Meet the Team

Gillian Williams became an educator as a member of the Teach For America Charter Corps in 1990. She began her teaching career at as a bilingual teacher at Public School 98 in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan. In 1997, Gillian became the youngest elementary school principal in New York City at Public School 63 in the South Bronx. In her first year at Public School 63, Gillian led a turnaround that lifted the school from its dismal standing on the state’s list of persistently failing schools — a distinction it had held for all eleven years of that list’s existence.

As the Founder and Chief Academic Officer of School Turnaround, Gillian grew the organization from a summer conference into a multi-faceted, nationally established initiative. She works with principals and superintendents across the country to lead change by example using leadership characteristics and strategies that are proven effective in turning around low-performing schools.

Under her leadership, School Turnaround demonstrates consistently high gains for student achievement. School Turnaround is designed specifically for schools and districts where someone in power perceives a current failure that requires urgent intervention. While most educational initiatives geared toward demonstrating student achievement take place over a long time period, School Turnaround is designed to bring about urgency and time-compressed change. It stands apart from others in the field by offering a money-back warranty that guarantees achievement on high stakes tests will increase in one year’s time.

Gillian is a national leader in elementary education and was featured twice on the CBS Television program Sunday Morning. She has appeared in numerous publications, including, The New Yorker, The New York Times, US News and World Report and Education Week.

Jane King earned her Bachelor of Science and Masters Degrees in Education from Syracuse University. She spent 33 years teaching high school Biology and Chemistry including 24 years at Bethlehem High School in Delmar, New York.

In 1991, Jane co-founded the Bethlehem Laboratory School, an alternative program within Bethlehem High School. The Lab School is a four-year interdisciplinary program focused on project-based learning, research skills and mastery level achievement in all disciplines including Science, Mathematics, Language Arts and Social Studies. Jane led the program from 1998 until her retirement in 2006. The Lab School has been an extremely successful alternative to traditional education using a team approach to high school education. Lab School students have achieved 100% passing rates on all New York State Regents exams, including mastery levels of achievement between 80% and 96% in Language Arts, Social Studies, Mathematics and Science. Currently entrance to the program is by lottery with an extensive waiting list.

After retiring in 2006, Jane spent over a year working with Project Lead the Way, Inc. developing curriculum in the Biomedical Sciences for high school level students. She joined the staff of School Turnaround in 2008.

Billie-Jo Slingerland joined the School Turnaround team in 2006. Prior to joining School Turnaround, she was a Senior Administrative Assistant for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Albany County, Agriculture Department for seven years. Some of her responsibilities included planning and organizing educational trainings, maintaining databases, sending correspondence, and the design and layout of three publications.

Billie-Jo is the lead for all web-based support in the form of virtual conferences, website services, and communications. In addition, she provides internal administrative support, oversees benchmark testing data, coordinates all employee travel, and manages School Turnaround’s daily operations. Her ability to do web research, format business documents and troubleshoot software programs are just a few of the many skills she brings to her work.

She graduated from Schenectady County Community College with two Associates Degrees in Paralegal Studies and Criminal Justice.

Loretta Blanks earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education from East Carolina University and a Masters Degrees from The College of William and Mary with a concentration in school administration.

Loretta began her teaching career in Richmond, Virginia and also taught in Colonial Heights, Hopewell, and Prince William County, Virginia. She became principal of Rockledge Elementary School in Prince William County in 1991.

From there she went on to become principal of Eastern Elementary - an early childhood school and then Dumphries Elementary School When she became principal at Dumfries, Loretta found a school that ranked near the bottom in all areas measured by Prince William County. Loretta led Dumfries in making marked improvements, including a 23% improvement in fourth grade writing scores in one year.

Loretta continued her work as a turnaround principal at John Small Elementary School. Working closely with the staff she designed a school-wide remediation and enrichment program that was developed around quarterly benchmark testing. Test scores improved from 56% of the students being proficient in reading and mathematics to 81% being proficient and the school being recognized as a School of Distinction.

More recently Loretta has worked as a consultant at numerous schools. Her work with teachers addresses effective use of assessments, differentiated instruction, and other areas critical to student achievement.

Mildred Toliver received her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, Masters of Science in Elementary Education and her Certification for Elementary School Administration from Grambling State University. After serving as an elementary school teacher and instructional coordinator for the Caddo Parish Public Schools in Shreveport, Louisiana, Mildred went on to become principal of Atkins Elementary School in 1990. She led the school to success over the course of her ten years there. Eager for a new challenge she moved to Fort Worth, Texas and became the principal of SS Dillow Elementary School — the most beleaguered elementary school in the Fort Worth Independent School District.

