston Company Asset Management, Gordon is now pivoting and applying his finance expertise to the nonprofit sector. He has been actively involved in various different education related nonprofit organizations including Boston Prep, Citizen Schools, and Rehearsal for Life and is excited about the work Empower is doing to promote innovative education models around the country.
Gordon graduated from Denison University and received his MBA from Vanderbilt University. He lives in Brookline with his wife and two children.
Carey Davis
Senior Director
Carey is a Director on the Empower Schools team. Since joining Empower Schools in 2018, Carey has led systems change initiatives through close partnerships with stakeholders at the school-, district-, and state agency- levels to advance innovative approaches to education with a focus on long-term sustainability and improving outcomes for students. This has included supporting the launch of rural innovation projects, working with local leaders to develop innovation schools to better meet the needs of their students, and collaborating with state education agencies to design and implement innovation strategies to improve educational opportunities. Prior to joining the Empower Schools team, Carey was an elementary school special education teacher in her hometown of Dallas, Texas.
Carey has a B.S. in Special Education from Vanderbilt University and a master's degree in Education Policy and Management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Outside of work, Carey is involved in a variety of local nonprofits as a board member and volunteer.
Jack Elsey
Senior Advisor
Jack Elsey has been a results-oriented educator for nearly two decades. In 2022, Jack founded the Michigan Educator Workforce Initiative (MEWI), an organization committed to addressing the teacher shortage crisis and building a more robust educator pipeline for the state, and serves as its CEO. MEWI’s first major project, Talent Together, an innovative set of teacher pathway programs led by 56 Michigan Intermediate School Districts, is the largest collaboration of its kind between school districts in state history and currently has over 1,350 candidates in pathways to teacher certification. Before establishing MEWI, Jack led the Detroit Children’s Fund, a non-profit dedicated to improving public schools in Detroit.
Elsey has also served in a number of public school district leadership roles including Chief of Innovation and Incubation at Chicago Public Schools and Assistant Superintendent at Detroit Public Schools. He began his career as a middle school teacher with Teach For America in New York City. In addition to serving on a number of non-profit boards, Elsey is a graduate of Wake Forest University, Pace University, the Broad Center at Yale University, and is a Broad Residency Alum, Future Chief with Chiefs For Change, and serves as a leadership coach for school district and non-profit executives across the country.
Hannah Foley
Senior Director
Hannah serves as Director and supports the work of Empower Schools in Texas leading the launch of in-district charter partnerships and ongoing implementation support. Before joining Empower Schools, Hannah worked in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area in several roles supporting education systems including program evaluation for school districts and school authorizers and policy network support across the region. She began her career as a public-school teacher and administrator in Houston. During her time in the classroom and in administration she spearheaded initiatives in instructional coaching, leadership development, social-emotional learning, and blended learning.
Hannah is an alumna of Teach for America and Education Pioneers and holds a B.A. in French from St. Olaf College and an M.P.P. from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. In her free time, Hannah enjoys the outdoors, cooking, crafting, and spending time with her husband and son.
Chris Gabrieli
Senior Advisor
Chris Gabrieli is the co-founder and Senior Advisor of Empower Schools, Chairman of the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education, and a lecturer at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education. He pioneered the Empowerment Zone effort in Empower’s first site in Springfield, MA where he continues to be the Chair of the Zone’s Board. His current work at Empower focuses on building Empower, leading on Massachusetts work and leading the Empower Early College effort.
Chris has been at the forefront of several movements to expand educational opportunity and improve schooling and has been the founder of three successful non-profit education innovation and policy organizations including the National Center on Time & Learning.
Chris is a graduate of Harvard College. He has been active in civic and political life in Massachusetts for thirty years. Chris and his wife live in Boston where they have raised five children. He has never been cured of his loyalty to his original hometown Buffalo Bills.
Erika Giampietro
Senior Advisor, Early College
Erika Giampietro is the founding Executive Director of the Massachusetts Alliance for Early College. Prior to this role, Erika served as Senior Advisor to the Chair of the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education. In this capacity, she built expertise in areas critical to the success of Early College in MA. She facilitated a burgeoning coalition around Early College, helped draft and advance legislation and policy related to Early College, partnered alongside the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Department of Higher Education in growing the initiative, and provided technical assistance to a group of Early College programs. Prior to that, Erika worked in the Boston Public Schools for seven years serving in a variety of roles, including Deputy CFO, Interim CFO, and Special Assistant to the Superintendent. While at BPS, Erika oversaw the district’s $1B budget, facilitated strategic planning for the Superintendent, and co-authored a long term financial plan for the district. Prior to joining BPS, Erika spent 6 years in management consulting and education consulting.
