Julio Murcia – Ánimo Leadership Charter High School Julio Murcia was born in Villavicencio, Colombia and immigrated to California when he was eleven years old along with his mother and two younger sisters. He moved to Santa Monica, where he attended John Adams Middle School and Santa Monica High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Education from California State University, Northridge, and he received Masters degrees from Loyola Marymount University in Counseling and in Administration. Julio has worked in education for over 13 years and he says that he "can honestly say that [he] loves what [he] does." He has been a tutor, a teacher, a counselor, an activities director, a bilingual coordinator, an Assistant Principal, and now a Principal. Education is his passion and he intends to continue working in this realm for many years. His ultimate goal is to work to improve academic performance among the Latino community now and in the future. |
Leilani Abulon – Ánimo Inglewood Charter High School Ms. Abulon became the principal of Animo Inglewood in 2008, and was the assistant principal from 2006 to 2008. Prior to becoming the Assistant Principal, Ms. Abulon was a founding teacher at Ánimo Inglewood, where she taught CA History, Read 180, and AP Government for four years. She also served as the history department chair for 3 years and was a mentor teacher for new teachers (first and second year) to Ánimo Inglewood. Ms. Abulon graduated with a bachelors of arts degree in Political Science, with a minor in Spanish Language, from the University of California Los Angeles. She also received her Teaching Credential and Masters Degree in Secondary Education from Loyola Marymount University. She now holds an administrative credential from the state of California. |
Harris Luu – Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School Harris Luu's mission in life is to help young immigrants adjust to and succeed in life, as well as to help underserved communities. He first considered accomplishing this as an attorney, but after a stint as a substitute teacher immediately after college, he saw the power in changing public schools to end the gross disparity in resources. |
| Gordon Gibbings – Ánimo South Los Angeles Charter High School Gordon Gibbings has served as the Principal of Ànimo South Los Angeles since August of 2007. Previously, Mr. Gibbings was an Assistant Principal at Jordan High School and before that taught elementary school for four years as a member of Teach For America. As Principal, Mr. Gibbings is responsible for serving as the instructional leader of the school; leading professional development; ensuring student and staff safety; managing the budget; evaluating teachers and staff; and working with all stakeholder groups to ensure that they all have a voice in the decision-making process. Mr. Gibbings graduated with a Masters in Educational Policy from the University of California, Berkeley and is currently completing his Doctorate of Education at the University of Southern California. |
Tommy Chang – Ánimo Venice Charter High School Tommy Chang has been the principal of Ánimo Venice since the school's founding in 2004. He began his career in education through the Teach for America (TFA) program. After he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with degrees in Biology and Religious Studies, TFA sent him to Compton High School in Los Angeles, where he achieved tremendous success as a teacher and leader. He created an AP Biology program at Compton High, and succeeded in having the first students in Compton Unified history to pass the exam. Mr. Chang also held positions as the science department chair, new-teacher trainer and mentor teacher. Mr. Chang says that his greatest accomplishment at Compton High School centered around his students; he is proud of "motivating [his] students to attain their educational goals of going to and being successful in college." |
Chad Soleo – Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School Chad Soleo has served as the principal of Ánimo Pat Brown since the 2006-2007 school year when the school first opened. Mr. Soleo also consults with Green Dot Public Schools in its latest school-opening venture in New York City, and has begun teaching within the charter school leadership cohort for Loyola Marymount University's School of Education administrative credentialing program. Previously, Mr. Soleo began teaching English language arts through Teach for America at Alain Leroy Locke High School in South Los Angeles. He implemented the very successful college preparatory program, AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), at Locke High School contributing to a significant increase in college awareness and a graduation rate in 2005 that nearly doubled that of the previous year. He taught reading, 10th grade English and honors English, and guided his journalism class through the publication process of The Saint City News, Locke's monthly newspaper. Mr. Soleo led a team of impressive educators in the establishment of The School of Social Empowerment, a small learning community serving over 400 students. This small learning community achieved significantly higher attendance rates and California High School Exit Exam scores within one year of its founding. Mr. Soleo became an assistant principal at Locke in 2005, coordinating Locke's effort to reorganize itself into seven small learning communities. He has lead professional development in Los Angeles Unified School District, within the Southern California AVID community, and within the Teach for America organization. Mr. Soleo received a bachelor of arts degree in English Literature from the University of Arizona. He also received a masters degree in Secondary Education from Loyola Marymount. |
