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Our Team

JAY ARTIS-WRIGHT

Executive Director

Jay Artis-Wright is a visionary leader, serving as the Executive Director of the Freedom Coalition for Charter Schools (FCCS). FCCS stands as a beacon for Black and Brown charter school leaders, and under Jay’s guidance, it advocates tirelessly for the enhancement and establishment of high-quality educational choices for students from these communities.

With a rich tapestry of over two decades of experience spanning public policy, education, advocacy, and community mobilization, Jay embodies the essence of a strategic thinker. She played an instrumental role in laying the foundation of FCCS during its formative stages.

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Our Team

NATASHA ROBINSON

Director of Projects

FCCS Board Members

DR. STEVE PERRY

Chair
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DAVID P. HARDY

Vice-Chair
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ALFRED COCKFIELD

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CRIS GULACY- WORREL

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RICARDO MIRELES

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EMORY EDWARDS

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DAIANA LAMBRECHT

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DR. HOWARD FULLER

FCCS Founder

Dr. Howard Fuller is a civil rights activist, education reform advocate, and academic. He is best known for the community organizing work he did in Durham, North Carolina as an employee of Operation Breakthrough, and as a co-founder of the Malcolm X Liberation University in 1969. In the 1970s, Fuller adopted the name Owusu Sadaukai, organized several national African Liberation Day celebrations, and was one of the foremost advocates of Pan-Africanism in the United States. Decades later, Fuller rose again to national prominence as one of the leading advocates for school vouchers. He served as the superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools from 1991 to 1995 and is currently a distinguished professor of education, and founder/director of the Institute for the Transformation of Learning at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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JAY ARTIS-WRIGHT

Executive Director

Jay Artis-Wright is a visionary leader, serving as the Executive Director of the Freedom Coalition for Charter Schools (FCCS). FCCS stands as a beacon for Black and Brown charter school leaders, and under Jay’s guidance, it advocates tirelessly for the enhancement and establishment of high-quality educational choices for students from these communities.

With a rich tapestry of over two decades of experience spanning public policy, education, advocacy, and community mobilization, Jay embodies the essence of a strategic thinker. She played an instrumental role in laying the foundation of FCCS during its formative stages.

Jay’s professional journey is as diverse as it is impactful. From nurturing and mentoring educators, to spearheading pivotal policy initiatives, to crafting influential outreach strategies for education-related legal battles, she has been a force for positive change. Her expertise extends to training advocates in the arts of organization and championing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

Jay’s track record is studded with policy triumphs that have propelled charter schools forward and paved the way for women to explore positions on local school boards. She possesses an innate ability to navigate the intricate legislative landscape, steering it toward resounding victories, and she’s a maestro in the art of coalition building. Her influence reaches across the nation, with her footprint gracing key states like California, New Jersey, and Texas. Jay Artis-Wright is a true luminary in the field, dedicated to shaping a brighter future for Black and Brown students.

DR. STEVE PERRY

Chair

As Head of Capital Preparatory Schools with locations in Bridgeport CT Capital Prep Harbor & Harlem NY Capital Prep Harlem; His goal is to ensure that his students receive a high-quality education from K- 12 and into college by ensuring that our educators receive the proper professional development training and support system needed in our schools for a successful academic environment. This commitment to excellence in education led Capital Preparatory School to what U.S. News and World Report have cited as one of the top schools in the country, Sending 100% of its predominantly low-income, minority, first-generation high school graduates to four-year colleges every year since inception in 2006. Subsequently, this success led him to open other Capital Preparatory Schools in 2012 with the objective to open charter schools that will provide as many low-income students/families with an educational experience that I consider a right, not just an opportunity.

Perry is also a CNN, MSNBC & Essence Education Contributor. Host of Hit TV Show “Save My Son”. Dr. Steve Perry’s heart pumps passion and produces positive change. Featured in CNN’s Black in America series, Dr. Perry is the most talked about innovative educator on the scene today. Perry is the founder and principal of what U.S. News and World Report has cited as one of the top schools in the country, Capital Preparatory Magnet School in Hartford, Connecticut.

DAVID P. HARDY

Vice-Chair

David P. Hardy is a Distinguished Senior Fellow with the Commonwealth Foundation.

David is the Co-Founder and retired CEO of Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia charter school. Boys’ Latin, which opened in 2007 in West Philadelphia, is Pennsylvania’s first and only single-gender charter school. David served as the Executive Director of Excellent Schools PA, a school choice advocacy organization. He also is the principal of a consulting practice, Parkway Educational Consultants.

​David currently serves on the boards of the Center for Education Reform, the Pennsylvania State Coalition of Public Charter Schools, Independence Mission Schools, and Ad Prima Charter School, which he chairs. He is a member of the Steering Committee for the Freedom Coalition for Charter schools and on the boards of the North Carolina Outward Bound School and the Holocaust Awareness Museum and Education Center. David was a founding board member of the Philadelphia Schools Partnership and is a former board member of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools and the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO).

