Member Bios

Martinique Starnes, Ed.D. '15 is the Manager of Diversity, Outreach, and Community Development for the California Charter Schools Association. In her role, Dr. Starnes is responsible for creating and implementing strategies to improve the pipeline to school leadership for educators of color. With over 15 years in the field, Dr. Starnes understands the varied educational experiences of students of color including the educational inequities that continue to impact them. She is a champion for equity and inclusion and works tirelessly to ensure that diverse voices are included at all levels of the education space. Prior to her role at CCSA, she served for 10 years as the Dean of Counseling and Student Affairs at Verbum Dei High School, a Cristo Rey Network school located in the Watts community. She also serves as an adjunct professor of Communication Studies at Long Beach City College.   

Richard Ballesteros, M.A. ’12 is a Los Angeles native and first-generation college graduate who has served as a coach, educator, and mentor to high school and college students for the last fifteen years. He is an advocate for educating the whole person and for educational equity to give students the opportunity to thrive. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Management to learn best practices on how to lead well and effectively attain organizational goals. Richard made a career change from retail management to education after having a realization when he volunteered to coach youth sports. He pursued studies in education to earn a Master of Arts in Education at Loyola Marymount University. Serving as director of religious education for youth and young adults, he rebuilt the program that fostered personal growth, developed leadership skills, and promoted a call to action in community service. His most valued lessons were experienced while volunteering with incarcerated youth in juvenile hall and guiding a youth leadership team. Richard continues to work towards creating safe learning spaces where students feel respected, accepted, included, and important. He enjoys hiking with his dog, spending time at the beach, and cooking for his family.   

Bio coming soon

Christina Brooks, M.A. ’17

Christina Brooks, M.A. '17, has worked in higher education and non-profits in various capacities for over a decade, including working in undergraduate admissions, international education, and marketing and communications. She is currently senior director for academic communications at LMU.

Christina was part of LMU's first Higher Education Administration M.A. program cohort and cherishes the experience and the opportunity to help provide insight and feedback to this incredible program. She received bachelor’s degrees in Spanish and public relations from the University of Texas at Austin, where her love of higher education was sparked as a peer advisor and tour guide in the Office of Admissions. Christina is passionate about access and inclusion in higher education and is a strong advocate for international education as a part of a well-rounded undergraduate experience.

Kathryn Anderson, MA ’10 currently serves as the Director of Planning and Operations at Lakeshore Learning Materials. In her role, Kathryn leads strategic planning and innovation for the Human Resources team as well as enterprise-level people operations projects and initiatives for the company. After earning her B.A. in art history from Vassar College, Kathryn started her career in education as a Teach For America Los Angeles corps member teaching 9th and 10th grade English at Frederick Douglass Academy High School. During this time she earned her Master’s in Urban Education with a focus on Administration and Policy at LMU School of Education. Her thesis focused on art education in the charter school setting.

After her corps service, Kathryn joined Teach For America Los Angeles regional staff where she served for 10 years. Her roles at TFA included leading alumni efforts in the region and managing the New Teacher Pathway team to select, recruit, and onboard over 160 corps members each year. In this role, she partnered closely with LMU SOE staff to ensure all corps members successfully completed enrollment and certification. As a Westchester resident, LMU’s campus is quite literally right next door, and Kathryn has enjoyed campus activities as both an alum and neighbor. On the weekends you’ll find her chasing her four-year-old daughter Rose and one-year-old son Thomas, and devouring a good book.

Alyssa Ascencio, M.A. '22, is a first-generation college graduate and Los Angeles native who earned her master's of arts in Higher Education Administration from LMU School of Education. She currently serves as part of the inaugural Young Adult Programming Advisory Council at Our Odyssey, a non-profit organization dedicated to connecting young adults impacted by a rare or chronic condition with social and emotional support in the hope of improving their quality of life. Alyssa’s professional passion is rooted in helping minority communities, working with diverse populations, and mitigating the factors behind their inter-sectional struggles. She strives to act as a change agent for marginalized students in higher education and bring equitable access to every student. In her free time, she enjoys horticulture, video games, and spending time with her bird Sky.

Jordan Baldry, M.A. ’21 is a graduate of LMU School of Education’s M.A. Program in Urban Education, with a concentration in Education Policy and Administration. He currently serves in two roles with the Los Angeles Unified School District. One of those roles is a Grade Five International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme instructor at Short Avenue Elementary School in the Del Rey Community. His other role is an instructor and curriculum developer for Los Angeles Unified School District’s Intern Credentialing and Added Authorization Program where he is currently adding the new California Reading and Literacy Standards to teacher preparation courses. Jordan’s professional passion is situated in literacy as a means to liberation for all students, especially for students who experience marginalization. In his free time, Jordan enjoys traveling, cooking, and anything that involves being outdoors and enjoying sunshine. 