Erika has a B.S. in Business from The University of Virginia and an executive education certificate from the Harvard Business School. She is based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Kevin Guico
Senior Manager
Kevin Guico is a Senior Manager at Empower Schools based in Los Angeles, CA. A child of immigrants, he is passionate about ensuring all students and families have access to a quality public education. In his work, he supports the strategic planning and implementation of innovative partnerships, and the sustainability of locally-led, community-designed in-district school models. In the past, he was a former candidate for board of education advocating for Asian American Studies, a board chair for an arts education nonprofit in Central Texas, and the curriculum board chair for a leadership development nonprofit.
Before joining the Empower team, he provided year-long professional development, anti-racism facilitation, and career development support to eighty AmeriCorps members as they worked in ten of Dallas ISD’s most deserving public schools. His most rewarding role was teaching 7th grade English and Modern Band at a public middle school, and community organizing families and community leaders around educational equity issues and elections.
Kevin holds a B.A. in Music Management and a minor in Business Management from the Conservatory of Music at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. In his spare time he performs music professionally, mentors young student musicians in the foster system, and recreationally enjoys swimming, biking, running, and coaching soccer.
Mary Beth Hiett
Executive Assistant and Office Manager
Mary Beth is the Executive Assistant and Office Manager at Empower Schools based in Boston, MA. She provides direct support to the Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Chris Gabrieli in addition to supporting general office operations. of Empower Schools. She has over 10 years of experience supporting C-Level Executives.
Mary Beth holds a BFA in Painting from the Savannah College of Art and Design and an MA in Contemporary Art from the Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London.
Matt Matera
Partner
Connect on Linkedin
Matt Matera is a Partner at Empower Schools based in Boston, Massachusetts, and is also the board chairman of Teach Western Mass. At Empower, he led the design and launch of the Springfield Empowerment Zone Partnership and has supported the launch of more than 10 additional partnerships. Prior to joining Empower, Matt was the Director of Innovation and Talent for Lawrence Public Schools in Massachusetts. Before that, he was the Director of Human Capital Investments for New Schools for New Orleans and taught middle school English for five years.
Matt is an alumnus of Teach For America and Education Pioneers and also worked for several summers with the Breakthrough Collaborative. Matt has a B.A. in English and a J.D. from Yale University.
Cara McKenna
COO
Cara is the Chief Operating Officer at Empower, based in Boston, MA. Cara has supported the design and launch of new networks of autonomous, empowered district schools, as well as rural, multi-district collaboratives that expand opportunities for students. Before joining Empower Schools, Cara was a Consultant at The Boston Consulting Group, working on strategy and large-scale project management with both non-profit and for-profit organizations. Prior to BCG, Cara was a public school teacher in Boston and Brookline, MA, teaching social studies at the high school level.
Cara graduated from Brown University with a B.A. in History and has an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and an M.B.A. from The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.
Alyssa Morton
Partner and CEO
Alyssa Morton is a dedicated advocate for educational equity and innovation. As CEO and Partner at Empower Schools, she leads our team of experts collaborating with state agencies, policymakers, public school districts, institutions of higher education, and community champions across the United States to design, launch, and sustain innovative schools and school systems that help students achieve long-term economic mobility. Before joining Empower Schools, Alyssa supported public education organizations at Bain & Company and advanced school and system human capital strategy as an Education Pioneers Fellow in New Orleans.
Alyssa holds a B.A. in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law (PPL) from the University of Virginia and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. Alyssa serves on the Board of Directors at Thinkery, Austin’s premiere children’s museum. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and two children.
Chessye Moseley
Consulting Advisor, Early College
Chessye Moseley is the founding Deputy Director of the Massachusetts Alliance for Early College. Prior to this role, Chessye built context and expertise through her work on the Early College team at Empower Schools. In this capacity, she supported burgeoning coalition efforts, helped lead key policy and advocacy efforts related to Early College, and provided technical assistance to a group of Early College programs. She also created and leads Early College Policy Fellowship designed for former Massachusetts Early College students interested in creating systems-level change and expanding high-quality Early College programs. Prior to her work with Early College, Chessye held many roles at Teach for America, the most recent being as Director of Individual Giving in Massachusetts. Chessye started her career as a middle school reading teacher in Colorado. Chessye holds a B.A. in Government from Harvard University and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Janine Pires
Senior Manager, Finance
Connect on Linkedin
Janine Pires is Empower’s Senior Manager, Finance based in Boston, MA. She is a business operations professional with a track record in accounting, finance, payroll, and fundraising roles in the nonprofit sector. Prior to Empower Schools, Janine was the Staff Accountant & Schools Business Manager for the Boston Plan for Excellence, an education organization operating a PreK-12 pathway of neighborhood based teaching academies.
Janine seeks to continually merge the skills acquired from her BA in Logistics & Operations Management mastered projects’ portfolio from Southern New Hampshire University, with her passion of building and supporting an education system that advances equity.
Seth Rau
Director
Seth serves as Director, Policy, at Empower Schools, responsible for designing policies and strategies to support autonomous district schools across the country based in Austin, Texas. He works with Empower’s zone and district partners to ensure that state and local policies are best aligned to increase student success.
