Kids at the Center. Community at the Table.

I believe deeply that education is about more than preparation for a career. It is about shaping whole people. That conviction has animated my entire professional life.

I hold a Master's in Clinical Psychology with a focus on play-based trauma recovery for kids in emergencies, and I began my career as a front-line social worker resettling unaccompanied refugee minors into American foster homes. Those early years taught me something I've carried ever since: that good intentions matter, but evidence and accountability are what actually change lives.

That lesson carried me from direct service into research and evaluation. Today, as a senior evaluation leader at the International Rescue Committee, I oversee teams in 36 countries measuring whether humanitarian programs deliver real outcomes for the world's most vulnerable kids, and pushing hard for change when the evidence shows they don't. For over a decade I have designed measurement systems, interrogated budgets, and held programs accountable across a $700M department, including steering through periods of serious economic pressure and resource constraint.

My career has been built around one question: is this actually working for the kids it's meant to serve? I bring that same standard to every decision. What does the evidence show, are we measuring what matters, and if something isn't working, what are we doing about it?

Education is not an abstraction in our household. My husband is a public school teacher and our dinner table conversation often turns to emerging best practices and policies in schools. When it came time to choose a place to put down roots, we wanted a community that invests in its kids, believes in great teaching, and understands what schools owe the families they serve. That is why we chose Croton.

We moved here for the natural beauty, the sense of community, and the schools. I am running because I love this village, I believe in its schools, and I want to be part of making something already good even better.

I was lucky enough to attend three different but all excellent public schools as a kid, and they gave me everything. Knowledge, curiosity, confidence, and an abiding faith in what it means to invest in kids as a community. I am a product of teachers who showed up, believed in creativity, and challenged their kids to be the best they could be.

I want to be honest with you about something personal. Last year, my husband and I made the difficult decision to move our son to a school outside of the District. Before moving our son, we worked hard to advocate with the District on what was happening but felt disempowered and ignored. It was one of the hardest choices we have made as parents, because we believe in public education— but we knew it was what he needed at the time. We are excited for him and our rising kindergartner to be back at CET next year, and we are committed to advocating for the continued strengthening of our schools, whether I am elected or not.