Sharla Berry, PhD Master of Arts - Elementary Education, 2011

Sharla Berry, PhD graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a BA in History (2009) and a Master of Arts in Elementary Education (2011).  Dr. Sharla Berry is an Assistant Professor of Education Leadership at California Lutheran University, and an expert in the field of digital equity and online learning. Her research has been featured in many academic journals including Online Learning and the International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, and at academic conferences including the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE). Additionally, she is the author of the forthcoming book, Creating Inclusive Online Communities: Practices that Support and Engage Diverse Students.

Andrew Boven, Urban admin, '19

Andrew is a resident of Long Beach and currently a special education teacher for IQ Academy. He has been teaching special education for seven years and graduated from the Loyola Marymount School of Education in 2019. He got his masters in Urban Education Policy and was a corps member for Teach for America. Andrew also serves as the vice president for IQ Academy Teacher's Association. Prior to teaching he worked as a reporter in Midland, Texas and for campaigns in Los Angeles County. In his spare time he likes to travel as he has been to 47 states and 26 countries. He is also a big sports fan and plays flag football on Santa Monica Beach in a league for young professionals

Nat Brown, M.A. ’16, J.D. ’22, has an extensive background in education and disability rights law. Passionate about law and policy governing K-12 and higher education systems, she taught primary school while earning her master’s in Education Policy and Administration at LMU.

Nat is an ardent advocate of equity and inclusion in education and has worked with non-profit education organizations to promote representation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math fields of study as well as college and career readiness for low-income students and students of color.

In addition to equity and inclusion, Nat is also passionate about the role information and communication technologies play in education, including innovating how teachers and students engage learning as well as data and information security in K-12 and higher education, and has experience working with online education organizations to manage risks associated with implementing EdTech.

As a double Lion and devoted member of the LMU community, Nat seeks to utilize her background, network, and expertise to support the Board’s commitment to the continued excellence of the School and to assisting current students and alumni in their professional and intellectual pursuits.

Armando Carvalho, M.A. ’13, M.A. ’18, Ed.D. ’21, is an accomplished educator with experience at the elementary, secondary, and higher education levels. Throughout his time in education, he has served in many roles as a teacher of English, social studies, religion, and science in addition to leadership roles as a department chair and school principal. Dr. Carvalho spent nine years in Catholic education before transitioning to public education with the Los Angeles Unified School District. He has served as past chair and is a current member of the Alumni Council of the Partners in Los Angeles Catholic Education (PLACE) Corps at LMU and currently is a Community Support Person for the program. Dr. Carvalho was a long-time student at LMU - as well as a graduate of the PLACE Corps (cohort 11), Catholic School Administration program, Technology Integration Specialist certification, and the Doctor of Education for Social Justice program. He was also a recipient of the Graduate Library Research Award Grand Prize for his dissertation titled “The Local-executive Governance Model in Catholic Parochial Elementary Schools: Understanding Pastors’ Perspectives” in 2021.

Additionally, Dr. Carvalho holds both multiple and single-subject teaching credentials, with authorizations in English, social studies, English language development, and physical education. Lastly, Dr. Carvalho holds a National Board Certification in English as a New Language (Early Adolescence through Young Adult).

In his free time, Dr. Carvalho enjoys earning additional teaching credentials and is currently working on his Spanish credential. He is currently an English language development teacher and department chair at Dr. Maya Angelou Community High School.

Jonna German, M.A. ’19, currently serves as Senior Assistant Director of Admission at the University of Southern California (USC). 

In addition to her recruitment and matriculation responsibilities as an Admission Counselor, Jonna also serves as a liaison to the USC Athletics Department and as a member of the Office of Admission’s Multicultural Recruitment Committee. A lifelong Los Angeles resident, Jonna has led initiatives in her office to build stronger relationships with community-based organizations locally and domestically in an effort to create opportunities for college access. Prior to her role at USC, Jonna was a member of LMU’s Undergraduate Admission Office.

Jonna holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of San Francisco and a master’s degree in Higher Education Administration from LMU.

