Tinu Akinfolarin, Associate Manager of Technology and Special Projects: 
Most recently, Tinu served for two years as a Teach For America corps member in Baltimore City Public Schools. Tinu also has experience working in finance at Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. Tinu earned her BA in Economics from Bryn Mawr College and her MA in Teaching from Johns Hopkins University.

Komal Bhasin, Principal-in-Residence: 
Most recently, Komal was the Principal of Excel Academy Charter School: East Boston, where she worked from 2007-2012.  Before Excel, Komal served as the founding Assistant Principal of a KIPP-affiliated school in New Orleans, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Prior to that, she was a science teacher: first at a district school in New Orleans through the Teach for America program and subsequently as a founding teacher in a KIPP-affiliated school turnaround venture in New Orleans. Komal got her start in through work with Breakthrough sites in Manchester, NH and Cambridge, MA.  She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University.

Tommy Chan, Senior Coordinator of Facilities:
Tommy is the Senior Coordinator of Facilities for Unlocking Potential. Previously, Tommy has worked in construction management for the New York City Department of Design & Construction. Tommy graduated with a BS in Civil Engineering in May 2011 from Cornell University and is a recent graduate of Northeastern University where he earned a MA in Engineering Management.

Victoria Criado, Director of School Operations: 
Victoria worked as a Program Examiner at the Office of Management & Budget (OMB) in Washington, D.C., where she oversaw a number of agencies and programs related to economic recovery and consumer protection. Prior to joining OMB, Victoria worked as an Assistant Vice President at Deutsche Bank in New York, and in 2005 she co-founded the Border Film Project - an art collaborative that provided a pictorial account of immigration policy in the United States. A book on the project was published by Harry Abrams in 2007. Victoria received her BA in Political Science from Boston College (Go Eagles!) and her Masters in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Gina D'Addario, Senior Coordinator of Human Resources: 
Gina has spent the past two years in Boston working for MATCH Education. Gina tutored 6th, 7th, and 8th grade middle school students in mathematics and English in her first year with MATCH. In her second year, she served as a Recruitment Manager for MATCH’s network of charter schools and worked to hire a diverse staff of 200+ tutors. Gina received her BA in Speech Language Pathology & Audiology from Ithaca College in New York.

Lana Ewing, Principal-in-Residence:
Lana worked at The Achievement Network (ANet) as the Managing Director, supporting the the Directors of School Support and the 55 schools the team served in the Greater Boston area. At ANet, Lana also directly coached 15 charter and district public schools in Boston to effectively use student performance data to drive instructional decisions. Prior to joining ANet, Lana taught 1st and 2nd grades at The Edward W. Brooke Charter School in Roslindale, Massachusetts as part of their founding elementary school team. Lana was a 2003 Teach for America corps member, teaching 2nd and 3rd grades at P.S. 1 in New York City. Lana is a graduate of Connecticut College, where she studied International Politics, and Fordham University, where she earned her Masters of Science in Education. 

Terri Ferraguto Rita, Senior Director of Talent: 
Terri worked as National Director of Recruitment at Uncommon Schools, where she designed, implemented, and managed the selection process used to recruit, select, and hire more than 500 individuals.  During Terri’s tenure, the number of applicants to Uncommon increased by more than 400%.   Terri worked as Senior Program Coordinator for the Northeast Region at A Better Chance.  There, she recruited, selected, placed, and supported more than 300 A Better Chance scholars into more than 100 A Better Chance College Preparatory Schools.  She was a Campus Director at Citizen Schools and taught 4th and 5th grade as a Teach For America corps member in the Bay Area.  Terri earned her BA from Connecticut College and her Ed. M. from Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Scott Given, Chief Executive Officer: 
Scott worked as a strategy consultant at the Parthenon Group before teaching high school history at Boston Collegiate Charter School.  In 2005, Scott became the Principal of Excel Academy Charter School, where for three years he was part of a comprehensive school improvement effort.  Scott has worked as an independent consultant for charter schools in 9 states, as an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Newark Charter School Fund, and as an Entrepreneur in Residence at the NewSchools Venture Fund.  Scott is a summa cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College and he earned his MBA from Harvard Business School.

Lauren Hague, Manager of Talent: 
Most recently, Lauren worked as a founding special education teacher at UP Academy Boston. Before that, Lauren worked as a reading and math intervention teacher in Baltimore, MD. While in Baltimore, Lauren co-created the school’s intervention program and developed the gifted and talented program for grades 3-5. Before that position, Lauren taught third grade during which time 100% of the third grade students scored advanced or proficient on the math statewide testing and 98% on the reading statewide testing. Lauren earned her BA from St. John’s College and her M.Ed. from Johns Hopkins University.

Tyler Haupert, Chief of Staff: 
Most recently, Tyler worked at Capstone Communities, an affordable housing development firm located in Cambridge, MA. There, his work focused on navigating the public approvals and planning processes for affordable housing developments in Massachusetts’ Gateway Cities. Prior to working at Capstone, Tyler was a 2008 Teach for America corps member in New Roads, Louisiana, where he taught middle school math and English. Tyler graduated magna cum laude from Pepperdine University with a BA in Political Science and received his MA in Urban Planning from Harvard University.