Before joining Empower Schools, Seth was the Director of Legislative and Strategic Affairs for the San Antonio Independent School District where he led the district’s state and federal advocacy efforts, most notably helping efforts to pass SB 1882 and school finance reforms. He also helped start up Nevada Succeeds as its first Policy Director, an education non-profit in the Silver State dedicated towards bringing a business voice to creating better schools. He began his career as a 5th grade teacher. Seth has a B.A. in International Relations and Political Science from Tufts University and an M.B.A. from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. In his free time, Seth enjoys traveling around the world, trying new foods, and watching live sporting events.
Sarah Robb
Partner
Sarah is a Partner at Empower, based in Boston, MA. Sarah leads our partnerships in California and Indiana and supports districts and communities across the country to explore, design, and launch Zones of autonomous, empowered district schools. In Massachusetts, Sarah supported the launch and initial implementation of the Springfield Empowerment Zone Partnership.
Prior to joining Empower Schools, Sarah worked at TNTP where she supported the implementation of New York City’s teacher development and evaluation system. Previously, Sarah was a Program Manager with City Year San Jose/Silicon Valley where she managed a team of AmeriCorps members and worked closely with the school community to help transform the school’s culture and provide targeted support to off track students. Sarah began her work in education teaching high school biology on the South Side of Chicago.
Sarah has a B.A. in Biology and Anthropology from the University of Michigan, a M.A.T. from National Louis University, and a M.Ed. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in Education Policy and Management.
Chazz Robinson
Senior Manager
Connect on Linkedin
Hannah Sharfman
Senior Manager
Hannah Sharfman is a Senior Manager based in Atlanta, Georgia. She leads Empower’s work related to the Rural Pathways Excellence Partnership (R-PEP) initiative, supporting over twenty rural districts across Texas. This work plays a critical role in ensuring that students in rural communities have access to meaningful college and career opportunities. Hannah also has past experience supporting rural collaborative work in Colorado.
Before joining Empower Schools, Hannah worked in education consulting, focusing on grant writing and project management related to education innovation. She began her career as an elementary school teacher in Houston, Texas, through Teach for America, where she developed a deep commitment to educational equity.
Hannah holds a B.A. in Political Science from the College of Wooster and an M.P.P. from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. Outside of work, Hannah is an avid runner, an enthusiastic reader, and a curious traveler.
Jessica Thorne
Colorado State Director
Connect on Linkedin
Victoria Vasquez
Senior Manager
Tori is a Senior Manager at Empower Schools based in Fort Worth, Texas. She works with partners in Texas, Massachusetts, and Louisiana. Tori supports districts with strategic planning and implementation of in-district partnerships. Prior to joining Empower Schools, she served as a fellow in a variety of education contexts at the local, state, and national level including the U.S. Department of Education, the Texas House of Representatives, and the Commit Partnership. She began her career as a public-school elementary teacher in San Antonio, Texas. During her time in the classroom she implemented initiatives such as project based learning, social emotional learning, and an extended school year. Her passion for education is rooted in her time serving as a tutor for high school students in Upward Bound and as a teacher’s aide for Academia Cuauhtli, a language and culture revitalization project for elementary school students.
Tori has a B.A. in Latin American and Border Studies from Southwestern University and a M.Ed. in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Texas at Austin.
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Senior Advisor
Christi leads Martin Consulting Group and serves as a formal advisor to Empower Schools in Texas. She brings thirty years’ experience in education policy and school law. In her prior role as senior advisor to the Texas Commissioner of Education, Christi oversaw implementation of statewide education initiatives including the state’s first early college high schools, supplemental funding for strategic educator compensation, residency-based teacher preparation programs, and public-private partnerships. In her roles as senior program officer and deputy director for at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, she managed investments in a portfolio of states and coordinated K-12 and postsecondary policy priorities.
Christi holds a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law and M.A. and B.A. degrees in political science from the University of Houston. A first-generation college student, Christi has focused her career on broadening opportunities for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Dana Ray
Texas Advisory Board Member
Dana Ray serves as the Chief of Staff for San Antonio Independent School District's Office of Innovation. She is directly responsible for supporting Innovation Zone and in-district charter schools and ensuring the evolution of district level departments and systems to meet the individualized needs of campuses. Dana specializes in school design and redesign, charter authorizing, leadership coaching, and systems thinking. She received a Bachelor of Arts from Tulane University and a Masters in Educational Administration from Trinity University. Dana has served as a teacher, instructional coach, school administrator, and district administrator over the course of her 20-year career in SAISD. She believes strongly that education is the key to personal growth, improving one’s quality of life, and making the world a better place.