ALFRED COCKFIELD

Reverend Alfred Cockfield, has more than ten years of experience in the field of Education, youth development and civic and community engagement. Since 2013, he has been the Executive Director of the Battalion Christian Academy Schools in Brooklyn, NY and Far Rockaway, Queens where he manages a diverse portfolio including recruitment and retention, partnership alliances, staff development and educational development whose programs use an engaging interactive approach to transform the lives of children. Reverend Cockfield holds a BS in Business Administration and Religious Studies and a minor in Music Business from Nyack College. He later returned to Nyack College where he earned a Masters of Business Administration and International Business Marketing and Management.

CRIS GULACY-WORREL

Cris Gulacy-Worrel holds an M.P.A. in public policy from Northwestern with an emphasis on education and has an impeccable knowledge of charter school policy, finance, development and administration. Prior to Oakmont, she worked at the Ohio Department of Education where she specialized in charter school funding, education policy and legislation. A passionate advocate, Gulacy-Worrel has also served as an expert panelist with local task forces and the NAPCS.

 

RICARDO MIRELES

Mr. Mireles is the founder of Academia Avance, a college preparatory charter public school located in the Northeast Los Angeles neighborhood of Highland Park. Development started in 2004, with authorization granted in May of 2005 by the Los Angeles Unified School District. Operations commenced that summer with 100 students in grades 6-7. Avance now serves over 400 students in grades 6-12. The charter was renewed by the Los Angeles County Board of Education in 2010, and again by the State Board of Education in 2015.

Development of Avance followed Ricardo’s stint at the California Charter Schools Association in 2003. CCSA was his crash course on all things charter, after spending four years at the LAUSD, having joined in 2000 the team that launched the planning and eventual construction of 120 new schools. It was at LAUSD the he came to realize that even more than just needing new school facilities, Los Angeles needed a new way of schooling kids.

Mr. Mireles brings to Avance Schools a broad range of experiences in public policy and technology. Mr. Mireles has taught at the UCLA School of Public Policy and Social Research, and at the Don Bosco Technical Institute. He completed a fellowship in public affairs with the Coro Foundation – New York City in 1990. He is a graduate of the Don Bosco Technical Institute, has a B.A. in Anthropology from Columbia College, and has completed graduate work in urban planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He lives with his wife and son in Highland Park.

EMORY EDWARDS

Emory Edwards is the Senior Outreach Director for EdChoice, a non-profit, nonpartisan organization driven to advance a K-12 education system where all parents, regardless of race, origin, or family income are free the choose a learning environment that works best for their family. A creative strategist by nature, Emory uses his 20 years + of experience in marketing and event planning to inform and build partnerships with community leaders and organizations around educational choice. As an educational choice/opportunity advocate, Emory has worked closely to advise and support both national and Indiana-focused organizations in the ed reform movement.

Aside from his work with EdChoice, Emory is very active in the Indianapolis community. He is an active member of 100 Black Men of Indianapolis, Inc. where he has served in leadership roles for the Special Events committee and Beautillion Militaire program. Emory is also a member of The Exchange at the Indianapolis Urban League and has served on the Board of Directors for The Madame Walker Theatre and the Martin Luther King Community Center. Emory has also served on numerous planning committees and other volunteer roles during his 16 years in Indianapolis.

Emory earned his Bachelor of Business Administration from Georgia State University in Atlanta, Ga. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family & friends and traveling. Originally from Albany, GA, Emory currently resides in Indianapolis with his wife Chantelle and their three children, Emory Michael, Cadence, and Lance.

DAIANA LAMBRECHT

Daiana Lambrecht is founding Executive Director of Futuro San Antonio, a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for excellent public education and prosperity for all children in San Antonio. Simultaneously, Daiana serves as a dedicated board member for both Activate STL and the Freedom Coalition of Charter Schools, underlining her dedication to fostering positive change in education. Prior she served as Rocketship’s Senior Director of Parent Leadership and Advocacy focused on building grassroot power and championing change as a coalition. As Rocketship Senior Director, she led community engagement and advocacy nationally and supported regions to develop and execute strategies that align education equity values. 

Daiana also served as coach for public narrative and assisted with organizing workshops with Marshall Ganz, a Harvard Graduate School of Education graduate, and the Leading Change Network, and is Leadership Coach & Strategist under her own LLC Comunidad Connects. She previously worked as a Coalition Organizer Lead with Achieve Hartford!, a program manager for Teach for China and bilingual 5th grade teacher in San Antonio Independent School District as a Teach for America Corps Member. Daiana earned her bachelor’s degree in History and Asian Studies from Penn State University. 

Most importantly, she is the proud daughter of immigrant parents. Growing up in an undocumented family, the transition from Argentina to Venice, Florida created many barriers for Daiana and her family. These experiences and her social justice upbringing continue to inspire her fight for education and other opportunities for immigrants and other communities of color in the US. Currently, she lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband and dog, where she enjoys evening walks, tubing in TX rivers, soccer and Argentine barbecues.