Dana leads SparkNC’s strategic visioning and alignment. She guides the organization’s strategic operations team and its work related to communications, evaluation, development, and project leadership. She also collaborates with the program team and external partners to strengthen programs and learner outcomes. Dana was a program officer at Oak Foundation’s Learning Differences Program, where she managed a $20+ million portfolio of grants supporting teacher coaching, youth leadership development, mentoring, parent support, and research and innovation with the goal of promoting the academic, social, and emotional success of students with learning differences such as dyslexia. Previously, she was a senior consultant at Public Impact, focused on educational philanthropy, special student populations, and school turnarounds.
This report presents findings from exploratory case studies of six charter schools identified due to their reported success educating children with disabilities.