Senior Leadership Team

Denise Forte
President and CEO
Denise Forte (pronounced “fort”) is the president and CEO at The Education Trust. Named one of the Washingtonian's 500…

Amber Arellano, MPP
Executive Director at The Education Trust-Midwest
Amber Arellano is the founding executive director of The Education Trust-Midwest. Founded in 2010, today Ed Trust-Midwest is widely recognized…

Wil Del Pilar, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President
Wil Del Pilar, Ph.D., serves as Ed Trust’s Senior Vice President. In this role, Wil spearheads Ed Trust’s mission…

Nicolle Grayson
Interim VP, Communications
With two decades of experience in issues advocacy, media relations, and strategic planning, Nicolle advances the organization’s equity agenda…

Claudia Luján
Chief of Staff
As the chief of staff at The Education Trust, Claudia oversees operations and provides strategic support to the Interim…

Augustus Mays
Vice President, Partnerships and Engagement
Augustus serves as Ed Trust’s vice president for Partnerships and Engagement. In this role, Augustus leads the organization’s efforts…

Christopher Nellum, Ph.D.
Executive Director at The Education Trust-West
Dr. Christopher Nellum (he/him/his) is the Executive Director of The Education Trust–West, a nonprofit education equity organization focused on…

Gini Pupo-Walker
Executive Director of Ed Trust - Tennessee
Gini brings more than 20 years of work in education as a teacher, administrator, and nonprofit leader. She serves…

Jeff Smink
Interim Executive Director of EdTrust New York
Jeff Smink is the interim executive director of EdTrust–New York. He works to develop and implement the organization’s strategic…

Allison Rose Socol, Ph.D.
Vice President for P-12 Policy, Research, & Practice
Allison Rose Socol, Ph.D. serves as Ed Trust’s vice president of P-12 policy, practice, and research. In this role,…

Rachel D. Stalcup
Chief Development Officer
As chief development officer, Rachel is a member of The Education Trust leadership team, working to strengthen the movement…
Office of the President

Kevin Chappell
Executive Writer
Kevin Chappell serves as the executive writer, Office of the President/CEO, where he leads the direction, development, and execution…

Eliza Jarvinen
Director of Development
Eliza Jarvinen joined Ed Trust as associate director of development in Spring 2019. Previously, she served as director, institutional…

Emily Herd
Development Specialist
As a Development Specialist, Emily helps to draft grant reports, budget narratives, and concept papers. She also processes grant…
Communications

Grace Aiyedogbon
Senior Manager, Digital Communications
Grace Aiyedogbon is the senior manager of digital communications at The Education Trust. She specializes in structuring web, social…

Redante Asuncion-Reed
Website Manager
Redante collaborates with Communications leadership and content teams to develop digital communications and website strategies. He manages the development,…

Ameshia Cross
Director, Communications
Ameshia leads media strategy, press outreach, strategic marketing and external affairs for the Education Trust. Prior to joining Ed…

Ana Henriquez
Digital Communications Associate
Ana Henriquez is the digital communications associate at Ed Trust, where she works alongside the digital team to create…

Karen Lomax
Director, Art
Karen is lead creative of the visual voice for The Education Trust. She develops and designs for all marketing…

Letisha Marrero
Editorial Director
Letisha Marrero brings more than 20 years of editorial experience across multimedia platforms — digital, mobile, broadcast, and print…

Gabriela Montell
Senior Editor/Writer
In her current role, Gabriela writes and edits a variety of content — including, but not limited to, blogs,…

Carolyn Phenicie
Assistant Communications Director, P-12
Carolyn leads media strategy, press outreach and engagement for the P-12 team. Before joining EdTrust, Carolyn was the press…

Andrea Ramirez
Communications Manager, Partnerships & Engagement
Andrea serves as the communications manager for the Partnerships and Engagement team, where she liaises with the various state…

Jalyn Tolliver
Graphic Designer
Jalyn’s responsibility as a graphic designer is to create high-quality design for print, digital, and social media. She started…
Finance

Zuleida Corry
Finance Associate
As Finance Associate, Zuleida is responsible for receiving and processing accounts payable vouchers and resolving payments and coding issues.Prior…

Chantel McCloud
Director for Grants Management and Finance
As the director of grants management and finance at Ed Trust, Chantel leads the grants management, reporting and budgeting…

Maria Elena Tapia
Accounting Associate
Maria Tapia is an accounting associate in the finance department. Previously, she worked for 25 years at a multinational…
P-12 Policy, Research, and Practice

Hector Biaggi
Senior P-12 Analyst, Data & Analytics
Hector Biaggi is the senior analyst on the P-12 data and analytics team. In his role, Hector helps analyze…

Ebony Daughtry
Senior Executive Assistant
Ebony Daughtry is the senior executive assistant to Allison Socol, vice president for P-12 policy, research and practice at Ed…

Nancy Duchesneau
Senior P-12 Research Associate
Nancy is a Senior P-12 Research Associate and leads the Social, Emotional, and Academic Development work at EdTrust. In…

Eric Duncan, J.D.
Director of P-12 Policy – Educator Diversity
Eric Duncan is the director for P-12 policy, specializing in policies related to educator quality and increasing the racial…

Kristen Hengtgen, Ph.D.
Senior Analyst, P-12 Policy
Kristen Hengtgen is a senior analyst on the P-12 policy team. She focuses on policies and practices that advocate…

Qubilah Huddleston
Policy Lead, Equitable School Funding
As policy lead on the P-12 policy team, Qubilah informs and manages Ed Trust’s policy positions on equitable school…

Nathan Kriha
P-12 Policy Analyst
Nathan Kriha is a policy analyst on the P-12 policy team where he focuses on topics related to educator…