Adkeem Jackson, Senior Coordinator of Family and Community Relations: 
Most recently, Adkeem worked as a Youth Development Specialist at the Youth Development Network through the Boston Public Health Commission.  As a Youth Development Specialist, Adkeem was stationed at The English High School and worked with 35 clients using effective strategies and interventions to address chronic absenteeism, poor academic performance and challenging behavior.  While at The English High School, Adkeem also served as an assistant football coach, leading the team to its first victory in 3 years.  Prior to becoming a Youth Development Specialist, Adkeem served as the Community Partnerships Manager for Friends of the Children-Boston.  In that role, Adkeem was responsible for developing and maintaining strategic corporate and community partnerships to ensure the needs of clients, families and the organization were met.  Adkeem graduated from Framingham State University with a BA in Sociology with a concentration in Deviance and Social Control and a minor in Psychology. 

Victoria Lautsch, Manager of Talent: 
Most recently, Vicki worked as a founding math teacher at UP Academy Boston. Before that, Vicki worked as a middle school math teacher in Phoenix, Arizona. While in Phoenix, Vicki created an advanced math program at her school that accelerated students and allowed them to get up to two years of high school math credit in middle school. She also developed and led math professional development with Teach For America Phoenix after her time as a corps member there. Vicki earned her BS.Ed. from Northwestern University and her MS.Ed. from Arizona State University.

Sara Lewis, Senior Office Coordinator: 
Sara worked for Teach For America as an Associate on the Southern New England Summit team and as Operations Coordinator for the Connecticut regional team. Before joining the staff of Teach For America, Sara was a Teach For America corps member in Washington, DC where she taught high school history at a DC public school. After her two-years as a corps member, Sara went on to teach for an additional five years at district and charter middle and high schools in Washington, DC and New Haven, Connecticut. Sara received her BA from the University of Michigan and her MA in teaching from American University.

Kristen Linnenbank, Director of Operations in Residence: 
Kristen worked as Director of Operations & Systems for Jumpstart, overseeing internal communication, systems implementation, technology strategy and customer service for the organization’s national network. Following several years managing Jumpstart’s operations team, she led the combination of technology and operations teams into a cohesive department in and guided a shift in the organization’s management of technology infrastructure. Prior to this role, Kristen managed Jumpstart’s site at Simmons College, working closely with the Scott/Ross Center for Community Service to engage students in year-long service to several preschool centers in Boston. Kristen received her BA in political science and psychology from Simmons College.

Casey Ngo-Miller, Director of Special Education: 
Casey worked as the Director of Special Education at Community Day Charter Public School in Lawrence, MA where she oversaw the special education programs from grades K1 to 4.  She also worked as a school psychologist in New Jersey and Massachusetts.  Casey earned her BA from Brandeis University, MA and CAGS from Tufts University and Ed. M. from Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Ive Sanchez, Senior Coordinator of Talent: 
Ive is a former middle school ESL teacher and an almuna of Teach for America Massachusetts. As a teacher, she worked hard to ensure academic success for her students and to build strong relationships with families, community partners, school leadership, and staff. Before joining Unlocking Potential, Ive worked as a recruiter for Cleary Consultants, Inc. She received her B.A. in Journalism from Northeastern University and is currently pursuing her M. Ed. in Teaching and Curriculum from Boston University.

Whitney Schultz, Associate Manager of Academic Achievement: 
Whitney worked as Student Support Coordinator at Edward W. Brooke 2 Charter School in South Boston, coordinating student intervention programs and providing support for K-5th grade students.  She also taught 4th grade at Edward W. Brooke 1 in Roslindale and was a 2006 Teach For America corps member, teaching 4th grade at P.S. 86 in New York City. Whitney also has experience working with Teach For America Greater Boston and Lehman Brothers. She received a BA in History from Princeton University and a MS in Special Education from Pace University.

Elizabeth Stasiowski, Associate Director of Finance: 
Elizabeth worked most recently as the Director of Operations and Finance at Boston Preparatory Charter Public School, where she was responsible for managing finance, human resources, operations and facilities functions for both the school and its corresponding 501(c)3 foundation. Prior to working at BPCPS, she served as the Director for Putnam Place, a group home for adolescents in foster care, and as the coordinator of a foster care and adoption program in Phoenix, AZ. She earned her BA in Spanish Literature at Boston College and is a graduate of Boston University, earning her MSW and a Certificate of Nonprofit Management and Leadership.

Nathan Taylor, Manager of Development & External Relations:
Most recently, Nathan worked as a founding history teacher at UP Academy Boston. While at UP, Nathan served as the head football coach, leading UP Academy to a playoff berth in its first season. Nathan began his teaching career as a Teach For America corps member, teaching middle school math and special education in Revere, Massachusetts. Prior to teaching, Nathan worked as a youth minister in his native Texas, mentoring and planning events for 200 students at a local church. Nathan graduated from Oral Roberts University with a BA in church administration and earned his M.Ed. in Curriculum and Teaching from Boston University.