Hjamil A. Martinez-Vazquez
Texas Advisory Board Member
Hjamil A. Martinez-Vazquez is a Bilingual Educator serving as an Instructional Support Specialist for the Dual Language program in Crowley ISD, and founder of the ADELANTE, an equity group for Latina/o educators. Hjamil has taught multiple grades (3rd-6th) in the area of reading and writing. In 2019, he was selected as Campus Teacher of the Year at Mary Harris Intermediate, and in 2022 he got the same recognition at ACE Demonstration and Design Lab at Hargrave Elementary, both in Crowley ISD. He serves as a member of the Reading Reimagined Educator Advisory Board and member of the SBEC Educator Preparation Advisory Committee. As part of his teacher advocacy work, and after being a Teach Plus Senior Policy Fellow, Dr. Martinez-Vazquez is a Teach Plus Senior Research Fellow and a Teach Plus Ready to Lead Senior Fellow. Hjamil has been part of several professional development sessions/presentations including at the 2020 Raise Your Hand Texas Leadership Conference, and works with the district’s curriculum committee and the Language Department. He was a member of the Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) English as a Second Language Standards Advisory Committee and the TEA Bilingual Standards Development Committee. He graduated from the University of Puerto Rico with a BA in Social Science, and received his MA in Religion from the Evangelical Seminary of Puerto Rico and his ThM and PhD in Religious History from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
John Fitzpatrick
Texas Advisory Board Member
John Fitzpatrick is the executive director of Educate Texas, CFT's statewide education initiative. His role spans five areas: strategy, fundraising, advocacy, culture/talent and what he calls Team CFT. From 1997-2004, John had a dual role as the executive director of Skillpoint Alliance, a central Texas nonprofit, and vice president for education and workforce development at the Austin Chamber of Commerce. John moved to Texas in 1994 to attend grad school at the LBJ School at UT Austin, where he met his wife, Kristen Vassallo. Before that, he worked on Capitol Hill for Republicans and Democrats on education, workforce development, trade and other issues. John taught eighth-grade English and U.S. history for a year in Long Island, New York. He holds a bachelor’s in sociology from Wesleyan University, where he also played soccer.
Marcus Ceniceros
Texas Advisory Board Member
Marcus is the Chief of Staff at Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE), a national nonprofit leadership development organization inspiring and supporting a network of civic leaders to end the injustice of educational inequity. Prior to this national role, he led LEE’s work in Houston, Texas.
Marcus began a career in education after graduating with a degree in government from the University of Texas at Austin by joining Teach For America. He spent eight years teaching in and helping lead primary schools in Houston, New Orleans, and Chicago. As a Dean of Culture and Director of Community Engagement, Marcus has worked to authentically engage families and communities through on-campus programming, family fellowships, and direct family advocacy at the local, state, and federal level.
Marcus’ civic engagement while in high school and has since worked on over 100 political campaigns, including presidential campaigns. At work, he supports current and former educators to build the skills needed so they can advocate for their students, organize their communities, have access to leaders that create education policy, and become public/elected leaders themselves. Marcus has directly engaged over 700 educators in Houston through one-on-one coaching and group leadership development training over the past three years. He has facilitated sessions on how to effectively run for office across the country for hundreds of other educators.
Marcus also advises ONE Houston (the Organizing Network of Educators), a regional community organizing group that consists of teachers and students. The collective has addressed policy issues impacting the school-to-prison pipeline and ran successful actions to influence local school district policies affecting over 11 million dollars of funding, terminating exclusionary discipline practices, and reallocating resources to include restorative justice practices.
Marcus currently lives in New York City where he enjoys using mass transit, spending time thinking about writing a book, and talking about Texas to anyone that will listen.
Paymon Rouhanifard
Senior Advisor
Paymon Rouhanifard is the co-founder and CEO of Timely, an education technology company that helps schools build better master schedules through AI optimization. Paymon has spent nearly 20 years working in education. He started his career as a 6th grade teacher in New York City and served in a number of roles across the New York City Department of Education, Newark Public Schools, and the Camden City School District where he was the superintendent. As superintendent in Camden, he helped lead improvements in student outcomes, reductions in out-of-school suspensions, and critical capital investments in school facilities. Prior to that, Paymon worked as an investment banking analyst at Goldman Sachs and a private equity associate at AEA Investors. He serves as a guest lecturer at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Paymon holds a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Tim Field
Senior Advisor
Tim Field supports district- and state-level strategic planning and implementation to improve struggling schools, strengthen district support systems, and launch new schools and programs. Tim has worked with Empower Schools as a Senior Advisor to Texas school districts in the System of Great Schools initiative and worked closely with the Texas Education Agency to develop grant programs and accountability systems for district-authorized charter schools and other innovative school models. Tim was previously a regional director for the KIPP Foundation, where he provided coaching support to KIPP executive directors, coordinated internal and external resources, and provided quality oversight to ensure that KIPP regions are prepared to open and sustain high-performing schools in under-served communities. Before that, Tim was the deputy chief of Charter, Partnership and New Schools with the School District of Philadelphia, where he led the charter school authorization and oversight department, and worked with the district leadership, school board, and local community groups, to support successful and innovative schools.