Edgar Hernandez is a coordinator in the Office of the Dean in the School of Education. He has been with LMU for six years, previously working in assessment and accreditation. Aside from his work with the SOE Alumni Association, he also manages the SOE Board of Visitors. In his free time, he enjoys learning, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.

Korey Hlaudy, M.A. ’14, Ed.D. ’22 is passionate about fostering and supporting equitable, inclusive, and active learning environments with all education stakeholders so that students are supported as they develop their mathematical thinking, problem solving, and self-regulation skills. Currently, he is an Educational Services Consultant for The Consortium on Reaching Excellence in Education (CORE). In this role, he leads in-person and remote training sessions focused on secondary mathematics topics, provides in-person and remote coaching and mentoring for school-based instructional coaches, math teachers, and provides executive-level coaching for school leaders. He also supports the implementation of research-based programs and effective instructional techniques so that students can achieve at the highest levels and are supported by a network of instructional leaders. 

Additionally, he is a Secondary Math and Science Instructional Coach at The Accelerated Schools, the first public charter network in Historic South Central, Los Angeles. In this role, Korey leads the strategic planning, coaching, and implementation initiatives for the middle and high school math instructional teams. Prior to coaching and consulting, Korey started his career in education as a Teach For America Corps Member where he taught mathematics for grades 5-8 at Da Vinci Connect, K-8 public charter school in Los Angeles that combines homeschool and on-campus instruction using project-based, compassionate communication, and social emotional learning frameworks. He also taught mathematics for grades 9-12 at Da Vinci Design Charter High School, which uses interdisciplinary project-based learning as their instructional framework. Korey is also a member of Loyola Marymount University’s School of Education Alumni Association Board of Directors, where he continues his research on social justice leadership praxis within the charter school context and implementing coaching for equitable and active math learning environments.

Korey holds a bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of California, Davis, and a Master's degree in Urban Education, Policy and Administration and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership for Social Justice, both from Loyola Marymount University.

Sylvia Jauregui, Ed.D. ‘21 is a skilled educator and equity-focused leader with classroom experience in diverse, multilingual schools. Her expertise spans education policy, research, EdTech innovation, English learner advocacy, and data-driven leadership. Recognized through fellowships from the National Head Start Association and LMU’s Center for Equity for English Learners, Dr. Jauregui is passionate about driving systemic change for equity and social justice in education. She holds an M.Ed. in Educational Policy and Planning from the University of Texas at Austin and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership for Social Justice from LMU. Her award-winning dissertation documented the experiences of Latina parent leaders in the Local Control and Accountability Plan process. Currently, Dr. Jauregui is in the Coro Women in Leadership 2023 Fall Cohort. She serves on the Governing Board for Equitas Academy Charter Schools. Her passion and experience position her as a leader in equitable education.

Mary McCullough, Ph.D., Ex-officio for Faculty

Bio coming soon

Paul Vu, Ph.D., Ex-officio for the Religious

Dr. Stephen McCray is an executive coach, equity consultant, author, and keynote speaker working with business, school, and non-profit leaders and change agents to achieve their equity goals and mission objectives. The new leadership imperatives, such as promoting and attaining equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workspace, require new leadership strategies, and building new mindsets and skillsets, and collectively developing new inclusive policies, practices, and procedures. Dr. McCray brings teams together in powerful and sustainable ways to do this work. He blends his three decades of leadership and groundbreaking work in education, racial, and social justice to bring clients the most powerful outcome-based processes to create equity in the workplace, strategically transform leadership challenges into opportunities, navigate the personal and professional change landscape. Utilizing Dr. McCray's Transformation Equity Process, Pinnacle Learning Partners provides customized research-based executive, staff, and individual coaching, professional development, and consulting services. At Pinnacle Learning Partners we believe in the power of synergy and engage clients in capacity building processes that inspire solutions and strengthen the work community. Author of Dynamic Equity: Lead Your Team Successfully through Extraordinary Change, Dr. McCray specializes in working with C-suite leaders, managers, and leadership cadres at all levels in the organization to optimize individual and organizational performance.

Veronica Yepiz graduated from LMU in 2018 with a BA in Liberal Studies and in 2020 from the PLACE Corps Program with an MA in Educational Studies. She is currently a 2nd grade teacher at Equitas Academy #5 Charter School. Her passions in education include searching for diverse children’s books to incorporate into her lessons and teaching her students how to read.