Xochitl Avellán – Ánimo Ralph Bunche Charter High School Xochitl Avellán has served as Assistant Principal of Ánimo Justice Charter High School since its opening in August 2006, and is now the Principal of Animo Ralph Bunche. Ms. Avellán oversaw the English as a Second Language (ESL) program at Ánimo Justice, the first program directly serving recent immigrants at any Green Dot school. Prior to working for Green Dot, Ms. Avellán worked for Los Angeles Unified School District for nine years - six years as an English teacher at the middle school level and three years as a Literacy Coach at the high school level. In addition to teaching, Ms. Avellán was an active member in numerous projects at LAUSD - Reading Program, Saturday School, School Site Council at Berendo Middle School, Community Liaison, 8th Grade Honors Coordinator, School Site Council Chairperson, Department Chair for the English Department at Stevenson Middle School, and Literacy Coach for Local District 5 assigned to Roosevelt High School. Ms. Avellán has vast experience in coordinating and presenting professional development for a variety of audiences. In 2007, she received National Board Certification from the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards in the area of Early Adolescence English / Language Arts. Ms. Avellán received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of California at Berkeley. She received a Masters degree in Educational Administration from California State Northridge University. |
| Lori Pawinski – Ánimo Jackie Robinson Charter High School Lori Pawinski has served as the principal of Animo Jackie Robinson since the school's first day in 2006. Dr. Pawinski is an adjunct professor at Loyola Marymount University in the School of Education. Her focus is educational instructional leadership and addressing the issues of race, gender and poverty in urban education. Dr. Pawinski began her teaching career at St. Bernard Catholic High School in Playa del Rey, California. During her tenure of fourteen years, she taught both science and social studies, held several administrative positions and coached the girl's basketball team to 3 state championships. Upon leaving SBHS she served as Administrative Dean at Santa Monica High School for one year. Dr. Pawinski then became an Assistant Principal at Roosevelt High School, where she was responsible for the Small Learning Community Reform effort. She worked closely with students, teachers, parents and the community to establish effective small learning communities to address the low graduation rate of the school. Dr. Pawinski received her bachelor of arts, masters degree from Loyola Marymount. In May 2007 Dr. Pawinski received her doctorate degree from Loyola Marymount in Leadership for Social Justice. |
| Steve Bachrach – Ánimo Film & Theatre Arts Charter High School Bio coming soon. |
Will Herrera – Ánimo Justice Charter High School William Herrera spent five years as a middle school teacher before learning about Green Dot. He joined Green Dot in 2004 as the founding assistant principal of Ánimo Venice. Herrera says his experience watching and helping the original ninth graders mature personally and academically over these past four years at Ánimo Venice has prepared him for his new role as principal of Ánimo Justice. Herrera aspires to help Animo Justice's large English as a Second Language population. He wants to build a dialogue between students and parents on how to improve the school and build a stronger community. |
Dinah Consuegra – Ánimo Locke Tech Charter High School Dinah Consuegra has served as the principal of Animo Watts I since the 2007-2008 school year when it first opened. Prior to Green Dot, Ms. Consuegra taught English and Film for seven years in the Los Angeles Unified School District. She was active in the small learning community movement developing the two most successful small schools at Franklin High School which both focused on innovative ways to engage students in the learning process. She also served as Dean of Students for three years. Ms. Consuegra graduated with honors from Occidental College, receiving her Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Comparative Literary Studies. It was during her undergraduate program that she began working with teenagers on creative writing and video projects. Her passion for working with historically underrepresented youth has continued to inform her credo of transforming public education through the use of technology, popular culture, and media arts. Ms. Consuegra has also completed her Master's of Arts degree at Claremont Graduate University and received her Masters of Education from UCLA's Principal Leadership Institute. |
