Welcome to Brazen Careerist!

About Me

I am the Founder and CEO of The Opportunities Project, a start-up organization that offers affordable career coaching to young professional and others to help them meet their professional and financial goals quickly. I also do recruiting and leadership consulting for organizations.

Before starting my company, I worked in recruitment for a decade and was also an educator. In addition to being a certified coach, I have a BA from Syracuse University, an MPA from New York University, and am finishing my doctorate in educational leadership at New York University where I have been studying the recruitment and selection of successful people. My career advice has been featured in Mashable, Time Out New York, The Ladders, CBS Moneywatch, and other publications.

I am excited to meet strategic partners, new clients, and others on Brazen who want to talk about achieving professional success!

Work History

• The Opportunities Project
• Founder and CEO
• August 2010 to Present

• The Opportunities Project is a new social entrepreneurship effort that provides career coaching to college students and recent graduates. We also consult with college career centers and hiring organizations on recruiting, selection, and career development issues.

• NYC Department of Education
• Director of Teacher Recruitment, Selection, and Hiring Support
• September 2007 to July 2010

• • Managed the recruitment process for 2-6,000 teacher positions annually, including supporting over 1,600 school leaders in sourcing and selecting candidates.
  • Earned second place in the 2009 ERE.net Recruitment Excellence Awards for Best Employer Brand based on new social media and online marketing strategies.
  • Achieved over 85% customer satisfaction from both applicants and principals based on annual surveys.
  • Achieved 100% manager satisfaction rating on Human Resources survey of 15 full-time team members.

• NYC Department of Education
• Deputy Director, Leadership and Recruitment Strategy
• March 2005 to August 2007

• • Developed new selection strategy to fill 800 annual principal and assistant principal vacancies.
  • Reduced the percentage of interim acting principals from 19% to 2% through implemented programs.

• The Princeton Review
• Director of Project Management, K-12 Division
• Febuary 2004 to Febuary 2005

• • Planned large-scale assessment accounts for Philadelphia, Little Rock, and Maryland school districts.
  • Managed teams of technology, marketing, content and account management staff for each account.

• NYC Board of Education
• Program Manager, NYC Teaching Fellows
• September 2000 to Febuary 2004

• • Coordinated recruitment, selection, placement, and training components of the New York City Teaching Fellows program from its inception, including its rapid expansion to 6,000 Fellows.
  • Developed and directed programs to assist over 12,000 uncertified teachers meet New York State Education Department and No Child Left Behind mandates with 75% success rate.
  • Managed implementation of large AmeriCorps program and $35 million in contracts with universities and other program partners.

• NYC Board of Education
• Senior Budget Analyst
• September 1999 to August 2000

• • Analyzed $1.8 billion operational budget for school food, transportation, and facilities.

• Bea Fuller Rodgers School- PS 528
• Teach for America Corps Member
• September 1997 to August 1999

• • Taught all subjects for fourth-grade class (1997-1998) and sixth-grade laptop class (1998-1999).
  • Served as Chairperson of 1998 Comprehensive Education Plan team.

Education

• New York University
• MPA, Public Finance
• 1998 - 2001

• Syracuse University
• BA, Public Affairs
• 1993 - 1997

• New York University
• PhD, Educational Leadership
• 2006 -