In her first two years as principal Mildred led the school out of last place and started it on an upward trajectory. In the summer of 2002, Mildred joined School Turnaround as a participating principal determined to keep upward momentum even in light of the significantly higher standards being used in the Texas standardized testing. At the conclusion of her first year in School Turnaround, SS Dillow was demonstrating gains in some areas up to 35%. The student outcomes continued to improve in the 2003-04 school year and saw the school matching the state average for number of commended students.

Mildred joined the School Turnaround staff in 2004 and works extensively not only with principals but also with teachers, district administrators and school boards. In addition she does consulting and training for “Developing Multiple Intelligences”, Community Parenting, Effective Black Parenting Program and KEYPAR, Inc. She has worked as a reviewer for Harcourt Brace. Currently she is writing a handbook for effectively involving parents in student success.

Margarita Garcia grew up in El Paso, Texas and attended the University of Texas at El Paso where she earned her Bachelors degree in Education and the University of Texas at Arlington where she earned her Masters degree in Administration.

In 2003, Margarita became the principal of Washington Heights Elementary in Fort Worth, TX, a campus serving a majority of second language learners and over 90% economically disadvantaged kids. Under her leadership, the school has been hailed as high achieving based on rapid and dramatic increases in student performance on multiple indicators. Margarita continues to sustain a turnaround that has lifted her school from dismal with less than 50% passing rates to passing rates that have earned her school “Recognized Status” for academic excellence from the Texas Education Agency, the second highest rating in the state of Texas. Margarita’s efforts and the success of the school have been highlighted in the media and a case study that was recently presented at the 2007 American Educational Research Association (AERA).

In the summer of 2004, Margarita joined School Turnaround as a participating principal determined to turn around student achievement and move her school onto a new path of success. At the end of her first year in School Turnaround, Washington Heights was demonstrating significant gains in all academic areas, in some areas more than 40 percentage points. The student outcomes continue to improve each year and the students meeting commended performance continues to increase. In June 2006, Margarita was the recipient of the annual Turnaround Principal award.

Margarita joined the School Turnaround staff in 2006, as a specialist, and works directly with principals to ensure that all leadership decisions are based on what is right for kids’ achievement.

Nicole Houston Johnson grew up in Fort Worth, Texas. She attended Howard University and earned a B.B.A in Actuarial Science. She returned home and earned a M. Ed in Educational Administration at Texas Christian University.

Nicole began her teaching career as a middle school Math teacher and then moved on to teach high school. She became an administrator in 2000, working as an assistant principal in middle, high, and alternative schools.

Nicole is currently the Principal of Leonard Sixth Grade Center. She joined School Turnaround in the summer of 2005, as a participating principal determined to turn around student achievement and move her school onto a new path of success. At the end of her first year in School Turnaround, Leonard Sixth Grade Center started to show gains in both subject areas, up to 12%. Leonard Sixth had a history of wide achievements gaps. The campus Reading gap which was as wide as 20 points-is currently less than 9 points. This year her campus received the Gold Performance Award for 51% of the students scoring commended in Reading. Under her leadership, the school continues to meet AYP and strives to maintain growth in all student groups.

Nicole remains actively involved in her district to improve student achievement. She serves as a principal mentor and middle school planning principal. She also serves on the Texas Middle School Association conference committee.

Nicole joined the School Turnaround staff in 2006, as a specialist, and works directly with principals to improve student achievement at their buildings.

Jean Nesta Keizs grew up in Kingston, Jamaica. She attended Howard University where she earned her degree in Spanish with minors in French and Classics. After some time in the working world in New York City at the “Village Voice,” she returned to Howard University to earn her Masters Degree in Secondary Education.

Jean returned to New York to begin her career in education. Jean taught Spanish and French in three middle schools. In 1978, she was received her Certificate in Educational Administration from New York University. Jean then became, in 1980, Assistant Principal at The Theodore Roosevelt Gathings Intermediate School in The Bronx. Five years later, Jean became principal. While there she introduced and implemented a successful “prime-time” reading program which dramatically improved test scores. As a result she was selected by New York School’s Chancellor Joseph Fernandez for outstanding leadership. In 1996 she was chosen as Supervisor of the Year in District 12.

During her years as principal, Jean served as Adjunct Instructor of English at Queensborough Community College/CUNY, sustaining a twenty-year relationship, which enhanced her role of Principal. She was also elected to the Executive Board of the Middle Schools Principals’ Association. Jean is currently an Adjunct Professor at Bronx Community College.

Lonnie Palmer received his undergraduate degree in physics from Union College in Schenectady, NY and holds a masters degree in physics education as well as a certificate of advanced study in educational administration from SUNY at New Paltz, NY. He began his career teaching science in Albany NY’s Hackett Junior High School. He then became an assistant high school principal in Poughkeepsie, NY, an assistant superintendent responsible for improving academic performance for secondary students in New Rochelle, NY and a high school principal in Averill Park, NY.