Carmen Towler is a proud West Los Angeles native, daughter, sister, cousin, niece, auntie, and friend. She received a Master of Arts in Guidance and Counseling from LMU in 2017, and worked as an academic counselor at both private and public universities, as well as an instructor at a community college in the Bay Area. While a student, Carmen served as the first Treasurer of the Counseling Graduate Student Association (CGSA) from 2016-2017, where she led fundraising efforts to create events and community building opportunities for the

Counseling student body. She currently enjoys her role in public service as a Workforce Programs Manager for vulnerable communities in San Francisco, supporting their access to economic prosperity through jobs, education, and other resources. Carmen is passionate about racial equity and considers herself a lifelong learner. In her free time, she can be found on various hiking trails, doing yoga, reading fiction, listening to podcasts, and connecting with friends and family in Los Angeles.

Bio Coming Soon

Erika Preciado is an Angeleno who works simultaneously as a Behavior Intervention Developer and a statewide Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) agency as a Clinical Case Manager for children and young adults with autism and learning disabilities. Erika is a graduate of the School of Education ’04 and a legacy as her older brother is also an alumni from the School of Business ’95. 

Erika has served as a LMU Regional Ambassador in San Diego from 2017-2019 as well as a LMU Alumni BBQ volunteer 2019-2023.  She is a mother and Cane Corso dog owner, who enjoys reading, training her dog, as well as taking drives down to the beaches of north county San Diego. She is an active parent volunteer at her children’s schools within LAUSD and a parishioner of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Erika will be sitting for the Board Certified Behavior Analyst’s (BCBA) exam this fall 2024. 

Nat Brown, M.A. ’16, J.D. ’22 has an extensive background in education and disability rights law. Passionate about law and policy governing K-12 and higher education systems, she taught primary school while earning her Master’s in Education Policy and Administration at Loyola Marymount University. 

Nat is an ardent advocate of equity and inclusion in education and has worked with non-profit education organizations to promote representation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math fields of study as well as college and career readiness for low-income students and students of color.

In addition to equity and inclusion, Nat is also passionate about the role information and communication technologies play in education, including innovating how teachers and students engage learning as well as data and information security in K-12 and higher education, and has experience working with online education organizations to manage risks associated with implementing EdTech.

As a double Lion and devoted member of the LMU community, Nat seeks to utilize her background, network, and expertise to support the Board’s commitment to the continued excellence of the School and to assisting current students and alumni in their professional and intellectual pursuits.

Dr. Lisa Yoon is a visionary leader in the field of education, currently serving as the

Program Specialist of Special Programs and Assessment and Accountability at ABC

Unified School District. In this dual capacity, she oversees a range of state-funded Title I

college and career readiness educational programs, as well as the district's

comprehensive assessment and accountability measures. Her work in strategic

leadership and data-driven program evaluation significantly enhances educational

accessibility and inclusivity.

Yoon earned a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership for Social Justice from

Loyola Marymount University, a Master's in Teaching, Special Education from Rhode

Island College, and a B.A. in Intercultural Communication from Pepperdine University.

She also holds a professional certification in conflict management from the Straus

Institute of Dispute Resolution.

Throughout her career, Yoon has been a staunch advocate for data disaggregation and

has led the implementation of equity audits, contributing to significant educational

reforms. Her scholarly contributions include work on the "National AAPI Equity Audit of

PK-12 Public Education Systems in the U.S.” and "The State of Khmer Americans"

report. Additionally, she is the co-founder of Andy's Cafe, an initiative that uses

technology to enhance employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.

Recognized for her commitment to disabilities and community outreach, Yoon continues

to make a significant impact in the field by championing educational accessibility for

individuals with disabilities. She remains actively engaged in research, advocacy, and

leadership, driven by her vision to create a world where everyone has the opportunity to

realize their full potential.

Dr. Deonna Smith is a former teacher and school leader, and educational justice advocate. With over a decade of experience, Deonna has worked with students and teachers in grades K-12 and even in the higher education setting. As a student, teacher, DEI practitioner, and administrator, Deonna saw firsthand how inequitable our schools could be. But she also saw the potential for schools to be spaces of liberation and joy. Deonna’s passion for connecting theory with practice led her to pursue and complete her doctoral degree in education and social justice. In her work, she strives to make theories and pedagogies accessible and applicable to both adults and students. After wearing many hats inside the school building, Deonna transitioned into her advocacy work. Now, Deonna works with education stakeholders across the country to fight for joyful, inclusive, and equitable spaces for students. Deonna’s latest book, Rooted in Joy: Creating a Classroom Community of Equity, Belonging, and Care, is a guide that blends theory, narrative, and practical tools to help educators and stakeholders build spaces for their students to thrive.