board of directors
|
President
Tammie Szafran Vice President *open position* Treasurer Abdul Sissoko Secretary Michael Klima |
Board Members
Shannon Brown Marisa Canino Vanessa Dodo-Seriki Stephanie Johnson Traci Mathena Chaundra Parker John Rhodes Veronica White Sharon Buie Benjamin Jancewicz Carolyn Spencer Darrius Pugh |
board of directors bioS
Tammie Szafran (Board President, Parent) works as a Paralegal Specialist in the Appellate Division of the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia (PDS), supporting post-conviction and collateral litigation in criminal court. Since joining PDS in 2003, she has been responsible for training development and implementation, providing direct client services, and supporting litigation on systemic criminal justice issues affecting low income and minority populations. She has also recently worked as a volunteer attorney with Catholic Charities, providing pro bono legal services to low income and indigent immigrants. Tammie earned her B.A. in psychology with a minor in visual arts from Boston University and her J.D. from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. She is a member of both the Maryland and District of Columbia bars.
Abdul Sissoko (Board Treasurer, Parent) is a parent of two. He manages the Patterson Park Branch of M&T Bank. In his current position, Abdul is responsible for hiring, developing employees, and promoting the Bank's presence within the community. In addition to his work at Creative City, Abdul also serves on the board of The Malian Community Association of Baltimore as Vice President. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the Graves School of Business and Management Honors Program at Morgan State University and his MBA at Loyola University of Maryland.
Michael Klima (Board Secretary, Parent) is a lighting designer for opera and theatre and is deeply committed to integrating the arts into our school’s educational experience. He has spent twenty-five years in various roles in the entertainment industry. He holds an M.F.A. in Theatrical Design from Brandeis University and a B.A. in Technical Theatre from Appalachian State University. Since 2008 he has also worked as a part-time faculty member for Towson University’s Department of Theatre Arts where he has enjoyed guiding students—through the reading and viewing of plays—to look at the lives of various characters with empathy, understanding, and acceptance, ideas he feels appropriate for any grade level. Michael has taught theatre history and design courses to department majors, as well as introduction to theatre and introduction to theatrical design courses to the general student population. He has served on the executive committee of his neighborhood association (Abell Improvement Association) for over ten years in roles that have ranged from president to committee chair to member-at-large. Michael is also the proud parent of a student at Creative City Public Charter School.
Shannon Brown (Parent) is a native of Baltimore, a product of the Baltimore City Public Schools System, and a graduate of Frederick Douglass High School. She is a nontraditional parent who has become convinced of value of Creative City’s model, especially its communal concepts. She attended St. Cloud State University and is an alumna of Trinity College (DC). But most importantly, Shannon is a single parent of an amazingly vivacious son who has been attending Creative City since 2014.
Marisa Canino (Executive Director, Parent) has a passion for service, a commitment to seeing Baltimore City and its residents thrive, and a demonstrated track record in fundraising and nonprofit management. She has shown her commitment to the Baltimore community for 15 years through her professional and volunteer work with nonprofits serving Baltimore families. In her 11 years at Habitat for Humanity of the Chesapeake, she progressively served as Development Director, Deputy Director, and Chief Operation Officer, garnering resources of up to $12 million annually, and managing programs that enabled more than 100 low-income families to purchase safe, decent, affordable homes of their own.
Her volunteer experience, most notably, includes her oversight of the community effort to rebuild the playground at Stadium Place from the ground up with hundreds of volunteers after an act of arson in 2008.
Marisa holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Franklin & Marshall College, and a certificate in fundraising management from Indiana University.
A mother of three, Marisa is also passionate about education and the opportunity for parents to be able to choose the school that is best for their child. She was a parent-founder at Creative City for two years before a broad search led to her being hired in the role of Executive Director.
Vanessa Dodo-Seriki (Assistant Professor of Science and Urban Education, Loyola University, Co-Director of the Center for Innovation in Urban Education) received her doctorate in Education-Science Education-from the Ohio State University in 2011. As a graduate of an urban school and former high school science teacher in Portsmouth, VA and Baltimore, MD, Dr. Dodo Seriki understands the realities that face urban students, families, teachers and schools. As such, she has dedicated her work to empowering urban teachers, students, and families through engagement in science learning.
Dr. Dodo Seriki’s research interests include the use of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and Cultural Modeling in science education; the intersectionality of race and gender in education (including p-12, Higher education, teacher education, and science education) as seen through the lens of Critical Race Theory and Black Feminist Thought; and accessibility of STEM education by all learners, particularly those underrepresented in the STEM pipeline. In addition to preparing teacher candidates to teach science, Dr. Dodo Seriki provides professional development to practicing teachers.
