Staff

chief financial officer

Chuck Adkins

Chuck Adkins oversees all aspects of the organization’s finances, human resources and strategic fiscal planning, including financial reporting to the Fund’s board, the public, and key stakeholders. Chuck brings almost 15 years of experience in nonprofit financial and organizational management. Before joining the Fund, Chuck served as the CFO to several nonprofits focused on education, social services, environmental standards and established nonprofit best practices. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Maryland where he has taught graduate courses in nonprofit management. Chuck has a passion for human rights and enjoys random thoughts, cooking (and eating), and international travel.

Human Resources Associate

Kathy Caballero

Kathy is responsible for payroll and benefits and provides support for other HR projects. She came to the Fund after a transition into non-profit Human Resources nearly 6 years ago. Prior to that, she was a 4^thgrade teacher in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Kathy holds a BA from the University of Colorado, Boulder in Psychology. She lives with her husband in Baltimore and has two grown-up daughters, two dogs and two grand-kitties.

ChiPP Program Associate

Erin Cunningham

Erin works closely with the Analysis and Engagement Program Director to coordinate and manage the Chicago Parent Program (ChiPP), an early-childhood development parenting program, in elementary schools across the district. Erin brings with her 15 years of city government experience supporting efforts to reduce community violence and support families impacted by intimate partner violence. She holds a B.A. in History from the University of Chicago and a M.S.W. from The University of Maryland School of Social Work. She and her husband enjoy living in Northeast Baltimore with their four kids, dogs, cat and flock of chickens.

program director, student athlete development

Peter DeCandia

Pete supports projects that use sports as a catalyst to enhance equity, education, and character growth in Baltimore City Public Schools. In collaboration with City Schools, Under Armour, Positive Coaching Alliance, the Ravens, and other partners, Pete runs the Baltimore Student Athlete Coalition to expand access and opportunity for Baltimore City high school athletics.

Pete came to Baltimore as a 2013 Teach For America Baltimore corps member. Prior to working at the Fund, he taught and coached for three years at Woodlawn High School and one year at St. Paul’s School. He also founded and operates Teacher Props, an organization that helps Baltimore teachers find great housing. He earned his B.S. from Mount St. Mary’s University and M.S Ed. from Johns Hopkins School of Education.

Senior Program Director, Fiscal Sponsorship Services

Sharon Drevitch Dondes

A member of the Fund’s staff since 2003, Sharon works closely with district and foundation partners as Grants Manager for local and national grants in support of strategic initiatives for City Schools and other education organizations. She serves as the primary point of contact for the Fund’s fiscal sponsorship clients, responsible for triaging and managing clients’ contracting, budgeting, and operational needs. As a senior member of the client services team, Sharon also works to ensure that the Fund’s internal and external processes are providing timely, exceptional support to our district, community, and foundation clients.

Sharon has over 30 years of client service, strategic planning, and business development experience. Prior to joining the Fund, she served as Vice President, Network Development for MedStar Physician Partners. Sharon holds an M.B.A. from Loyola College in Baltimore, a B.A. from Wellesley College, and is a former Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in the Humanities. Sharon lives with her husband and twin daughters in the Pikesville area.

Manager—Analysis and Engagement

Ruth Farfel

Ruth’s primary focus is providing programmatic and administrative support to the Fund’s Analysis and Engagement reports and school choice work. She leads the coordination of the Fund’s school choice workshops and works closely with the Senior Program Director supporting all aspects of the Fund’s reports including identification of topics, research design, interview coordination, data analysis, writing, rollout (including briefings) and follow up. In addition, she contributes to critical efforts across the programmatic spectrum of the Fund including Development (both for the Fund and City Schools) and the Heart of the Schools.

Ruth is a graduate of the University of Maryland’s School of Social Work. She holds a B.A. in Sociology from Washington College. Prior to getting her masters, Ruth completed two years of service as an Americorps VISTA managing community engagement projects throughout the City. She grew up in Baltimore and is a Baltimore City Public Schools Alumna (Go Western!). Ruth and her partner live in Northeast Baltimore with her cat Olive.

Program Manager, Fiscal Sponsorship Services

Shantelle Jackson

Shantelle helps coordinate the Fund’s Fiscal Sponsorship work, assisting with client, grants and contracts management. She works in close collaboration with the finance and human resources teams helping to ensure that private and public grant dollars are put to work quickly, efficiently, and appropriately to meet clients’ missions and needs, and ultimately benefit Baltimore City youth.

Prior to taking this role, she worked in the nonprofit community throughout the state of Maryland. She has extensive knowledge and experience in the mental health field and prides herself on being an advocate for disadvantaged communities. Her passion for helping others ignited her to continue her education at the University of Baltimore, earning her MS in Human Service Administration. Outside of the office, she enjoys traveling, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.

