Allison Kirby has worked as the grant writer for School District Five of Lexington and Richland Counties in Irmo, South Carolina for the past seven years where she has secured more than $20 million in new competitive grant funding from federal, state, and local sources. She brings 20+ years of experience in nonprofit leadership and strategic development, with a focus on fundraising, program management, and evaluation to her role at the district. Allison holds a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Graduate Certificate in NonProfit Leadership from Columbia College (SC).

With six years of MSAP grant management experience with Wake County magnet schools, Beth Cochran has extensive knowledge regarding MSAP grants, winning MSA Merit Awards of Excellence and Distinction, receiving National Magnet Certification and increasing, and maintaining, diversity and school integration goals of the magnet schools with which she works.

Beth is recently retired from Wake County Magnet Schools in Raleigh , North Carolina and works as a NIMSL consultant. Beth on-going works to help districts meet diversity goals. Beth has served as a consultant to MSA via the Louisville, Kentucky, Charlotte, North Carolina, Greensboro, North Carolina, Colombia, Georgia and Osseo, Minneapolis review teams.

Beth attended North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC and holds a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership.

Claire Aulicino leads Metis’s work for school districts and other organizations pursuing equitable and integrated learning environments. A significant component of her work since 2001, Claire directs the evaluation of magnet and other special academic and choice programs specifically designed to foster racial/ethnic and socioeconomic integration within public schools. She also heads a team of Metis researchers who develop and conduct evaluations of various initiatives in K-12 and human services. These include educational technology, STEM education, charter schools, out-of-school time, college readiness and success, youth development, and juvenile and criminal justice prevention.

Elaine Rosales and David Kikoler are Principal Officers of American Education Solutions (AES). AES was founded in 1996 by Elaine and David to offer grant development and evaluation services by bringing together the expertise of life-long educators with the analytical and statistical expertise of researchers and statisticians. Both Elaine and David have more than thirty years of experience as teachers, administrators, grant developers and evaluators. Before forming AES, Elaine taught in Ghana as a Peace Corps volunteer, as well as in California. She was Director of Research and Evaluation for New York City School District 18. David was a teacher in the first court-ordered magnet school in New York City and went on to become grants administrator in New York City School District 21. AES's university collaborator and partner is the National Center for Research on Evaluation Standards and Student Testing (CRESST) at UCLA. Over the years, AES has developed grants for and evaluated many federal and state funded projects. The company has special expertise in writing and evaluating Magnet Schools Assistance Programs. Since 1995, AES has helped districts win over 60 MSAP grants and has evaluated close to 70 MSAP projects.

With over twenty-five years of experience in education and human services, Liz Binger has a diverse set of skills and experiences. Currently the Development Coordinator for LEARN in Old Lyme CT, Binger has over twenty-five years in the field of conflict management. She is a skilled facilitator and trainer, who engages groups in their tasks with enthusiasm and commitment. Binger provides a wide range of training programs for LEARN and its partners, including Conflict Management, Communication, Facilitation of Meetings, Grant-Writing, Customer Service, Challenging Conversations, and Effective Staff Supervision.

During her time at LEARN, Binger served as the lead grant writer for three successful MSAP grants, including their current five-year $14.9 million EXPECT grant, for which she is the Assistant Project Director. Binger has also served as Executive Director of several small-to-mid-sized non-profit organizations and successfully balanced their programmatic and organizational needs, managing budgets of up to $1,000,000 and a staff of thirty. In addition to the three MSAP grants, Binger has written multiple grants for LEARN and other organizations, including a three-year $680,000 Community Technology Centers grant and a five-year $1.5 million 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant and numerous state and local grants ranging from $25,000 to $800,000.

Professor Jia Wang is an Adjunct Professor at UCLA School of Education and informational Studies, and a Senior Research Scientist at UCLA CRESST. With advanced methodological skills and extensive experience evaluating MSAP grants, she is one of the leading researchers investigating magnet school impact. Since 2010, she has worked with 30 MSAP grantees. Her many publications and reports help practitioners, policymakers, and other researchers better understand magnet schools and their effectiveness.

