I believe that my experiences as a student product of KIPP, a Historian, and a Lead general education teacher have prepared me for the challenges associated with the demands of helping students grow, despite their circumstances. I also believe that my various experiences as an Assistant Principal, member of Emerging New Leaders, Grade Level Team Leader, Public Policy Liaison, Curriculum Writer, and Professional Development Facilitator have prepared me to help support teachers in building their efficacy so that they, in turn, can build up our students' efficacy and ultimately both are growth. I am a data-driven and passionate educator with a strong desire to close the achievement gap. I am confident that my managerial and marketing experiences will be a valuable asset to your team. I know that being in this program will be the best fit in helping me grow as an effective school leader due to the common goal that we all share as educators: closing the achievement gap. In order to help students, we need effective teachers in every classroom and also effective leaders willing to guide them and help them grow.

During my first year as a lead teacher, 89% of my students grew in math and 93% showed growth in literacy on the NWEA Map assessment. During the winter NWEA Map assessment my class's average exceeded the school's achievement target for both math and literacy. I am relentless about planning an effective and engaging curriculum and lessons.

During my first year as an Assistant Principal, our goal for the 2018-2019 school year was for 55% of our 6th-8th graders to perform at or above the 50th percentile on the NWEA Map Math Assessment and 62% of our 6th-8th graders to perform at or above the 50th percentile on the NWEA Map ELA Assessment on our Spring 2019 Map Assessment for both Math and ELA. Using an intervention and extension program that I re-designed called "Lab," we were able to reach our ELA MAP goal and grew to 64% and our goal was for 62% of our 6th-8th graders to perform at or above the 50th percentile on the NWEA Map ELA Assessment on our Spring 2019 Map Assessment. For math, our goal was for 55% of our 6th-8th graders to perform at or above the 50th percentile on the NWEA Map Math Assessment and we grew to 54% so was 1 percentage point off from reaching our goal. With this, we were also able to close gaps amongst our SPED and FARM population in ways that we have not over the course of the past few years.

My experience as a strong behavioral manager and social-emotional development manager has also been a factor in my students' growth. I am a strong believer in setting up classrooms and schools to have high expectations and no excuses environment, especially for students in urban communities. I have learned the importance of structure and consistency in a classroom and school setting for students.

In order to be an effective educator and show up as my best self for my students, I must ensure that I have a work-life balance. With that, I spend my free time watching Indie films, going to museums, and traveling with my spouse and dog!