Tim earned his B.A. from Oberlin College, and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Romel Antoine
California Launch Fellow
Romel Antoine is the California Launch Fellow at Empower Schools based in Sacramento, CA. Romel helps to lead our growth and exploration work across the state, working with school districts and other key stakeholders to advance Empower’s mission. In his most recent role, Romel helped to lead state regulatory affairs for the California Charter Schools Association. A life-long facilitator and strategist, he has held various roles in support of school districts, non-profit education partners, and service organizations. Romel graduated from Wheaton College with a B.A. in Women’s and Gender Studies, Political Science, and Legal Studies. Romel is also a Pahara Next-Gen Fellow, a program of the Pahara Institute which focuses on building equity in the Education sector.
Romel Antoine
California Launch Fellow
Romel Antoine is the California Launch Fellow at Empower Schools based in Sacramento, CA. Romel helps to lead our growth and exploration work across the state, working with school districts and other key stakeholders to advance Empower’s mission. In his most recent role, Romel helped to lead state regulatory affairs for the California Charter Schools Association. A life-long facilitator and strategist, he has held various roles in support of school districts, non-profit education partners, and service organizations. Romel graduated from Wheaton College with a B.A. in Women’s and Gender Studies, Political Science, and Legal Studies. Romel is also a Pahara Next-Gen Fellow, a program of the Pahara Institute which focuses on building equity in the Education sector.
Malik Stewart
Senior Director
Malik serves as a Senior Director for Empower Schools, responsible for leading and supporting projects to benefit students across the country, with a focus on Texas. He leads project teams and works closely with local, state and district leaders to empower public schools and drive the creation, execution and implementation of strategic partnerships. Prior to joining Empower, Malik worked at Reading Partners where he led the literacy improvement portfolio in North Texas. Previously, Malik oversaw grant programs with the YMCA, and Managed Federal Programs in Delaware as a state and school district administrator where he supported schools in exiting improvement statuses and becoming National Blue Ribbon and Distinguished Title I programs.
Malik has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Art Design from North Carolina A&T State University and a Master’s in Education from Cabrini College. He is based in Fort Worth, TX with his wife Doreen and their three daughters Maya, Taylor, and Faith.
Barry Tyler
Director
Barry is a Director at Empower, based in Hammond, Indiana. Barry leads partnerships in Indiana and supports districts and communities to explore, design, and launch Zones of autonomous, empowered district schools.
Prior to joining Empower Schools, Barry worked at Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE), where he led the Illinois and Northwest Indiana region in an effort to encourage and support members to get involved in the fight for educational equity. Barry has a long history of working in education and has served as a Senior Director at OneGoal and a Partnership Director at Teach For America. He began his career in youth development by leading The First Tee of Hammond and coaching high school football (something he is still doing 15 years later). Barry has a B.A. in Speech and Political Science from Wabash College and is also the 3rd District Councilman for the City of Hammond.
Eliza Davis
Senior Manager
Eliza Davis serves as the Growth Manager at Empower Schools and is based in Baltimore, Maryland. She works to advance Empower’s mission by exploring and developing new partnerships nationwide, particularly in rural areas. Eliza began her career as a 7th Grade Social Studies teacher in Pueblo, Colorado through Teach for America. She also spent summers directing the Outdoors Department at Camp Kiniya in Vermont, focusing on experiential learning and leadership development for young women.
Before joining Empower Eliza also worked in survey research, overseeing and conducting public opinion polls for a wide variety of clients, including media organizations, advocacy groups, and education focused nonprofits. Eliza has a BA in Public Policy from Princeton University.
Rebecca Armstrong-English
Senior Manager
A seasoned professional in higher education and K-12, Rebecca brings a wealth of experience to her role as Senior Manager at Empower Schools. She supports school and district design, fosters partnerships, and advances innovation strategies, ultimately driving positive educational change. During her tenure as the Director of Alumni Relations at Dillard University, Rebecca demonstrated her strategic prowess by engaging a vast alumni network. Her efforts strengthened ties and drove crucial support for current students and alumni. This talent for fostering community also shone in her role as the Coordinator of Campus Programs in Enrollment Management, where she designed events that created a welcoming atmosphere and generated excitement among prospective and incoming students.
As the Founding Director of Operations at a STEM-focused middle school, Rebecca excelled at streamlining processes, managing resources, and ensuring the school ran seamlessly. Her work empowered educators to focus on their primary goal: providing a high-quality learning environment for all students.
Rebecca graduated from Dillard University in New Orleans with a BA in Mass Communications. She furthered her education with a Master's in Liberal Arts and a paralegal certificate from Tulane University, an MBA from Capella University, and a Certificate in Education Policy from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Rebecca enjoys spending time with her teenage son and binge-watching medical dramas.
