By Lillian Andemicael

Growing up in the Deep South, DC Education Policy Fellowship Program Alumna Raven DeRamus-Byers credits her tight-knit community for helping her become the education and equity policy professional she is today.

“There are a lot of opportunities that I had in my life that I otherwise should not have had based on how I grew up,” DeRamus-Byers said. “Because I had a community of people who poured into me and supported me, I was able to accomplish the things I needed to accomplish.”

Raven’s collaborative, down-to-earth spirit coupled with her love for school led to her naturally gravitating toward a career in teaching, a move that came as no surprise to those who knew her well.

Friends with Raven since childhood, Carl Byers, Field Service Technician at Bridges Systems Integration, remembers the woman who is now his wife as always altruistic and down to earth, despite being a top-tier student and heavily involved in their Gadsden, Alabama, community.

“Even when we were kids, you could really tell, she's definitely gonna be an educator. She loved school more than anybody I knew,” he said. “She's very, very deeply rooted in the community from our hometown. She was always very involved ... and it's something she's carried on well into adulthood and into her career.”

DeRamus-Byers credits her participation in DC EPFP, which she graduated from in 2023, for giving her the extensive education policy experience and knowledge needed to excel and transition into her current position as Equity Specialist in the Teaching and Learning Division at the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education, she said. 

EPFP provided Raven with a platform to hone her policy interests, develop her skill set, and put her knowledge into action through her EPFP policy project. Her project required her to develop a research-based strategy for diversifying the workforce in a Maryland and DC public school district, bridging the gap between theoretical understanding and practical application in education policy, she said. 

In her current role, she is working on a project aimed at retaining educators in DC Public Schools and charter schools, using the skills and knowledge she gained during her EPFP experience to anticipate potential barriers and develop effective strategies uniquely tailored to the community. 

“There's still a lot of things about this project that require some instinct … and some deep knowledge about the kinds of things that you can't learn from books, what people actually deal with, and the things that are in their way,” DeRamus-Byers said. 

“Because of the knowledge that I gained from EPFP and talking to those people through our policy project, I've been able to shape this particular project with those things in mind. And it has helped us, I think, to kind of build this project in a way that is airtight,” she added.

Because strong community involvement and education paved the pathway for Raven to become the Ivy-League-educated policy professional she is today, she is passionate about education equity, so that all students can be successful, no matter what their background is.

“In a society where we are struggling with teacher shortages, shortages of diverse educators, that can mean a shortage in access to opportunities for students of color as well,” Raven said. “It's really important that I take the things that I was given by my community and try to provide some of that support to people that are trying to integrate into education and beyond.”

New America Policy Advisor Jazmyne Owens, who worked with Raven at New America, said she witnessed her friend's career and policy knowledge blossom during her participation in the program.

“I think the program really helped her to think about where she fit in into the larger field of education policy, Owens said. “Her experience really helped her to formulate what her next steps were and move to those with confidence. It was a really beautiful thing to see, honestly.”

Through her work and research in diversifying the educator workforce, Raven supports underserved communities by helping create and sustain culturally responsive schools, so that all students can take advantage of their opportunities and their futures as she did.

“She recognizes the fact that community helps us to be the people that we are,” Owens said. “It really does take a village. And being able to be that village for other people, being able to facilitate what those villages look like for the education policy space, for the pre-K through 12 space, that is what drives her. It’s just a part of who she is.”

By Lillian Andemicael

But rolling out these programs across the United States – with its unique demographics and needs of various communities - is no easy feat. 

That’s where DC EPFP 2021-2022 Alum and Digital Equity Advisor at the Department of Education Ji Soo Song comes in. Song serves as a liaison between the Department of Education and other agencies to maximize the impact of federal funding allocated to digital equity and inclusion initiatives, he said.  

“The Office of Educational Technology within the Department of Education really works on thinking about setting a vision for how technology can be used to transform teaching and learning,” Song said. “They knew that this office could have a voice in the digital equity inclusion initiatives that are happening that are both led by the department and different collaborating agencies across the federal government.”

Recognizing the growing impact of the digital divide on education and opportunities with the shift to online work and learning following the coronavirus pandemic, the Office of Educational Technology began promoting more digital equity and inclusion initiatives, creating Song’s role at the Department of Education in 2021. 