Stephanie Johnson (Parent) is a 2012 graduate of CCBC who is currently attending UMUC, on a scholarship, where she is pursuing a degree in Human Resources while minoring in Sociology. She has taken, and continues to take, classes on Governance as part of her coursework.
For two years Stephanie was involved with the Board Governance of Baltimore City’s Head Start Program sitting on the Policy Council representing Metro Delta Head Start. Additionally, she served as the Chairperson for Metro Delta Head Start for two years.
Stephanie is also a Community Member with the Enoch Pratt Free Library.
Traci Johnson Mathena (Principal) joined Creative City as its Principal on July 20th, 2015. Prior to joining our school, she served as an assistant principal at Towson Law and Public Policy High School in Baltimore County (2009-2015). During her tenure, she supervised various academic departments as well as the school’s Student Support services, Special Education Department, Student Activities programs and the Testing Program. She also developed the Academic Commitment Creates Empowered Successful Students (ACCESS) Program, an after-school academic intervention where teachers, peer tutors and university students worked with struggling learners.
Traci has been an urban educator for over 20 years. She started as a teacher in 1994 after working as a metropolitan reporter for the Baltimore Sun for six years. In Baltimore City, she worked at her alma mater Western High School (Class of ‘88) and Canton Middle School. She was a teacher and Language Arts Department Chairman at Dumbarton Middle School in Baltimore County for eight years before joining the Towson High School administrative team. Her appointment to Creative City returns Traci to the Park Heights area where she was raised.
Since 1995, Traci has written curriculum for both Baltimore City and Baltimore County public school systems, mentored teachers, led professional development seminars about Differentiated Instruction, and taught graduate courses in education for Towson University and, most recently, the Johns Hopkins School of Education.
Traci is a National Board Certified Teacher of English Language Arts/Early Adolescence and earned her master’s degree in Leadership in Teaching from Notre Dame University of Maryland. She is the proud alumna of University of Maryland College Park and the even more proud parent of a current Terrapin, a Linguistics and Psychology major who will graduate in 2017.
Chaundra Parker (Teacher, Anne Arundel County Public Schools) is an educator, curriculum developer and diversity consultant. With 20 years of classroom experience, Chaundra has worked with a variety of learners in both the public and private sectors.
During her tenure in the public school sector, Chaundra served as a classroom teacher, Lead Teacher, Mentor and Advanced Learner Support Teacher while continuing her work in cultural proficiency and diversity initiatives in schools. She served as the Equity Liaison for her school. In this capacity Chaundra worked with the Anne Arundel County Public Schools' Office of Equity and Accelerated Student Achievement to train faculty, staff, and administrators in Growth Mindset Strategies, and worked as a resource on diversity issues act as for faculty and staff in their work with students, families and in the development of curriculum and programs.
For independent schools, during her ten years tenure, Chaundra was both a classroom educator and Diversity Coordinator at a progressive school. At this institution, Chaundra led a team of stakeholders on a Board-Appointed Diversity Committee in changing the school’s culture to a more inclusive environment through carefully outlined Board-supported initiatives designed to impact students, families, and faculty members. As Diversity Chairperson she managed and designed curricula for all student programs related to multicultural education and inclusivity. She also worked with faculty and staff in diversity training and curriculum development for the classrooms. At the board level, Chaundra worked on the development of the school’s strategic plan which for the first time included diversity initiatives as first priority for the school moving forward. Chaundra earned her B.S. in Elementary Education from Coppin State University, her M.Ed. from Notre Dame of Maryland University and is currently working on her Ph.D. in Instructional Leadership in Changing Populations, also at Notre Dame.
John Rhodes (Parent) is the Director of Technology Systems and Services at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in photography from MICA. He has worked at MICA for over fifteen years and manages a team of technicians and other staff that support a variety of technologies across the campus. These includes the Help Desk, the Digital Print Lab, AV checkout services, smart classrooms, and all of the campus’s over 2,000 administrative and academic computers. He provides leadership and direction for campus technology purchases and collaborates on the technology and infrastructure components of new and renovated campus spaces.
John is also a community organizer who has been active on board and committees of neighborhood-based organizations in northeast Baltimore City. Under his leadership as the neighborhood association president of Hamilton Hills, he brought in public and private resources for a variety of neighborhood beautification projects. He currently resides in northeast Baltimore along with his wife Julie Lin, a CCPCS founder, raising their two children.