Rachell Davis
Manager
Rachell is a Manager at Empower Schools. Her work focuses on supporting partnerships and projects that positively impact students who have been traditionally underserved. Before joining Empower, Rachell served as a program coordinator at a youth development non-profit that focuses on community and school-based partnerships to support girls' physical, educational, and social development. She began her career as a 6th grade teacher in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she was inspired to pursue a career in public administration after observing a variety of issues that her students faced. The impact of housing accommodations, financial and nutritional resources, and familial dynamics on the classroom environment and student achievement motivated Rachell to learn more about public and non-profit management. Through various career endeavors, she has assisted youth in foster care and the juvenile justice system, who also have a high risk of discontinuing their secondary and post-secondary education.
Rachell holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Memphis and a Master of Public Service and Administration (MPSA) from Texas A&M University.
Aden Avery
Associate
Aden Avery is committed to ensuring that all children have access to an education that prepares them to lead choice-filled lives. In his current role at Empower Schools, he works to advance system conditions at the state and local levels to catalyze and sustain innovation that transforms public schools and communities.
Prior to joining Empower Schools, Aden taught 4th grade in Austin’s Rundberg community. He began his career in research, communications, and advocacy in roles at Young Invincibles and the Roosevelt Institute’s campus network, where he focused on policy topics spanning voting rights, higher education, student loan debt relief, and student mental health.
Aden holds a B.A. in History from Texas A&M University. In his spare time, he enjoys landscape photography, gardening, and convincing friends to explore new bookstores with him.
Patricia Fortes
Finance and Operations Associate
Patricia Fortes is a Finance and operations associate at Empower Schools based in Boston, MA. Prior to Empower Patricia has been working as a Financial associate being the point of contact to clients for any invoice related questions, as well as preparing bi-weekly invoices to about 100 clients.
Anastasia Magana
Manager
Anastasia is a Manager at Empower Schools based in California where she works to advance early college and career pathway innovation strategies, while also supporting the emerging growth happening across the state.
Before joining Empower Schools, Anastasia worked at the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, an education non-profit that directly serves 13,550 students at 20 of the most historically underserved schools in LA Unified, including elementary, middle, and high schools in Boyle Heights, South LA, and Watts. Anastasia’s dedication and commitment to public education programs began as a Student Peer Advisor at the University of California Santa Cruz and then in the classroom as a Cultural Ambassador for the Spanish Ministry of Education in Spain.
Anastasia holds a B.A. in World Literature & Cultural Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz and is fluent in both English and Spanish.
Claire Albert
Manager
Claire Albert serves as an Associate at Empower Schools based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her work focuses on supporting partnerships in rural communities, particularly in Colorado. Prior to taking on the associate role, Claire worked as a research consultant on Empower’s Early College projects, championing the amplification of student voices in expansion efforts for Early College programs in Massachusetts.
Claire steered student engagement efforts, social media campaigns, and research projects aimed at expanding practices that bridge the gaps between high school, college, and college graduation for underrepresented students in higher education. Claire also worked within the community outreach sector at Community Rowing Inc. Serving in a variety of roles, Claire facilitated a tutoring partnership as an academic coordinator with RowBoston, and worked as a rowing coach with Boston Center for Youth and Family summer camps, teenage rowers with disabilities, and military veterans group. Claire holds a B.A in Psychology from Harvard University.
Lauren Hall Riggins
Director
Lauren Hall Riggins has worked in education, non-profit leadership, and policy and advocacy research for over a decade. She has earned three masters degrees in education, public affairs, and arts administration. She is currently a doctoral candidate writing her dissertation on centering youth perspectives in creating educational experiences that lead to economic mobility and increased civic engagement. She holds a deep conviction that education is a vital tool for addressing generational poverty and systemic racism.
Hall Riggins has worked with pre-kindergarten through post-secondary students, and has coached and supported teachers spanning these grades for five years. She launched an Early Childhood Education program and helped lead the Mid-North Promise Program, which is a cradle-to-career program that supports families with economic mobility and holistic wellness. She co-founded a non-profit in 2013 and oversaw its successful merger with a mission-aligned organization in 2017 to provide a more catalytic, sustainable impact for Indiana youth and families. She worked in development for three years with Teach For America Indianapolis and managed a portfolio of $3.1 million. Additionally, Hall Riggins has served as a grant reviewer and panelist for the Indiana Arts Commission; reviewed films for the Heartland International Film Festival; and served as a judge for the National Youth Poet Laureate competition. She currently leads the Indiana Youth Poet Laureate program, an affiliate of the National Youth Poet Laureate program, and is passionate about leveraging the literary arts to advance healing, cross-cultural understanding, justice, and joy. Lauren proudly, humbly boasts that her student since 2013 has just earned the 2022 National Youth Poet Laureate title, thereby becoming the first (but not the last!) National YPL from Hall Riggins' home state of Indiana.