Shayna Levitan
Policy Analyst, P-12
Shayna is a policy analyst on the P-12 team. In this role, Shayna supports work related to the Alliance…

Ivy Morgan
Director for P-12 Data & Analytics
As the director of P-12 data and analytics, Ivy Morgan designs and conducts data and policy analyses that contribute…

Nicholas Munyan-Penney
Assistant Director, P-12 Policy
As assistant director of P-12 policy, Nicholas is responsible for overseeing work on a range of topics, including resource…

William Rodick, Ph.D.
P12 Practice Lead
William researches and writes about P-12 curriculum and instructional practice with a focus on representation and culturally responsive teaching.William…
Higher Education Policy, Research, and Practice

Jinann Bitar
Director of Higher Education Research and Data Analytics
Jinann leads an ambitious, innovative effort directed at advancing the opportunity and equity agenda at colleges and universities. She…

Ivy Ellis
Senior Executive Assistant
Ivy joined The Education Trust in 2000. She previously worked as an executive assistant/proposal coordinator for Facilities Management Company…

William Freeman III
Manager of Higher Education Justice Initiative
William leads and manages the Justice Policy Fellowship, where he works with the policy team to provide an equity…

Jessie Hernández-Reyes
Senior Policy Analyst, Higher Education
Jessie Hernández-Reyes is a senior policy analyst on the higher education policy team. She focuses on promoting policies and…

Victoria Jackson
Assistant Director of Higher Education Policy
Victoria Jackson is the assistant director of higher education policy at Ed Trust, where she leads work on college…

Phil Martin
Director, Higher Education Policy Implementation
Phil Martin is director of higher education policy implementation at The Education Trust. His focus is helping federal and…

Sayda Martinez-Alvarado
Policy Analyst
Sayda is a policy analyst on the higher education policy team. She works on tracking the increasing legislation across…

Brittani Williams
Senior Policy Analyst in Higher Education
Brittani is a highly skilled policy analyst who specializes in higher education policy. As a member of Ed Trust’s…
Operations

Doug Brownlee
Director for Information Technology
Doug is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the organization’s Information Technology (IT) department. This work includes hardware…

Gwendolyn Chappell
Senior Human Resources Generalist
Gwendolyn is the primary benefits coordinator, serving as the point person for all benefits-related concerns to staff and vendors. …

Sarah Brody
Director of Human Resources
Sarah leads the Human Resources function at The Education Trust. Her work focuses on building a diverse, thriving workforce…

Ray Galloway
Operations and Events Manager
Ray is responsible for coordinating the day-to-day operations of the national office and is the primary contact for all…

Jouene Jones-Walker
Senior Human Resources Manager
Jouene ‘s primary focus in the Human Resources department is on total rewards for the organization, including compensation and…

Davon Mason
Associate IT Analyst
Davon is responsible for handling the day-to-day tasks for the organization's Information Technology (IT) department. This includes installing, maintaining,…

Suniyah Peters
IT Associate I
Suniyah is responsible for handling the day-to-day tasks for the organization’s Information Technology (IT) department. This includes installing, maintaining,…

Loretta Singleton
Receptionist
Before joining Ed Trust, Loretta was the administrative assistant to Floretta Dukes McKenzie, a former superintendent of schools in…
Partnerships and Engagement

Jordyn Bussey
Director, Advocacy and Engagement
Jordyn Bussey is the director for advocacy and engagement at The Education Trust, where she leads the development of…

Genesis Carela
Senior Policy Analyst for Massachusetts
Genesis Carela is the state senior policy analyst for Massachusetts at The Education Trust. She conducts policy and data…

Judith Cruz
Texas Assistant Director, Houston Region
Judith manages and executes policy goals and advocacy activities within the Houston region in collaboration with the Texas State…

Zaria Ealy
Associate, Advocacy and Engagement
Zaria supports the Partnerships and Engagement team in activating EdTrust’s priority issues with state and national advocates and coalitions.…

Jonathan Feinstein
State Director for Texas
Jonathan brings more than 15 years of experience in education as a teacher, organizer and nonprofit leader. He serves…

Ciara Hart
External Relations Manager for Louisiana
Ciara Hart serves as the external relations manager for Ed Trust in Louisiana, where she focuses on consistent community…

Tramelle Howard, J.D.
Louisiana State Director
Tramelle Howard is an educator, community advocate and a deep believer in the urgent need to advance equity in…

Lynn C. Jennings, Ph.D
Senior Director of National and State Partnerships
Lynn C. Jennings, Ph.D., is the senior director of national and state partnerships for The Education Trust. She leads…

Chanthy Lopes Toro
Assistant Director for Engagement and Communications for Massachusetts
In her role, Chanthy works alongside students, families, and community advocates to build urgency and collective will through meaningful…

Reginald Nash, MPP
Assistant Director, State Advocacy & Engagement
As assistant director, State Advocacy & Engagement, Reginald leads our strategic partnerships and capacity-building efforts with equity-centered coalitions…

Reid Setzer
Director of Government Affairs
Reid serves as the organization's director of government affairs, working to leverage policy analysis as well as legislative tactics…

Andrea Thurston
Senior Higher Education Policy Analyst for Texas
Andrea manages and evaluates research projects to identify structures and policies that support Texas students' postsecondary persistence and completion…

Jennie Williamson
State Director for Massachusetts
Jennie Williamson is the State Director for The Education Trust-Massachusetts, where she leads the development and implementation of the…

Blair Wriston
Senior Government Affairs Manager
Blair serves as senior government affairs manager, working alongside the director of government affairs and other members of the…

Emily Young
Associate, Advocacy and Engagement
Emily Young is an associate for advocacy and engagement. In this role, she acts as a bridge between the…