James is one of the State’s leading experts in charter school law, authorizing, and operations. Before joining the NYC Charter School Center in 2007, he worked at the Walton Family Foundation where he helped develop and implement the foundation’s grant making in the charter school sector. James came to Walton after serving as executive director of the Charter Schools Institute at the State University of New York (SUNY), an authorizer of charter schools in New York State. In this role, he helped create a structure in which a high quality charter school sector could flourish. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan has singled out SUNY as a national model for this work. Before that, James was also a commercial litigator for the law firm Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. He is a graduate of Columbia College and New York University Law School.
Valerie is responsible for organizing and training charter school parents to effectively advocate on behalf of their children and their schools. Her work includes coordinating letter-writing and petition campaigns, facilitating meetings between parents and lawmakers, and promoting the Charter Center and charter schools at community events. In 2010, she helped deliver nearly 3,000 parents to Albany for Advocacy Day. Before joining the Charter Center, Valerie worked in fundraising and strategic relations for the Abyssinian Development Corporation and in business development at the law firm Jones Day. Val has a background in media and was a radio talk show host for five years. She is a charter school parent and a graduate of City College.
Christina provides critical, high level support to the CEO and is accountable for maximizing the current impact and future growth of the Charter Center and its staff. She brings to the position an extensive background in nonprofit management. Before joining the Charter Center, Christina was Vice President of External Relations at Civic Builders, where she raised more than $15 million to support the development of charter school facilities. She also served in leadership roles at the Union Square Partnership, the Greenwich-Chelsea Chamber of Commerce and several performing arts venues. Christina is a graduate of the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
Jordan helps parent coordinators more effectively engage charter parents with their school communities, while also teaching charter parents themselves how they can be effective organizers within their schools and communities. Additionally, Jordan manages the Charter Parent Action Network’s social media presence. In the past, he has organized on behalf of several political campaigns and college campuses. Jordan will soon be graduating from New York University with a B.A. in Individualized Study.
Maria provides support to new school planning teams in the pre-and post- authorization stages. Before joining the Charter Center, Maria was a program manager at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), a non-profit that teaches business and entrepreneurship skills to youth in low-income neighborhoods. Maria has also worked as an admissions counselor at Marymount Manhattan College and as an English Language Learners (ELL) Specialist at Pearson Education. She is a graduate of Boston College and is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Public Administration at Baruch College.
Caryl Cohen worked for the NYC Department of Education for thirty-three years as a middle school English teacher and as an administrator in the Division of Human Resources. During her 25-year tenure in HR, she served as the director of elementary and middle school staffing; special assistant to the chief executive for instruction; and from 1993 until her retirement in October 2004, as the deputy executive director for teacher recruitment, certification, licensing and salary. She was the DOE’s liaison to the NYS Education's Department, Office of Teaching Initiatives dealing with certification policies, regulations, and implementation of the teacher quality criteria (HQT) of the No Child Left Behind federal law. She has continued to serve as the liaison to the SED on certification issues on behalf of the NYC Charter Sector. Ms. Cohen received her bachelor's degree in education from Cortland State University, and a master’s degree in education and an advanced certificate in supervision and administration from Brooklyn College.
Alex is responsible for helping develop and execute the organization’s web and e-communications strategies. A Little Rock, Arkansas native, Alex has helped develop digital media strategies for several non-profit organizations including the American Red Cross and Reach Out and Read Arkansas. He recently led the online outreach efforts for Arkansas congressional candidate John Adams. Alex graduated Summa Cum Laude from Harding University and holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science from James Madison University.
Dixon is responsible for incubating and building the new non-profit initiative at the Charter Center. His goal is to build an organization that promotes and supports special education in the city’s charter schools. Dixon comes from Achievement First, where he worked as the Regional Director of Special Services. At Achievement First, he incorporated a more inclusive approach to supporting students with disabilities in schools, cultivated relationships with local District staff, and developed and implemented the systems necessary to support special education in a network of schools. Prior to Achievement First, Dixon taught in the NYC DOE as a special education kindergarten and fifth grade teacher. Dixon is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, holds an M.S. in Early Childhood and Special Education from Lehman College, and an Ed.M. in Educational Change: Special Education from Bank Street College of Education.
A native New Yorker, David is responsible for a variety of projects related to school operations, outreach, and teacher certification. Before joining the Charter Center, David worked on the development of educational programs for at-risk youth. David has also been involved in learning science, educational policy research and program evaluation with the aim of improving teaching and learning in our nation’s school system. He holds a B.S. and M.S. in Developmental Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh.