Jaynie Alexander
Senior Manager, Communications
Jaynie is a senior manager at Empower Schools, leading communication strategy. She supports our team members on the ground as they execute and share their work while passing the mic to those most proximate to the issues. Throughout her career, Jaynie has leveraged storytelling to work towards educational equity in partnership with communities around the world.
Hailing from a small beach town in Florida, Jaynie moved to Texas to become a bilingual elementary teacher at Dallas Independent School District. While holding a variety of on-campus roles, Jaynie innovated community initiatives aimed at empowering families to use their voices to ask for and access the most effective resources for their needs. To affect systemic change, Jaynie used her experience in programming, operations, and communications to elevate stories of change and improve communication systems at scale at top education brands, including Teach For America, National Geographic, Learning A-Z, and more.
Jaynie holds a bachelor’s in interpersonal and organizational communication from the University of Central Florida, a master’s in bilingual education from Southern Methodist University, and a master’s in education leadership from the University of North Texas. Jaynie is currently a Forté Fellow pursuing her MBA at Duke University.
Veronica Fabian
Manager
Veronica is a Growth Associate based in Austin, Texas. Before joining the Empower team, Veronica worked on Google.org’s grant operations team, helping Google distribute their funds to deserving organizations across the globe. Her love for education grew during her four years as the Project Director for a Texas ACE after school program. Through her work she created programs that provided academic and enrichment support for low-income students and families in East Austin.
Veronica holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Texas State University and her M.A in Social Justice & Human Rights from Arizona State University. Veronica is passionate about using her skills to advance social justice initiatives and addressing systemic inequities that negatively impact marginalized communities, specifically BIPOC youth.
Shaterra Martin
Events Coordinator
Shaterra is the Events Coordinator at Empower Schools based outside of Washington, DC. She provides event management and execution support across the organization. She has over 10 years of event management and non-profit operations experience. Shaterra holds a BA in Communications from The George Washington University and a MS in Urban Education from Johns Hopkins University
Juliet Zimmer
Associate, Finance and Operations
Juliet Zimmer is a Finance and Operations Associate at Empower Schools based in Boston, MA. She started her career in accounting doing taxes in Charleston, South Carolina. After a couple years in taxes, she found an opportunity to move into Accounts Payable work and loved it. These jobs gave her lots of experience working with clients and vendors. She moved to New Hampshire in August of 2022 and after a few months of living in NH and searching for her dream job, she found Empower. She is excited to continue her career with a passionate nonprofit.
Juliet graduated with her BA in accounting from the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Prior to her college education, she graduated high school from an early college program with 44 college credits. She loves being able to use her knowledge from school and seeks challenges to overcome to show her skills and hard work.
Lesly Gramajo
Associate
Lesly Gramajo is a dedicated professional with a diverse background in education equity, community engagement, and organizational excellence. She possesses an unwavering passion and steadfast commitment to addressing education inequity to create a more just and equitable educational landscape for all. With experience at the Houston Mayor's Office of Education and Youth Engagement, Teach for America, and KIPP Texas Public Schools, she has demonstrated her ability to excel in various fields. Her accomplishments range from securing significant grant funding and effectively managing teams to building strong relationships with stakeholders, conducting data-driven assessments, and contributing to organizational development.
Lesly holds a B.S. in Psychology and African American Studies from the University of Georgia. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, traveling, and styling clothes.
Himanvi Kopuri
Chief of Staff
Himanvi Kopuri is the Chief of Staff at Empower based in Boston, MA. As someone who moved around a lot at a young age, Himanvi noticed the stark differences in education quality, accessibility, and equity across the US. Since then, Himanvi has held a deep-seated passion for promoting access to quality education for all. Through the years, she has closely worked with various education nonprofits and even runs her own nonprofit called The Schaefer Program. Before joining Empower, Himanvi was a consultant at Bain & Company where she worked with several education organizations and was on the leadership team for Education@Bain. Himanvi earned a B.S. in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Carley Taronji
Associate
Carley Taronji serves as an Associate at Empower Schools supporting our rural innovation and post-secondary success work in Indiana. Carley has held a number of different roles in the Education field and has consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to fostering equitable outcomes for students and communities. Throughout her career, Carley has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to equity and empowerment. As an Educator, Carley led data meetings and facilitated professional development workshops focused on equity and inclusion. By analyzing data and providing coaching feedback, she worked tirelessly to ensure that every student had the opportunity to thrive academically and personally. As an Instructional Coach, she provided targeted feedback to teachers, empowering them to embrace best practices and cultivate a culture of growth and excellence in their classrooms. Carley's experience as a Psychology Research Assistant at Georgia Institute of Technology and as a Supplemental Instructor at Georgia State University further reflects her commitment to building capacity and empowering individuals to reach their full potential.