“We know the needs of our student populations, their families and caregivers are very unique,” Song said. “And, you know, tailored strategies are necessary to help close those digital divide gaps.”

Song’s background as an immigrant also motivates him to give back to the community and drives his passion for digital equity, as his past experiences allow him to understand barriers in the adoption of broadband internet and deepen his understanding of the digital divide.

“Something that we know as a barrier that impedes the adoption of broadband in a lot of different communities is the issue of public trust,” Song said. “That was an issue that my family faced as well when we first came to the US in the early 2000s.”

Song credited IEL’s Education Policy Fellowship Program for supplementing his personal and professional growth. The program’s three focus areas - policy, leadership and networking – all became improvement points in his work as he collaborates with different agencies and offices. 

“He really cares about ensuring that communities that have been historically and systematically excluded have the broadband access that they need to exist in this kind of increasingly digital world,” D'Andre Weaver, Chief Equity Digital Officer at Digital Promise, said. “He's just really passionate about that and very knowledgeable and that is certainly inspiring.” 

Song said EPFP especially helped him deepen his empathy skills as a leader, a result he came to after taking leadership assessments with the program’s coordinators to help him grow.

“The program, one of the biggest sort of strengths it had was that the fellows came from a lot of diverse areas,” Song said. “So I think I got a diverse array of perspectives about policy issues that impact each of those areas that the fellows care about.” 

Song’s former colleague and friend, Julia Fallon, Executive Director for SETDA, also noted Song’s strong listening skills and ability to synthesize information.

“He is a really good connector,” Fallon said. “He definitely knows who to talk to to get feedback or to get support to be able to get more people on board for the consensus building that you need when it comes to policy development.”

By Lillian Andemicael

“It's important for us to advocate for mental health in and of itself as an essential resource and service all students should have,” Amador said.

Beginning in 2007, Andria and her colleagues recognized the need to approach school psychologist work differently to improve both the quality of their work and the well-being of the students they serve. 

A few years later, in 2010, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) released their practice model which provided a framework for the services and support systems that should be available in schools. Though no school district the size of Boston Public Schools had tried anything like it, Amador worked relentlessly to form connections to adopt NASP’s practices. 

“Andria was one of the first people to sort of look at the model as a way to change, as a change agent in Boston Public Schools, for ensuring that more kids had better access to more comprehensive school psychological services, of which mental health is an important piece,” Katherine Cowan, Director of Communications for NASP, said. 

Partnerships were formed with UMass Boston and Boston Children's Hospital, two organizations actively involved since the program's inception, to create a pipeline of mental health workers for the state’s largest school system. Though the school district saw turnover, through Andria’s persistence, the behavioral-health model managed to strengthen despite great changes to leadership over the years.

“Her persistence has been such a tremendous asset to get to learn from both professionally and personally because it's not always been easy,” said Melissa Pearrow, Professor of School Psychology at University of Massachusetts Boston. “Holding to the principles of best practices, … being very thoughtful in how we evaluate things let's us know that what we're trying to do for the sake of the kids and the system is in the best interest of kids in the system."

In partnership with UMass Boston and Boston Children’s Hospital, Andria developed the Comprehensive Behavioral Health System, a multi-tiered support system tailored to address the specific needs of students. The system encompassed positive climate creation, social-emotional learning, and various intervention levels, ensuring a continuum of behavioral health services. 

Recognizing that this work required collaborative efforts, Amador and her team engaged with stakeholders, educators, and administrators to identify needs and build partnerships within and outside the school system.

These efforts have resulted in deep, integrated partnerships with 90 schools having community mental health partners providing services to students. The school system has also established strong connections with universities, developing pathway programs to train school psychologists, school counselors, and school social workers. This approach not only ensures a well-trained workforce but also enhances their understanding of the school system's values and the best practices for mental health.

Amador attributed part of her success to her participation in the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP). EPFP provided a platform for collaboration and rich discussions among professionals from diverse sectors, Amador said. By incorporating multiple perspectives, Amador gained valuable insights, ideas, and resources that she could implement in her work, she said.

In addition, Amador said learning about Boston’s history of inequities in the education system during her time as a Fellow in the EPFP program motivated her to be more intentional about creating a diverse pipeline of school psychologists to reflect the needs of a diverse student body.