Program director, Equity and Engagement

Angelique Jessup

Angelique’s work is multifaceted and supports projects across the Fund’s programmatic efforts focusing on family engagement, school readiness and literacy. In addition, she is responsible for leading and implementing the Fund’s overall racial equity and anti-racist work. Angelique brings over 15 years of experience in nonprofits focused on youth development, workforce development, and social justice.

Prior to joining the Fund, Angelique worked for Baltimore City Public Schools in both the Office of College and Career Readiness and the Student Support Office. In her roles at City Schools she worked on an array of areas, including career technology education, attendance, and school climate. She received her B.A. from the College of New Jersey and her M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. She lives in North Baltimore with her husband and three children.

Senior program director, district development

Kevin Leary

Kevin works closely with Baltimore City Public Schools’ leadership and the local and national funding communities to craft strategic reform initiatives for private investment. He has helped raise over $20M in private and public funding for critical initiatives to improve student achievement and school culture. He also manages the Heart of the Schools program, a year-round initiative supporting and celebrating all Baltimore City Public Schools principals through recognition, grants, and events.

Prior to joining the Fund, Kevin was an English teacher at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, PA, (three years) and at Serra High School in Los Angeles, CA (two years). Kevin earned his B.A. in Philosophy and Political Science from the University of Notre Dame, completed his Certification in Secondary Education at the University of Pennsylvania, and earned an M.P.P. at the University of Maryland, College Park. Kevin is originally from Willimantic, CT, and now lives in Towson with his wife and two kids.

Director of finance

Patrick Locklin

Patrick manages the day-to-day aspects of the organization’s finances, including financial reporting, budget development, and general accounting services. Patrick brings six years in nonprofit financial management with a focus on building systems, policies, and procedures to ensure the integrity of financial information while improving the efficiency and ease of use for users. He is a CPA, licensed in the State of Maryland, and holds a Master’s Degree from Boston University. Outside of his work at the Fund, Patrick spends his time reading, running, cooking, and spending time with his friends and family.

Finance Associate

Cearia Pitts

Cearia manages the day-to-day aspects of AR and AP processing of the organization’s finances, including financial reporting and general accounting services. Cearia brings in over 10 years in nonprofit financial management focusing on maintaining finance department procedures. She is a certificate Payroll Clerk licensed in the State of Maryland, and holds a B.A., in Business Administration and Management and a A.A.S., in accounting. Outside of her work at the Fund, Cearia spends her time reading, crafting, cooking, and spending time with his friends and family.

Senior Program Director, Analysis and Engagement

Corrie Schoenberg

Corrie leads the Fund’s Analysis and Engagement work and direct service projects. She manages the design, execution, and publication of the Fund’s reports, which combine original qualitative inquiry with analysis of existing local and national research to provide a nuanced understanding of current issues in our public schools. She also coordinates follow-up to our reports’ recommendations.

Before joining the Fund in 2010, Corrie served in a number of roles over seven years with TNTP, working with school districts in New York City, New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, Indianapolis, St. Paul, Providence, and Baltimore. She holds a B.A. from Northwestern University. Any free time she can scrape together after family is devoted to books.

president and chief executive officer

Roger Schulman

As President and CEO, Roger works collaboratively with a wide variety of school district, philanthropic, and community partners to advance the Fund’s mission to provide an excellent and equitable education for all Baltimore City students. Under his leadership, the Fund has become a leader in pulling together local and national coalitions to support efforts, including improving literacy outcomes, developing social emotional learning objectives, supporting stronger school and classroom leaders, assessing school effectiveness, and improving career and technical education. Since joining the organization, the Fund has secured and managed over $85M in private and public dollars.

Having started his career as a teacher in Baltimore City Public Schools, Roger has worked in education in Baltimore City and other large districts across the country for nearly 30 years.

communications and development manager

Sydney Short

Sydney is responsible for implementing the organization’s overall communications and PR strategy and supporting efforts to secure financial resources that advance the work of both the Fund and City Schools.

Most recently, Sydney served as the Fund’s Program Support Associate assisting in various aspects of the Fund’s work. Sydney is a Baltimore native, a proud Baltimore City College alumna, and a former Baltimore Scholar. She holds a B.A. in International Studies and Anthropology from Johns Hopkins University.

Program Director, analysis and engagement

Kwane Wyatt

Kwane manages the Fund’s implementation of the Chicago Parent Program (ChiPP) in City Schools and supports all aspects of the Fund’s reports. He works closely with the Senior Program Director to support the Fund’s engagement with Baltimore students, families, educators, and communities in identifying and implementing solutions to pressing issues affecting our students and schools.

Most recently, Kwane served as a Career Placement Manager with NPower, a workforce development organization, where he built and cultivated partnerships with the business community and worked directly with young adults on job preparation. His work experience also includes community banking and business development. Kwane holds a B.A. from Morgan State University. Kwane was featured as a background vocalist on a song from Beyoncé’s 2013 self-titled album.