Veronica White (Parent) is a graduate of St. Mary’s College of Maryland with a degree in Human Services. She has been employed at Sinai Hospital since 1987 and is currently a Vocational Specialist II in the VSP department. She provides vocational counseling for a caseload of 150+ individuals, 85% of whom are diagnosed with some form of disabling condition. She also provides services for the staff and family members of staff upon request. During her tenure with Sinai Hospital, she has assisted with a variety of staff positions while maintaining her caseload. These other staff positions include maintaining an additional caseload of thirteen individuals at any given time for specialized work training, Job Development & Job Placement, and Project Management; overseeing several multi-million dollar federal and state contracts.
Veronica oversees the Children’s Ministry at her place of worship, a position that she has held for the past 10 years. Prior to that she taught Sunday School for more than 10 years. Veronica has always been involved with children. She was a Girl Scout Leader just after graduating High School and a Cub Scout leader in her early twenties. Currently the current Lead Girl Scout Leader at Creative City Public Charter School she oversees four volunteers and 32 girls. She is also the Pack Committee Chair for the Cub Scout Troop at the school.
In 2005, Veronica became a Foster Care parent for the City of Baltimore. She has fostered several children. She is the also the proud parent of a son, who is a Cub Scout leader at CCPCS, and an adopted daughter who is an attending student.
Sharon Buie (Parent, legal guardian or family member of a current student) is the parent of a current third grader. She works for the Baltimore City Parks and Recreation Department, and she has a background in human services, recreation management, and counseling and treatment services. As a parent, community member and advocate for families, she is “fully vested in the betterment of all collectively and individually.” She is a neighbor and friend to Park Heights, and she has volunteered at a number of events both in the Park Heights community and at Creative City. She lists her skills and interests as positive communication, grant writing, the outdoors, active listening to the concerns of her community, and resource development.
Benjamin Jancewicz (Parent, legal guardian or family member of a current student) is the parent of two current students, a third grader and a fourth grader. He is interested in contributing positively to the growth of Creative City and says, “Education quality and treating children of all backgrounds in ways that will help them is very important to me.” Benjamin is a graphic designer who splits his time between his artwork and social activism. His activist work is centered on issues like jail reform, police brutality, minimum wage increase, and housing rights. He is also a former art teacher with a technological bent. This past year, Benjamin participated in the book club on racial justice, and he plans to continue doing so next year. Benjamin is originally from Northern Quebec, and he and his wife settled here in Baltimore after falling in love with the city.
Carolyn Spencer (Faculty Representative) is a teacher in the the 4th and 5th grade enterprise team here at Creative City.
Darrius Pugh (Faculty Representative) is an instructional assistant for the 4th and 5th grade enterprise team.
Abdul Sissoko (Board Treasurer, Parent) is a parent of two. He manages the Patterson Park Branch of M&T Bank. In his current position, Abdul is responsible for hiring, developing employees, and promoting the Bank's presence within the community. In addition to his work at Creative City, Abdul also serves on the board of The Malian Community Association of Baltimore as Vice President. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the Graves School of Business and Management Honors Program at Morgan State University and his MBA at Loyola University of Maryland.
Michael Klima (Board Secretary, Parent) is a lighting designer for opera and theatre and is deeply committed to integrating the arts into our school’s educational experience. He has spent twenty-five years in various roles in the entertainment industry. He holds an M.F.A. in Theatrical Design from Brandeis University and a B.A. in Technical Theatre from Appalachian State University. Since 2008 he has also worked as a part-time faculty member for Towson University’s Department of Theatre Arts where he has enjoyed guiding students—through the reading and viewing of plays—to look at the lives of various characters with empathy, understanding, and acceptance, ideas he feels appropriate for any grade level. Michael has taught theatre history and design courses to department majors, as well as introduction to theatre and introduction to theatrical design courses to the general student population. He has served on the executive committee of his neighborhood association (Abell Improvement Association) for over ten years in roles that have ranged from president to committee chair to member-at-large. Michael is also the proud parent of a student at Creative City Public Charter School.
Shannon Brown (Parent) is a native of Baltimore, a product of the Baltimore City Public Schools System, and a graduate of Frederick Douglass High School. She is a nontraditional parent who has become convinced of value of Creative City’s model, especially its communal concepts. She attended St. Cloud State University and is an alumna of Trinity College (DC). But most importantly, Shannon is a single parent of an amazingly vivacious son who has been attending Creative City since 2014.