Carley earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from Marian University in Indianapolis, Indiana, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. Driven by a passion for equitable outcomes, Carley continues to advocate for students and communities, striving to create a more just and inclusive education system for all.
Dr. Dia Bryant
Senior Advisor
Dr. Bryant is a nationally recognized educational leader, a sought-after speaker, and a fierce advocate for equity and justice. She is also the co-founder of Context Matters, a strategy group specializing in developing solutions for problems plaguing public education and crystallizing the context surrounding each issue.
Dia's career trajectory is anything but traditional–a testament to her entrepreneurial spirit and her refusal to be confined by typical roles. From founding schools to advising political leaders, Dia’s impact is felt from the classroom to the Capitol.
Dia holds a Bachelors in Economics from Kalamazoo College, a Masters in Math Education from Brooklyn College and a Doctorate in Education Leadership from Harvard University.
Christopher Ruszkowski
Senior Advisor
Christopher N. Ruszkowski served as New Mexico's Secretary of Education under Governor Susana Martinez and as Delaware’s Associate Secretary of Education/Chief Talent Officer under Governor Jack Markell during a decade of unprecedented education reform. He is currently Senior Fellow at three innovative organizations: Education Reformers Academy, Empat Speech and South Carolina Children's Fund. He also currently serves as State Conservator for IDEA Public Schools--Texas. Following his tenure as education secretary, he was appointed Distinguished Policy Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and Senior Advisor at Harvard University’s Center for Education Policy and Research. He then served as CEO of Meeting Street-South Carolina's education portfolio during a time of unprecedented recovery, innovation, and expansion–guiding it through the pandemic, culture change, and its first-ever alumni heading to college (90%); all while launching a statewide scholarship fund, educator performance awards, and its first-ever charter schools. “CR” is an alum of the Evans Scholarship, TNTP, Chiefs for Change, Teach For America and Education Pioneers.
Ruzzkowski holds a BA from the University of Minnesota and an MA from Stanford's Graduate School of Education. He began his career in Miami-Dade County as a social studies teacher in the Little Haiti community, where he was the region’s nominee for TFA’s national teaching excellence award.
Josh Thomases
Senior Advisor
Josh Thomases is the founder and CEO of IPsquared, a leadership consulting group committed to helping socially conscious organizations achieve their fullest potential. During 30 years in public service, Josh has worked with educators and leaders to build impactful, reflective, and equitable organizations. Josh began his career as a founding teacher at El Puente Academy for Peace and Justice, a nationally known model for community-driven, culturally responsive, education. At the NYC Department of Education, Josh oversaw the opening of 350 new small schools and spearheaded the k-20 college and career readiness agenda for the city. Later he served as Dean at Bank Street College of Education where he oversaw their community programs, launched the Center for Culture, Race and Equity and Prepared to Teach, focused on transforming the teacher ecosystem in the United States. Most recently, Josh led a multi-state charter network designed around high dosage tutoring and national service.
Ankita Rao
Chief of Staff
Ankita is Empower's Chief of Staff, based in Texas. Before joining the Empower team, Ankita worked as a Senior Associate Consultant at Bain & Company, working on various strategy and large-scale operations projects with for-profit organizations. Her love for education grew during her three years as a Program Leader at Girlstart. Through her work she shaped the curriculum and taught interactive after-school STEM programming for elementary age girls in Austin, TX.
Ankita holds a B.B.A. in Business Administration from The University of Texas at Austin. Ankita is passionate about using her skills to address systemic inequities in K-12 education. Outside of work, Ankita is an avid dancer, a ClassPass fitness enthusiast, and a curious foodie.
Selena Adams
Coordinator, Finance and Operations
Based in Boston, Selena is the Empower Schools Finance and Operations Coordinator. Prior to her time at Empower, Selena spent 5 years teaching in a sub-separate classroom, providing critical support to students with disabilities. Selena brings experience from rigorous fellowships at Up Academy. As the manager at the largest AMC Theater in the region, Selena owned operations and oversaw audits.
Selena received her associate degree in Business with a focus on logistics and operations from Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). She is currently enrolled at SNHU to continue this program as she earns her bachelor’s degree.
Kelly Linz, Ed.D.
Senior Manager
Kelly J. Linz, Ed.D., is a senior manager based in Bloomington, Indiana. With over 25 years of experience in K-12 public and higher education, she specializes in early college initiatives and career pathways, consistently driving improvements in student outcomes, particularly for underserved populations. Kelly excels at managing complex projects and fostering collaborative relationships with educators, community stakeholders, and policymakers to implement impactful reforms. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, gardening, traveling, and serving as a court-appointed special advocate for children. Kelly loves spending time in nature, most of all, exploring the ocean as a certified scuba diver.
Dr. Linz holds a B.S. in English and Special Education and an M.S. in Curriculum, Instruction, Educational Leadership, and Policy Studies from Indiana University, as well as an Ed.D. in Leading and Learning in Organizations from Vanderbilt University.