Rebecca is responsible for managing projects within the department, scheduling, offering program support, and providing general administrative assistance to the team. Before joining the Charter Center, Rebecca spent a year living and traveling abroad, working in agriculture in New Zealand and Australia and exploring various cultures such as Tonga, Laos, and Vietnam. She has a B.A. in Behavioral Neuroscience and Women’s Studies from Colgate University.
David oversees the Charter Center’s governmental and community outreach as well as its grassroots infrastructure in order to ensure a favorable public policy environment for New York City’s charter schools, and education reform in general. David has an extensive background in politics and non-profit advocacy and communications. Prior to joining the Charter Center, David managed a senate re-election campaign, served as senior staff in the Office of the Bronx Borough President and was as a member of the national advance staff for the White House under former President Bill Clinton. David is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts and holds an MBA from Metropolitan College of New York.
Daniel is responsible for collecting, maintaining, and analyzing data about charter schools, in order to assist school staff and inform public debates. Before joining the Charter Center, Daniel taught high school math at Lehman High School in the Bronx and The Facing History School in Manhattan. He has a B.A. in Math and Economics from Claremont McKenna College and holds a Master’s Degree in Teaching from Pace University.
Edith is responsible for managing the organization's daily office operations, human resources and employee relations. Before joining the Charter Center, Edith served for 16 years as the Director of Finance for the Institute of Literacy Studies at Lehman College, where she also graduated with a Degree in Accounting.
Susan is responsible for the financial and accounting functions at the Center. Susan has over 25 years experience as the Director of Finance at several nonprofits including Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging and Longevity, CCI formerly Child Care, Inc. and the Jewish Museum. Susan is a certified public accountant and has a BS in accounting and a BA in English from Syracuse University.
Myrah works directly with the Charter Center's CEO, James Merriman. She also works outside the Charter Center as a marketing consultant for community organizations and start-up businesses. Before joining the Charter Center, Myrah managed several Grammy Award winning musicians in Atlanta, where she graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing from Clark Atlanta University.
Niomi oversees the Charter Center’s New School Development Program, guiding planning teams through the charter application and authorization process. Since joining the organization in 2008, she has helped in the development of more than 40 high-potential charter schools. Niomi brings to the position more than a decade of experience in the New York City public school system as a teacher, administrator and program coordinator, having been involved in two new school start-ups. She received her BA from SUNY Empire State and an MFA from Rutgers University. She also completed post-graduate work in special education at Bank Street Teachers College.
Michael is responsible for developing the Charter Center’s policy arguments, sharing accurate data about the charter sector, and helping school leaders understand and influence the policies that affect them. Before joining the Charter Center, Michael was a Research Manager at Edison Learning where he developed pilot partnerships to improve mathematics instruction and principal evaluation. He also worked as a public policy consultant at Berk and Associates in Seattle, as well as for the American Institutes of Research as a research assistant in education statistics. Michael is a graduate of Princeton University and holds a Master’s Degree in Social Sciences from the University of Chicago.
Arthur is a former teacher and administrator with more than 30 years of experience working in the field of special education. He works with charter schools to address the instructional and operational challenges of providing a high-quality education to special needs students. He offers his expertise through one-on-one consultancies, school visits, and workshops. He also facilitates relationships between charter schools and the New York City Department of Education. Arthur received his Doctorate in Education from Columbia University’s Teachers College.
Petra is responsible for developing the Charter Center’s marketing, communications and media relations strategy and promoting the organization via media, electronic communications, publications and events. Before the Charter Center, Petra was Policy and Communications Director for the Center for New York City Neighborhoods (CNYCN), a non-profit established by Mayor Bloomberg, the City Council, and private corporations and foundations to combat the foreclosure crisis in New York City. She also worked in Director of Communications roles at Women’s World Banking, a leading global microfinance network and Barnard College, Columbia University. Petra graduated with an MBA in Marketing from Fordham Graduate Business School and BA in Economics from Hobart and William Smith Colleges.
Cara is charged with facilitating the implementation of New York City’s District-Charter Collaboration Compact, which was signed by the New York City Department of Education and NYC public charter schools as part of a national Gates Foundation initiative. The Collaboration Compact aims to address system level issues (including enrollment, funding, facilities, and data) while also working directly with schools to create meaningful areas for collaboration and best-practice sharing. Cara is a former middle school math and science teacher, having worked in both district and charter schools, and was most recently a Director of Alumni Affairs at Teach For America. She is active in the larger NY community, including through her involvement in her local community board and its Youth, Education, and Libraries committee. Cara holds a BA in Economics from the University of Virginia.
Luis is responsible for facility support and providing information to parents who contact the Charter Center. Luis has a background in graphic design, music, and worked for Details magazine for several years; before joining the Charter Center, he was the office manager for five years for the Robert Allen Group, a home furnishings design company.