Marisa Canino (Executive Director, Parent) has a passion for service, a commitment to seeing Baltimore City and its residents thrive, and a demonstrated track record in fundraising and nonprofit management. She has shown her commitment to the Baltimore community for 15 years through her professional and volunteer work with nonprofits serving Baltimore families. In her 11 years at Habitat for Humanity of the Chesapeake, she progressively served as Development Director, Deputy Director, and Chief Operation Officer, garnering resources of up to $12 million annually, and managing programs that enabled more than 100 low-income families to purchase safe, decent, affordable homes of their own.
Her volunteer experience, most notably, includes her oversight of the community effort to rebuild the playground at Stadium Place from the ground up with hundreds of volunteers after an act of arson in 2008.
Marisa holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Franklin & Marshall College, and a certificate in fundraising management from Indiana University.
A mother of three, Marisa is also passionate about education and the opportunity for parents to be able to choose the school that is best for their child. She was a parent-founder at Creative City for two years before a broad search led to her being hired in the role of Executive Director.
Vanessa Dodo-Seriki (Assistant Professor of Science and Urban Education, Loyola University, Co-Director of the Center for Innovation in Urban Education) received her doctorate in Education-Science Education-from the Ohio State University in 2011. As a graduate of an urban school and former high school science teacher in Portsmouth, VA and Baltimore, MD, Dr. Dodo Seriki understands the realities that face urban students, families, teachers and schools. As such, she has dedicated her work to empowering urban teachers, students, and families through engagement in science learning.
Dr. Dodo Seriki’s research interests include the use of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and Cultural Modeling in science education; the intersectionality of race and gender in education (including p-12, Higher education, teacher education, and science education) as seen through the lens of Critical Race Theory and Black Feminist Thought; and accessibility of STEM education by all learners, particularly those underrepresented in the STEM pipeline. In addition to preparing teacher candidates to teach science, Dr. Dodo Seriki provides professional development to practicing teachers.
Stephanie Johnson (Parent) is a 2012 graduate of CCBC who is currently attending UMUC, on a scholarship, where she is pursuing a degree in Human Resources while minoring in Sociology. She has taken, and continues to take, classes on Governance as part of her coursework.
For two years Stephanie was involved with the Board Governance of Baltimore City’s Head Start Program sitting on the Policy Council representing Metro Delta Head Start. Additionally, she served as the Chairperson for Metro Delta Head Start for two years.
Stephanie is also a Community Member with the Enoch Pratt Free Library.
Traci Johnson Mathena (Principal) joined Creative City as its Principal on July 20th, 2015. Prior to joining our school, she served as an assistant principal at Towson Law and Public Policy High School in Baltimore County (2009-2015). During her tenure, she supervised various academic departments as well as the school’s Student Support services, Special Education Department, Student Activities programs and the Testing Program. She also developed the Academic Commitment Creates Empowered Successful Students (ACCESS) Program, an after-school academic intervention where teachers, peer tutors and university students worked with struggling learners.
Traci has been an urban educator for over 20 years. She started as a teacher in 1994 after working as a metropolitan reporter for the Baltimore Sun for six years. In Baltimore City, she worked at her alma mater Western High School (Class of ‘88) and Canton Middle School. She was a teacher and Language Arts Department Chairman at Dumbarton Middle School in Baltimore County for eight years before joining the Towson High School administrative team. Her appointment to Creative City returns Traci to the Park Heights area where she was raised.
Since 1995, Traci has written curriculum for both Baltimore City and Baltimore County public school systems, mentored teachers, led professional development seminars about Differentiated Instruction, and taught graduate courses in education for Towson University and, most recently, the Johns Hopkins School of Education.
Traci is a National Board Certified Teacher of English Language Arts/Early Adolescence and earned her master’s degree in Leadership in Teaching from Notre Dame University of Maryland. She is the proud alumna of University of Maryland College Park and the even more proud parent of a current Terrapin, a Linguistics and Psychology major who will graduate in 2017.
Chaundra Parker (Teacher, Anne Arundel County Public Schools) is an educator, curriculum developer and diversity consultant. With 20 years of classroom experience, Chaundra has worked with a variety of learners in both the public and private sectors.
During her tenure in the public school sector, Chaundra served as a classroom teacher, Lead Teacher, Mentor and Advanced Learner Support Teacher while continuing her work in cultural proficiency and diversity initiatives in schools. She served as the Equity Liaison for her school. In this capacity Chaundra worked with the Anne Arundel County Public Schools' Office of Equity and Accelerated Student Achievement to train faculty, staff, and administrators in Growth Mindset Strategies, and worked as a resource on diversity issues act as for faculty and staff in their work with students, families and in the development of curriculum and programs.