“I found it very impactful and it helped me to continue to reflect on how to acknowledge our past and move forward in more inclusive and socially just ways,” Amador said.

While California currently has no longitudinal data system, it is on track to become a cross-cutting leader in using research to drive education policy-making and improve outcomes for all students.

That’s due to the work of Education Policy Fellowship Program Coordinator LeAnn Fong-Batkin, who has emerged as a critical player in the development of California’s Cradle-to-Career system, an online database that provides resources, tools, and outreach to help students succeed from the cradle to career stages.

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Fong-Batkin, who now serves as Executive Director at Education Insights Center, graduated from IEL’s California EPFP program in 2018. She said her EPFP cohort spent a large part of the program discussing the need for a career data system in California and sketching out aspects of data system development. 

“In California, we have this still huge opportunity gap between many groups of students, many of them underserved,” Fong-Batkin said. “And so my main goal, and my policy work goal, is to make things as equal as possible, for as many students as possible.”

This initial work in EPFP, she said, directly led to her position as a member of the team working on implementing California’s Cradle to Career System.

“[Our EPFP cohort] got to hear speakers that explained why we needed one. And it was really interesting,” Fong-Batkin said. “I was just really fascinated by the topic. And it ended up that a couple of years later I was hired to be part of the team that created the plans for the implementation of the cradle-to-career data system here in California.”

This data system has been in the works for years. And when the coronavirus pandemic hit in 2020, the immediate shift to remote work led to a planning process that would be intimidating for some. 

But Fong-Batkin’s can-do attitude and ability to quickly synthesize information about education policy and how it changes at different levels made the process much more seamless for her team, according to Kathy Booth, project director for Educational Data and Policy at WestEd. Booth worked with Fong-Batkin for two years on the design of the Cradle-to-Career system.

“She just made a process that was really daunting feel feasible,” Booth said. “She could work with our team to figure out what were the right things to be doing at that moment to retain our strategic goal. I just don’t know how we would've made it through the process without that kind of nuanced insight.”

Fong-Batkin credits EPFP for helping her extend and draw connections between the different types of policy at different education levels. In addition, Fong-Batkin said the program gave her access to the statewide network of people that are ready to help each other at any time. 

After graduating from EPFP, she reconnected with Christopher Nellum, another person in her fellowship year, and brought him on board to lead advocacy for the Cradle-to-Career data system.

Today, Fong-Batkin now serves as a Coordinator for the California EPFP program. She said her experience as an EPFP Fellow inspires her to encourage professional and personal growth for her staff at Education Insights Center. 

“I really think she's an innovative leader,” Leonor Ehling, Executive Director at the Center for California Studies and Co-Coordinator for California’s EPFP program, said. “She really thinks about different ways to do things. She's not constrained by the way things were done in the past. She's very creative and she's a great colleague.”

By Lillian Andemicael

At 11 years old, Dr. Marco Clark was told he was functionally illiterate by a guidance counselor, despite being declared a spelling bee champion only a year before.

This label, which Dr. Clark said was based on a standardized test, stuck with him throughout his time in grade school. His guidance counselor did not look into his academic history or ask what happened during the test assessment. Instead, she characterized him and he accepted it.

“That particular label stifled my happiness with education,” Dr. Clark said. “And no matter what my parents said about how smart I was, the fact that I was labeled by someone outside of the home … [made me] live out that label.”

Clark lived out this label until it was time to graduate high school, which he did in five years, finishing with a 1.6 GPA. It would not be until much later in his life that he would go on to earn a Ph.D. in Education from Morgan State University and eventually, become the founder and CEO of Richard Wright Public Charter Schools.

“He wasn't always Dr. Clark,” Dr. Andrey Bundley, a former employer and mentor of Dr. Clark, said. “He has the memory of how he surmounted those adversities and those obstacles. I think that drives him, and again, his care and concern, and you can't teach that. That's something that has to be in you. His care and concern for young people has driven him.”

Today, Dr. Clark is the recipient of the President Joe Biden Lifetime Achievement Award and Presidential Volunteer Service Award, the highest civil volunteerism award presented by the President of the United States. 