Kelly Bucherie’s most recent work with the Public Education Foundation of Las Vegas, Executive Leadership Institute, utilized her expertise in building administrative capacity with principals throughout the State of Nevada. She has further worked with the State’s Regional Professional Development Program to deliver Nevada Educator’s Performance Framework training to district administrators and teachers.

As Assistant Superintendent/Academic Manager, she supervised and coordinated the operations, program procedures, processes and public relations of the Magnet Schools, Career and Technical Academies and College of Southern Nevada High School campuses in Clark County School District in Las Vegas, Nevada. Additionally, Kelly supervised the Department of Magnet and Career and Technical Academies, open enrollment, flexible budgeting for schools with granted autonomies, middle school curriculum initiative, and implementation of national Academies Foundation year of planning (YOP) schools.

As a team member of several previous NIMSL projects, Kelly has consulted with districts providing program evaluation and action plans.

She has served as the project manager for a MSAP federal grant and has worked to implement several magnet programs. Kelly presents and trains locally and nationally on a variety of topics including theme integration, data dives, curriculum development, and supervision and evaluation.

Maria Nichols' work as an educational leader includes 33 years with the San Diego Unified School District, where she served as a classroom teacher, Demonstration Teacher, Literacy Coach, and eventually as the Director of School Innovation. As the Director of School Innovation, Maria designed and led the 2013 and 2016 MSAP Grant cycles, and crafted a successful 2021 MSAP bid.

Maria’s work as a national consultant is fueled by her passion for transformational approaches to teaching and learning powered by the constructive, dynamic nature of talk. She is the author of numerous texts and articles focused on engaging students through talk, including Comprehension Through Conversation: The Power of Purposeful Talk in the Reading Workshop (Heinemann, 2006), “Real Talk, Real Teaching” (Ed Leadership, November 2014), and most recently, Building Bigger Ideas: A Process For Teaching Purposeful Talk (Heinemann, 2019).

Dr. Michelle Frazier is an Independent Educational Consultant specializing in Magnet School Design and Curriculum Development. She retired from the Chicago Public School System (CPS) where she served as a teacher, Magnet Coordinator, and Grants Manager. Dr. Frazier oversaw and supported the opening of over 35 new schools and programs throughout the district including Montessori, International Baccalaureate programs, and STEM schools.

Dr. Frazier also serves as a consultant with the National Institute of Magnet School Leaders (NIMSL) where she conducts reviews and evaluations of magnet programs and coaches schools participating in the National Magnet School certification process.

Dr. Frazier is a native of Chicago and a graduate of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). She says, “It was an honor and a privilege to live my lifelong dream and teach students in the system in which I was educated”.

Dr. Robert Brooks served as the National and Executive Director for Magnet Schools of America from 2000 to 2012, is a Past President of MSA, and served as the Association’s first Secretary-Treasurer. Three of his major initiatives were financial and membership growth, and the founding of the National Institute for Magnet School Leadership (NIMSL). Dr. Brooks is a former Director of Magnet Schools and Gifted Educations Programs for the Providence School District in Providence, RI. He is President/CEO of R&J Business Consulting Associates, and has served as a private MSAP grant writing and evaluation consultant.

Dr. Brooks is an author/editor of: Definitive Studies of Magnet Schools: Voices of Public School Choice (1999); Editor, Blueprint for Understanding and Operating Successful Magnet and Theme-Based Schools (2000); Author, Blueprint for Understanding and Operating Successful Magnet and Theme-Based Schools, 2nd Edition: Voluntary Public School Choice (2004); and, as the Executive Director, Editor of Magnet Schools of America’s quarterly newsletter, Choice, and its electronic version, eChoice. In addition to consulting, he is currently a Co-Editor for MSA’s fifth publication, for publication in 2017.

Dr. Brooks earned his Bachelor of Science degree (B.S.) from Bryant University, a Master’s Degree in Education (M.Ed.) from Rhode Island College, and his Doctorate (Ph.D.) from the University of Connecticut. Dr. Brooks’ educational credentials include Teaching Certificates in English/Language Arts, Business, and Guidance and Counseling. His Administrative Certificates include Principal/Director and Superintendent. He holds a certificate in non-profit organizational management from Brown University.

Sara Allender, an Area Director, manages monitoring and evaluation projects that provide stakeholders and policymakers with key program implementation information.

