Board of Directors
Mónica Byrne-Jiménez, Board President, is the Executive Director of University Council for Educational Administration, a consortium of higher education institutions committed to advancing the preparation and practice of educational leaders for the benefit of schools and children. Mónica previously worked in a number of urban settings, including Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Indiana University, Associate Professor and Director of Educational and Policy Leadership Doctoral Program at Hofstra University, Assistant Professor and Chair of the ... More »
Harouna Ba is the Director of SciPlay at New York Hall of Science (NYSCI). Harouna has extensive experience in investigating children’s development of digital literacy skills and the impact of complex science, technology, engineering, and mathematics programs in formal as well as informal educational settings. Prior to joining NYSCI, he led several research and evaluation projects about technology and STEM at the Education Development Center’s Center for Children and Technology. Through this research, he helped inform the processes that institutions use to provide quality and ... More »
Joanne Brady, Board Secretary, is an expert in translating research into programs, curricula, and tools for practitioners and policymakers concerned with educational improvement. At Education Development Center (EDC), Joanne conducted policy analyses and other studies to enable states to plan for more coherent early education systems. With the Open Society Institute, she designed and delivered technical assistance and professional development to countries that were a part of the former Soviet Union. She worked with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards to ... More »
Cynthia Char is the Principal of Char Associates, an educational consulting firm based in Montpelier, Vermont with clients throughout the United States, and specializing in the design and evaluation of educational programs and products. She began her research career at Harvard Project Zero and Children’s Television Workshop. Prior to establishing her consulting firm, Cindy was a senior associate in research and design at both Bank Street College’s Center for Children and Technology in New York and the Education Development Center (EDC) in Newton, Massachusetts. Her evaluation ... More »
Paula Cordeiro is the Dammeyer Distinguished Professor of Global Leadership and Education at the University of San Diego and the Senior Vice President of Education Worldwide at Edify. Paula previously served as Dean of the School of Leadership and Education Sciences (SOLES) at the University of San Diego for 17 years. Prior to that she was the coordinator of the masters and doctoral programs in Educational Leadership at The University of Connecticut. Paula is a former teacher, principal and school head in international schools in Venezuela and Spain. In 2007 Paula was ... More »
James Kadamus is a national education consultant and writer. From 2006–2016 he was Vice President and Partner at Sightlines LLC, an education management consulting firm working with higher education and K–12 institutions. From 1994–2005, Jim served as Deputy Commissioner, Office of Elementary, Middle, Secondary and Continuing Education, at the New York State Department of Education, Albany, NY. In that capacity, he implemented standards-based preK–12 reform in New York’s school districts serving 3.1 million students, resulting in higher levels of student achievement. He also ... More »
Gerald Kohn, Board Vice President, is an educational author who served as the Superintendent of the Harrisburg Public Schools in Pennsylvania from 2001–2010. Under his leadership, this 9,000 student urban school system increased its graduation rates by 171% and post-secondary acceptances by 419%, while reducing dropouts by 53% and doubling the percentage of students passing state tests. Also during his term, the district was selected by Harvard Business School for the Public Education Leadership Project as one of nine urban districts in America that demonstrated national ... More »
Ajay Nair is the President of Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania. He is also a nationally recognized expert in student affairs issues and an accomplished social justice, race, and ethnicity scholar. At Arcadia, Ajay has instituted Arcadia UKnighted, a presidential initiative and interactive forum for members of the University community to engage in dialogue and collaboration. He has served on a wide range of university and civic boards and organizations, including as director of the Division for Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice for NASPA (Student Affairs ... More »
Alfred Ramirez is the Principal Consultant and Owner of Diverse Strategies. He previously served as Director of Operations at the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute. Alfred has held several White House appointments, including Special Assistant to the President as Associate Director in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel; Senior Advisor at the Corporation for National Service; and Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans at the U.S. Department of Education. Alfred began his career as faculty adviser ... More »
Helen Randolph, Board Treasurer, is an Instructor at Cambridge College in Cambridge, MA. Helen is a former elementary school teacher and previously served as Director of Gifted and Talented Programs for the Newton Public Schools. Helen has been an Instructor at Old Westbury College and State University of New York at Stony Brook where she taught courses in Afro-American history. She led parent trainings for the Detroit Board of Education and served as a Consultant for McGraw Hill. As a Research Associate for the Center for Urban Education in New York City, Helen developed ... More »
William Slotnik, Chief Executive Officer, has overseen the growth of CTAC into one of the nation’s foremost providers of technical assistance, evaluation services, and policy support in the fields of education and community development. CTAC annually assists more than 90 organizations, school districts, and state departments of education. Bill provides extensive assistance to state education agency leaders, superintendents, state and local boards of education, unions, and leadership teams throughout the United States. He leads capacity building assistance and evaluation ... More »
Donald Gratz, Director Emeritus, has held several key staff and leadership positions during an extensive and distinguished career in education, including Professor, Chair of the Education Department and Director of Graduate Programs in Education at Curry College in Milton, MA. He previously served as Executive Director of The Alliance for Education in Worcester, MA, Interim Development and Alumni Relations Director at Framingham State College, Director of National School Reform at the Community Training and Assistance Center, and Dean of Continuing Education at Quincy ... More »