Looking for an opportunity to prove himself after high school, Clark wrote to several colleges explaining his circumstances. A Dean at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, decided to invite a young Dr. Clark to the school on a semester-long probationary period to prove that he could handle studying at the university level.

Understanding that his own actions were now putting him behind, Dr. Clark strove to keep up with his peers and got a tutor for every class, a practice he continued even after finishing the semester.

“After I got through that first year, I realized that I got back up to speed, and then I had it, and then I could be successful,” Clark said.

Though the label of being functionally illiterate no longer follows him, his experience in the public education system does, as it inspired Dr. Clark to become a teacher in order to help young people who may be viewing education through the same lens that he did.

“I told myself if I could get myself in a position to become a teacher that I would never allow students to see education the way I did.” Clark said. “And that I would become the benefactor of many students who didn't think education was necessary.”

After becoming a teacher, Dr. Clark realized there was more he needed to do to help save a generation of young people who viewed education from the same lens as he did. He founded Richard Wright Public Charter Schools in 2010, where he also served as a principal for five years. That same year, he became a Fellow of IEL’s DC Education Policy Fellowship Program. 

“EPFP was just one of those awesome moments and it also opened me up to be able to do, I would say in the first year, some more things than what other charter leaders are able to experience during that time,” Clark said.

During his EPFP experience, Dr. Clark was presented with a variety of perspectives and research/data, providing him with a driving tool that he could use and share with other individuals. 

“I learned a lot about making policies and how policies work to help advance organizational trends,” Dr. Clark said. “ We also looked at historical perspectives that actually brought breadth of life into my decision making.”

The lessons learned during his EPFP experience helped Dr. Clark mold other teachers under his leadership so that they could look at things from a holistic perspective, rather than what they may have heard, experienced, or been taught in the past, he said.

Dr. Clark’s dedication to both his students and faculty makes his presence truly life-changing, according to Michelle Santos, Chief Creative Officer at Richard Wright Public Schools.

“The way that he has helped shape and guide and nurture my own potential is something that I'm forever grateful for,” Santos said. “He changed the trajectory of my life and has impacted me both professionally and personally in only positive ways.”

EPFP is a nationally recognized fellowship program that engages a diverse and collaborative community of strategic leaders to promote equitable education policy. 

Entering its 59th year and with over 10,000 alumni, the program is comprised of individuals from across the country holding a variety of positions and experiences in the education sector and beyond at local, state, and national levels.  

“I am honored to have had the opportunity to lead this program and am so proud to see its impact today, almost six decades after it began. The cross-boundary leaders who join EPFP each year continue to build on a network of over 10,000 alumni that innovate in their roles and beyond to advance equitable policies in education,” shares Dr. Helen Janc Malone, the Senior Vice President, Strategy, Research, and Policy, and the outgoing National EPFP Director. “We know that to ensure meaningful change in support of children, youth, and families, we need to invest in ongoing capacity building of education leaders. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Mary at IEL for many years and am so excited to see her step into this leadership role. As a DC EPFP alumna, she has been a big supporter of the program, is an expert in education policy, and a champion for students and their communities.”  

“I am humbled and excited to lead the national EPFP program into its next chapter including its 60th year and beyond,” shares Mary Kingston Roche, IEL’s Senior Director of Policy and incoming National EPFP Director. “This fellowship was invaluable to my growth as a leader, and I am honored to be able to support, strengthen, and grow it in this new role. Our fellows and alumni are an incredible group of people dedicated to advancing equity in education and we at IEL are excited to welcome thousands more such leaders in the coming years to collectively make the changes needed for all students and their families to thrive. Dr. Helen Malone has been a mentor and inspiration to me, and we are indebted to her leadership in making EPFP the premier national education policy fellowship in the country.” 

“Through engaging site-level and national office webinars, leadership and networking sessions, and the capstone Washington Policy Seminar, I’ve seen first-hand how EPFP builds Fellows’ capacities and competencies in support of more equitable public policy,” said Eddie Koen, President of IEL. “IEL is grateful to Helen for all she has done and is confident this next era for the program under Mary’s leadership will continue to deepen connections in this vast network and see continued impact in the field of education and outcomes for all youth.”  

Learn more at epfp.iel.org or email us at epfp@iel.org.