Lonnie retired from his position as Albany City School District Superintendent in 2003 after serving six successful years which saw improved test scores and graduation rates, passage of a $176 million school facilities improvement plan, and public approval of 6 consecutive school budgets. He then spent two years starting and growing a successful consulting business, AdvisorySolutions, for the New York State School Boards Association.

Most recently, Lonnie served as the superintendent for the Troy City School District. During his two short years in Troy, Lonnie reshaped the district management team with 20 newly hired administrators, dramatically improved student language arts and math test performance in addition to high school graduation rates, improved the district’s bond rating, and developed plans for magnet schools.

Eric Nelson received his undergraduate and Master degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. While in Wisconsin, Eric taught first and second grades and became an elementary school principal at age 27, leading Waterloo Elementary school for two years. Relocating to Seattle, Washington, he led a turnaround at Sanislo Elementary, a diverse, high-poverty school. In five years under Eric’s leadership, students at proficiency jumped from 25% to 85% in writing, 25% to 65% in math, and 60% to 85% in reading.

Next, Eric was an area superintendent in Oakland, California, supervising 18 schools and 6500 students. 60% of these students were English Language learners and 75% qualified for free/reduced lunch. In his tenure, he helped revitalize a focus on instructional improvement and the achievement gap by visiting four schools per week, focused cycles of inquiry. The achieving gap was decreased in only two years and there was a marked increase for English Language Learners.

Eric’s areas of expertise are in quality assessment, adult learning, systems thinking, and organizational development. He also works with urban school district central office administrators to help align their work directly to student learning, consulting with Convergence Development Group and Performance Fact, Inc. Currently, Eric is in the midst of finishing his doctoral studies at the University of Washington in Educational Policy and Leadership.

Debbie Duty Deery is a graduate of Montana State University. She began her career as a primary grade teacher in Havre, Montana. During that time she developed and implemented a full day kindergarten for at-risk children. In 1991 she was chosen as Montana Teacher of the Year and served on the Governor’s Task Force on Education. Becoming a Principal in 1991, she was also responsible for Title IX and Multi-age Programs for the Havre School District. Debbie has been a principal in Billings, Montana Public Schools and in 2000 relocated to Reno, Nevada.

As a Principal in Washoe County Public Schools in Reno, her school has gone from a Title school labeled in need of improvement, to a Nationally Distinguished Title School. Debbie was the recipient of the Nevada Commissioner on Governor’s Committee on Educational Excellence award in 2007.

Mónica Byrne-Jiménez is a professor at the University of Massachusetts-Boston in the Department of Leadership in Education. She teaches in the Leadership in Urban Schools doctoral program and the Educational Administration program, and supervises dissertations throughout the department.

Mónica completed her dissertation at Teachers College, Columbia University, with a focus on issues of the principalship. Her work, which she presented at the American Educational Research Association conference, is entitled, “Collaborative Inquiry as an Approach to the Professional Development of Principals in Urban, Low-Performing Schools.” She holds a Master’s degree in Foundations and Policy from the University of Michigan.

Before pursuing her doctoral studies, Mónica worked in a number of urban settings, including as a bilingual teacher in several K-6 settings, coordinating an Even Start program, working as a literacy instructional specialist and training consultant. She was recognized as “Teacher of the Year” while serving in the Chancellor’s District for Low-Performing Schools. More recently she served as the Associate Director of the Accelerated Schools Center in New York City. Mónica does research consulting for numerous innovative educational organizations and institutions, including serving as lead consultant for the Columbia University Teachers’ College Institute for Superintendents.

Harold S. Williams is President of The Rensselaerville Institute, an internationally respected development institution based in upstate New York. In the area of community development, the Institute has enabled over 500 small towns throughout the United States to use a self-help approach to solving water and wastewater problems. These entrepreneurial projects have been featured in such media as Parade Magazine (a cover story), The New York Times, and CBS Television.

In organizational development, Hal has led The Institute into a series of projects to spark innovation in government and non-profit as well as corporate settings. Hal is the founder and editor of INNOVATING, the quarterly journal and is lead author of Outcome Funding: A New Approach to Targeted Grantmaking, a book widely read and used in its U.K. as well as North American editions. He served as lead consultant to a U.S. Presidential Commission and consults directly with governors and agency heads in a variety of state and municipal governments.

In the summer of 2000, Hal collaborated with Gillian Williams and Tony Amato to develop School Turnaround. He went on to guide and advise the development of the program, as well as present the concepts at national educational conferences such as AASA.

Hal is a graduate of Stanford University, where he founded that school’s FM radio station and served as West Coast Director of the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System.