Vanessa Morris – Ánimo Watts 2 Charter High School Vanessa Morris has served as the Principal of Animo Watts II since the 2007-2008 school year when it first opened. Prior to Green Dot, Ms. Morris worked at Locke High School from 2000-2007 as a science teacher and science department chair. With several colleagues, Ms. Morris created and ran The School of Math and Science, a small school within Locke. Ms. Morris received two undergraduate degrees in Marine Biology and Environmental Studies and a Masters of Education from the University of California, Los Angeles. |
Peggy Gutierrez – Animo Locke 1 Dr. Peggy Gutierrez is the principal of Animo Locke 1. She has been a Principal with Green Dot since June 2007. Previously, Dr. Gutierrez spent 17 years in the Long Beach Unified School District as a math and science teacher, math department chair, math coach, and then as an Assistant Principal. Concurrently, Dr. Gutierrez served as an Adjunct Professor at Cal State Dominguez Hills designing and teaching Methods Courses to newly credentialed teachers in the |
Rachelle Alexander – Ánimo Locke 2 Before becoming the principal of Animo Locke 2 in 2008, Ms. Alexander was the founding Assistant Principal of Ánimo South Los Angeles since 2004. Prior to becoming the Assistant Principal, Ms. McClendon-Alexander was a middle school science teacher for nine years for Los Angeles Unified School District. Ms. McClendon-Alexander entered the education arena as a Teach For America corps member in 1995. In this capacity, she serves as an instructional leader. As the Assistant Principal, Ms. McClendon-Alexander has many responsibilities, including but not limited to overseeing teachers and evaluations, planning and executing staff development, parent nights, student clubs, and standardized testing. Ms. Alexander received her bachelors of science degree in Biology Pre-Med, from Spelman College. She received her Professional Clear Teaching Credential from California State University. She also obtained her Administrative Credential and Masters of Science degree in Educational Administration from National University. |
| Taquan Stewart – Animo Locke 3 Taquan Stewart is the principal of Animo Locke 3. He has been a Principal with Green Dot since June 2007. Education is a second career for Mr. Stewart. After receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from the University of Delaware and serving for a short time as an Interior Ballistician for the United States Army's Ballistic Research Laboratory, Mr. Stewart made the decision to be an educator. He has taught Physics, Earth Science, Biology, Integrated Science, and African- American Studies. Mr. Stewart received a Master's degree in Education & Administrative Policy Studies from UCLA, and is currently working toward a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the same institution. |
Nerine Vernon-Burnside – Animo Locke 4 Mrs. Vernon-Burnside, Principal of Animo Locke 4 began her tenure with Green Dot Public Schools at Oscar De La Hoya Animo. In the changing landscape of urban education, she brings a responsive ideology that respects diversity while challenging all students to work diligently on their academic and social growth. Mrs. Vernon-Burnside is originally from the island of Jamaica. She has a Bachelor's in Business Administration, a Masters in Computer Science Education and is currently working on her Doctorate in Educational Leadership. Her words to live by are "heights by great men reached and kept, were not attained by sudden flight, but they while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night." |
Ashish Kapadia – Green Dot New York Ashish Kapadia has spent his entire career working in the Bronx and couldn't imagine doing it differently. His career has been in education and he couldn't imagine that any differently either. What is different is his position at the helm of the new Green Dot school in New York. A joint effort with the local teachers union, the new school is located in Mott Haven, a low-income, high crime section of the South Bronx where only 40% of students graduate within four years. |
| Veronica Coleman – Locke Launch to College Academies Veronica ("Ronnie") Coleman began her career at Poly H.S. in Long Beach, CA teaching English and English electives. In addition she also taught RSP and Algebra. She became dean and then an Assistant Principal in Long Beach for two years before making the move to Green Dot. She has been with Green Dot since June 2007 as a "Principal in Residence" assisting the Green Dot Education Team with key initiatives . She is now principal of the two Locke Launch to College Academies. She is assisted by assistant principals Zeus Cubias and Charles Boulden. |