Success Academy Hires Chief Scaling Officer and Chief People Officer To Support Expansion to 100 Schools, To Provide High-Quality Education To 50,000 Schoolchildren
June 20, 2016
Contact: Dan Bank, (212) 681-1380
Distinguished Executives LaMae de Jongh and Debora Barrett Join New York City’s Largest Public Charter School Network
New York, NY — Success Academy today took another step toward educating tens of thousands of New York City children stuck in failing district schools with the hiring of two experienced executives: LaMae de Jongh, a longtime executive who will serve as Chief Scaling Officer, and Debora Barrett, a human resources professional who will serve as Chief People Officer. Both executives will partner with other senior Success leaders to lead expansion efforts as the network scales to 100 schools over the next ten years.
With seven new schools opening in August, Success will operate 41 schools serving 14,000 students, in grades kindergarten through high school. At 100 schools, Success Academy would educate 50,000 children across New York City — on par with the public school systems of Atlanta and Boston — graduating 3,000 scholars each year.
Ms. de Jongh brings more than 25 years of experience providing consulting and technology and solutions at the global management firm Accenture. In her new role, Ms. de Jongh will take on broad responsibility for charting Success Academy’s path to 100 schools, establishing a shared vision around scaling for the organization and developing the solutions to support that vision. She will identify areas of inefficiency and unwanted redundancy, define processes that require standardization, technology, systems, and/or management that are required to take the organization to 100 schools and continue to develop Success as a national model of public education.
Ms. Barrett joins Success from Ralph Lauren, where she managed eleven divisions of business across thousands of distribution outlets and licensing partners in North and South America. Prior to Ralph Lauren, Ms. Barrett spent 15 years in various capacities at Univision, working with management teams overseeing approximately 6,000 employees. She implemented an electronic performance management system, new onboarding process, and enhanced the talent pipeline.
“As we enter our second decade, it is our mission to provide a high-quality education to the thousands of children stuck in failing district schools and we will not rest until that is a reality,” said Eva Moskowitz. “Both Debbie and LaMae bring significant experience in helping institutions achieve ambitious long-term goals. Their expertise, coupled with their commitment to bettering the lives of children, will help us grow and scale Success Academy while retaining and enhancing our culture of excellence.”
“This is an incredibly rewarding opportunity for me to join Success Academy, which in just ten years has changed the lives of so many children,” said de Jongh. “I look forward to working with this talented and innovative team to grow and further develop Success as a national model in public education.”
“I have strong enthusiasm for the values and mission of Success Academy,” says Barrett. “I grew up in a low-income neighborhood, and I personally understand the difference between the quality of education in those areas and in more affluent areas. To be part of an organization that teaches young people to push and strive and not be held back by their circumstances is incredible to me.”
Recognized as Professional Woman of the Year in 2012-13 by the National Association of Professional Women (NAPW), Barrett is a certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, certified Korn/Ferry Leadership Architect, and certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). She holds an MBA in Human Resources Management from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a BS in Business Administration from Montclair State University, and lives in Bergenfield, New Jersey.
Ms. de Jongh has been recognized by Crain's Business as one of New York City's Top 40 under 40 rising business leaders, and she is a David Rockefeller Fellow. She is a Director of Carver Federal Savings Bank, and also serves as Co-Vice Chair of the Board of the Children's Museum of Manhattan. She currently is the President of the Dalton School’s Parent Association and a trustee of the Dalton Board of Trustees. She holds a B.A. from Princeton University, and resides with her husband, son, and mother in Manhattan.
Seiden Krieger, a leading independent executive search firm founded in 1984, conducted the comprehensive search for Chief Scaling Officer. Chadick Ellig, a premier retained executive search firm founded in 1977, conducted the Chief People Officer search.
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ABOUT SUCCESS ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOLS
Founded in 2006, Success Academy Charter Schools are free public pre-k through 12 schools open to all children in the state through a random lottery. With 41 schools across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens, as of August, Success Academy will enroll 14,000 students, primarily low-income children of color in disadvantaged neighborhoods: 74% of students receive free or reduced-price lunch, 95% are children of color, 15% are children with disabilities, and 8.5% are English language learners. Two Success Academy schools, Success Academy Harlem 1 and SA Harlem 3, have been honored as National Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education, the only Harlem schools in the last 25 years to receive this prestigious award.
For more information about Success Academy, go to successaccademies.org and virtualtour.successacademies.org.
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