For independent schools, during her ten years tenure, Chaundra was both a classroom educator and Diversity Coordinator at a progressive school. At this institution, Chaundra led a team of stakeholders on a Board-Appointed Diversity Committee in changing the school’s culture to a more inclusive environment through carefully outlined Board-supported initiatives designed to impact students, families, and faculty members. As Diversity Chairperson she managed and designed curricula for all student programs related to multicultural education and inclusivity. She also worked with faculty and staff in diversity training and curriculum development for the classrooms. At the board level, Chaundra worked on the development of the school’s strategic plan which for the first time included diversity initiatives as first priority for the school moving forward. Chaundra earned her B.S. in Elementary Education from Coppin State University, her M.Ed. from Notre Dame of Maryland University and is currently working on her Ph.D. in Instructional Leadership in Changing Populations, also at Notre Dame.
John Rhodes (Parent) is the Director of Technology Systems and Services at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in photography from MICA. He has worked at MICA for over fifteen years and manages a team of technicians and other staff that support a variety of technologies across the campus. These includes the Help Desk, the Digital Print Lab, AV checkout services, smart classrooms, and all of the campus’s over 2,000 administrative and academic computers. He provides leadership and direction for campus technology purchases and collaborates on the technology and infrastructure components of new and renovated campus spaces.
John is also a community organizer who has been active on board and committees of neighborhood-based organizations in northeast Baltimore City. Under his leadership as the neighborhood association president of Hamilton Hills, he brought in public and private resources for a variety of neighborhood beautification projects. He currently resides in northeast Baltimore along with his wife Julie Lin, a CCPCS founder, raising their two children.
Veronica White (Parent) is a graduate of St. Mary’s College of Maryland with a degree in Human Services. She has been employed at Sinai Hospital since 1987 and is currently a Vocational Specialist II in the VSP department. She provides vocational counseling for a caseload of 150+ individuals, 85% of whom are diagnosed with some form of disabling condition. She also provides services for the staff and family members of staff upon request. During her tenure with Sinai Hospital, she has assisted with a variety of staff positions while maintaining her caseload. These other staff positions include maintaining an additional caseload of thirteen individuals at any given time for specialized work training, Job Development & Job Placement, and Project Management; overseeing several multi-million dollar federal and state contracts.
Veronica oversees the Children’s Ministry at her place of worship, a position that she has held for the past 10 years. Prior to that she taught Sunday School for more than 10 years. Veronica has always been involved with children. She was a Girl Scout Leader just after graduating High School and a Cub Scout leader in her early twenties. Currently the current Lead Girl Scout Leader at Creative City Public Charter School she oversees four volunteers and 32 girls. She is also the Pack Committee Chair for the Cub Scout Troop at the school.
In 2005, Veronica became a Foster Care parent for the City of Baltimore. She has fostered several children. She is the also the proud parent of a son, who is a Cub Scout leader at CCPCS, and an adopted daughter who is an attending student.
Sharon Buie (Parent, legal guardian or family member of a current student) is the parent of a current third grader. She works for the Baltimore City Parks and Recreation Department, and she has a background in human services, recreation management, and counseling and treatment services. As a parent, community member and advocate for families, she is “fully vested in the betterment of all collectively and individually.” She is a neighbor and friend to Park Heights, and she has volunteered at a number of events both in the Park Heights community and at Creative City. She lists her skills and interests as positive communication, grant writing, the outdoors, active listening to the concerns of her community, and resource development.
Benjamin Jancewicz (Parent, legal guardian or family member of a current student) is the parent of two current students, a third grader and a fourth grader. He is interested in contributing positively to the growth of Creative City and says, “Education quality and treating children of all backgrounds in ways that will help them is very important to me.” Benjamin is a graphic designer who splits his time between his artwork and social activism. His activist work is centered on issues like jail reform, police brutality, minimum wage increase, and housing rights. He is also a former art teacher with a technological bent. This past year, Benjamin participated in the book club on racial justice, and he plans to continue doing so next year. Benjamin is originally from Northern Quebec, and he and his wife settled here in Baltimore after falling in love with the city.
Carolyn Spencer (Faculty Representative) is a teacher in the the 4th and 5th grade enterprise team here at Creative City.
Darrius Pugh (Faculty Representative) is an instructional assistant for the 4th and 5th grade enterprise team.
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2810 Shirley Ave. Baltimore, MD 443-642-3600 | outreach@creativecityschool.org
2810 Shirley Ave. Baltimore, MD 443-642-3600 | outreach@creativecityschool.org
