FuelEd’s team has expertise in entrepreneurship, psychology, social-emotional learning, and education.

[The Team]

 

Megan Marcus, Chief Executive Officer:

Ms. Marcus holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of California at Berkeley, and Masters degrees in Psychology from Pepperdine University and Education, Policy, & Management from Harvard University . Over the past several years, Ms. Marcus has conducted research on the social-emotional competencies of teachers at Boston Teacher Residency and also served as the lead researcher for The Social Neuroscience of Education. This book, by Dr. Louis Cozolino, explores how strong teacher-student relationships trigger neural plasticity and serves as the research foundation of the FuelEd program.

 

 

Bianca Figueroa-Santana, Co-Director of Curriculum

Ms. Figueroa-Santana holds a Bachelors degree from Brown University, and is currently working as a bilingual math and science teacher in San Francisco. She is in the process of developing a therapeutic classroom structure that she hopes will improve both student motivation and academic achievement. Ms. Figueroa-Santana’s professional background also includes non-profit management, research in international law, and development of literacy based math and science curricula.

 

 

Alex Rosenberg, Co-Director of Curriculum

Mr. Rosenberg holds a Bachelors degree in neuroscience from the University of Pennsylvania, and is currently working as a 7th grade Math Teacher in Richmond, CA. He is using education technology to innovate a new Math Intervention curriculum that improves math skills, vocabulary, and confidence. Mr. Rosenberg’s professional background also includes education consulting, outreach, and statistical analysis. He loves talking with teachers so tweet him @AlexMRosenberg.

 

 

Adwapa Donkoh, Director of Business Development

Ms. Donkoh holds a B.A. in Economics from Spelman College and Masters degree in Public Policy from the American University. Ms. Donkoh has spent time volunteering with several nonprofit organizations in Ghana including the METO Foundation where she developed proposals for safe school projects.  As a Research Associate at Institute on Disability and Public Policy at American University, Ms. Donkoh worked to ensure the organization’s compliance with the performance standards.

 

 

 

Doug Valentine, Director of Operations

  Mr. Valentine holds a B.A. in French, German and Pre-Architecture from Case Western Reserve University (2004), and has recently completed his Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern California.  His professional background includes teaching English as a foreign language to adults and children in Europe as well as school management and teacher development.

 

 

 

Kacie Mele, Director of Development

Ms. Mele holds a B.A. in Elementary Education from University of Arizona and is working towards a Masters degree in Social Entrepreneurship and Change at Pepperdine University. After she completes her M.A. she hopes to go out in the world to be an advocate for children, she believes that every child deserves the right to feel special and unique. She has spent several summer seasons with Tom Sawyer Camps as their Director of Aquatics, to which her love of play and outdoor exploration with children has stemmed. Ms. Mele currently is a Lead Facilitator at BLAST, a social skills program designed for children underserved in emotional health.

 

 

 

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[Advisory Board]

Pravin Chaturvedi: Dr. Chaturvedi is currently Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of IndUS Pharmaceuticals and the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of Napo Pharmaceuticals. Chaturvedi founded the Boston-based IndUS Pharmaceuticals in 2005 which was acquired by Napo Pharmaceuticals in 2007 and in 2010, Dr. Chaturvedi successfully spun IndUS out. Dr. Chaturvedi has served on the Boards of Scion Pharmaceuticals, IndUS Pharmaceuticals, Sindu Pharmaceuticals and  Sindu Research Laboratories, as TiE Boston, a non-profit promoting entrepreneurship.

Louis Cozolino: Dr. Cozolino is a Professor of Psychology at Pepperdine University with a clinical practice in Los Angeles. Dr. Cozolino’s recent research focuses on a synthesis of the biobehavioral sciences with psychotherapy and education. He is the author of several books including The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy, The Social Neuroscience of Education, and The Making of a Therapist.

Allen Grossman: Mr. Grossman is a Harvard Business School Professor of Management Practice. He joined the HBS faculty in 1998, with a concurrent appointment as a Visiting Scholar at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.. Mr. Grossman has also served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Outward Bound USA. His current research focuses on leading high-performing nonprofit organizations and the management of public school districts.

Scott Morgan: Mr. Morgan is the Founder & CEO of Education Pioneers, an organization that exists to identify, train, connect, and inspire a new generation of leaders dedicated to transforming our education system so that all students receive a quality education.  Mr. Morgan began his career teaching social studies and leadership at St. Jude High School in Montgomery, Alabama. He later served as the legal counsel for Aspire Public Schools, where he worked with the management team and school leaders to start and operate a network of small charter schools throughout California. He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa in government from the University of Notre Dame, received his Master of Arts in Teaching from the University of Portland, and earned his law degree from Stanford Law School. Mr. Morgan is a Draper Richards Kaplan Entrepreneur, a board member of Beyond 12, Inc., and a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow, Class of 2010.

Gary Orren: Mr. Orren is a Professor of Public Policy and Management at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government where he teaches and writes on public opinion, politics, and persuasion. Mr. Orren has worked in the United States and abroad as a pollster and strategist for candidates, interest groups, government agencies, corporations, and news organizations, including the New York Times and Washington Post.  He helped draft the rules for the presidential nomination process and assists ABC News in its election night forecasting. He also worked at the youth corps program City Year as a team leader and director of national policy and planning.

Kimberly Schonert-Reichl: Dr. Schonert-Reichl is an Applied Developmental Psychologist at the University of British Columbia (UBC). After beginning her career as a classroom teacher, Dr. Schonert-Reichl has conducted research in the area of social and emotional learning  for over twenty years. She is responsible for developing a Social-Emotional Learning and Development Concentration within UBC’s Education Department and is currently involved with the following research project: Social and emotional learning and pre-service teacher education: A scan of SEL content in programs across North America.

Dr. Ivor Weiner: Dr. Weiner is a professor of Special Education at California State University Northridge where he coordinates the Autism program and directs the Family Focus Resource Center. Prior to entering teacher education, Dr. Weiner served nine years with Dallas Public Schools as a teacher of students with emotional and behavioral disorders and behavior specialist for students with emotional and behavior disorders and autism. Dr. Weiner is passionate about infusing social neuroscience research in teacher preparation training.

FuelEd’s Board of Directors includes Pravin Chaturvedi, Kimberly Schonert-Reichl, and Megan Marcus.