Her main responsibilities include co-managing federal grant monitoring efforts. Specifically, she directs WestEd’s Voluntary Public School Choice (VPSC) monitoring project and contributes knowledge, skills, and expertise to the Charter School Program (CSP) monitoring project, both for the U.S Department of Education (ED).

The monitoring projects focus heavily on grantee compliance in several policy areas including application fidelity, project quality and management, and fiscal and administrative responsibilties.

Allender also participates in the management of WestEd’s Evaluation of Charter Schools and the Charter Schools Program, where she coordinates a variety of evaluation efforts across WestEd, subcontractors, and ED.

Allender works directly with senior WestEd and ED staff to support the implementation of ED’s discretionary grant programs and priorities. She has extensive knowledge of related VPSC and CSP federal statute, regulatory, and non-regulatory guidance.

Her monitoring work includes the design and delivery of monitor trainings, coordination and support of consultant and WestEd monitors, development of monitoring protocols and tools, monitoring visit coordination and organization, on-site interviewing, report writing, and technical assistance follow-up.

Prior to working at WestEd, Allender was a Research Associate at Policy Studies Associates, Inc. in Washington, D.C. There she worked on evaluations on alternate assessments, school libraries in elementary schools, after-school adolescent literacy programs, small-school reform, and school-based collaboration.

Allender has a Master’s in education in education policy from the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education and a Bachelor’s in politics from New York University.

Shannon Mumolo is an experienced grant project director and lifelong educator with a demonstrated history of K-12 school turnaround. She has worked in PreK-12 public education for more than 20 years as an administrator, mentor, teacher, and assistant in urban, suburban, and rural schools as well as in research settings. Shannon is a strong program and project management professional skilled in grant administration, budget management and compliance, curriculum design, process improvement, program evaluation, school marketing, and teaching.

Susan M. King served in a large urban district as the magnet administrator and project manager for numerous federal Magnet School Assistance Program (MSAP) grants. As part of the Administration division, she developed the current operating Call Center for internal and external communication and worked in the Government and Public Affairs office managing media relations, district publications, and school board/community communications.

King is a national presenter and trainer on theme-based instruction, marketing, recruitment, and branding, intercultural responsiveness, sustainability, managing change, and leadership and worked with a DOE contractor as an MSAP federal compliance monitor. She has created, implemented, reviewed, and advised schools and districts on sustainability; federal grant evaluation and compliance monitoring; district policy; community and legislative relations; and national and local advocacy

She co-authored a chapter in Curriculum Leadership Development: A Guide for Aspiring School Leader and is a recipient of the Hillsborough Association for School Administrators Distinguished Service Award. King was Treasurer of the Consortium of Magnets/Public Choice Schools, the forerunner of the Florida School Choice Consortium. She holds a B.S.E. in English, a Master’s Degree in Counselor Education, and certification in Educational Leadership and Reading.

Since joining the Board of Directors of MSA, Ms. King has served as chairman of several committees, written articles for MSA’s eChoice, and was the Executive Secretary for several terms. King served as President from 2018 until 2020 and currently serves as the Immediate Past President on the Executive Committee.

Taela George-East serves as the Project Coordinator for the 2017-2022 Magnet Schools Assistance Program Grant (MSAP) for the Wake County Public School System in North Carolina. She supervises the MSAP project planning, budget and implementation and works directly with school personnel to build their capacity to implement new and revised magnet themes. Mrs. George-East has a Master of Arts in Literature and prior to her current role, she served several years as a high school English teacher and then as a Special Assistant to the Assistant Superintendent in WCPSS, leading schools through the School Improvement Plan process. Taela, along with her colleague Tasha Haynes Cardenas, is passionate about supporting and promoting school integration through magnet programs.

Tasha Haynes has worked with magnet schools in different capacities for 22 years. She currently serves the Wake County Public School System Magnet Schools as the Senior Administrator for Magnet School Recruitment and Grants Development. She assists magnet schools in developing recruitment plans and promotes magnet schools throughout the Wake County community. In addition, she assists magnet schools with grant writing, specifically the Magnet Schools Assistance Program grant proposal. Tasha is passionate about supporting and promoting school integration through magnet programs.