Teammate Spotlight: CEI Expands Our Leadership in Assessment and Work-Based Learning
February 7, 2022
We are thrilled to have welcomed Dr. Jared Anthony, Katherine Novinski, and Natalie Gonzalez to our team in the last few months. These new hires are part of our commitment to accelerating CEI’s 2023 goals and in response to increasing requests from school and district partners for expertise and support in work-based learning and rethinking assessment design. Jared, Katherine, and Natalie build on team expansions in 2020 that included Marcus Bratton and Valeria Martinez, who have increased CEI’s leadership and support for school leadership, equity, social emotional learning, and community engagement. We are excited for you to know and work with each of them, who you can read more about below.
Dr. Jared Anthony, Director of Policy and Assessment Redesign – secondary assessment and measurement
As new Director of Policy and Assessment Redesign, Dr. Jared Anthony will focus on secondary assessment and measurement and state and local policy change that increase relevance and equity in high schools, including support for innovative assessments that strengthen local Graduation Guidelines implementation and blur the lines at K12, higher education, and workforce. Jared comes to CEI from CDE, where he co-led development of the performance assessment menu option under Graduation Guidelines and Colorado’s Reimagining College Access initiative, coordinated the state’s high school accountability assessments, and supported increased assessment literacy among districts and schools. Jared earned his Doctorate in the Psychology of Education from Fordham University, where he focused on how non-cognitive factors can influence academic success and worked at Educational Testing Service (ETS) for the National Assessment for Education Progress, where he led end-to end delivery of large-scale survey questionnaires aimed at eliciting data to be used for improving educational equity.
Marcus Bratton, Director, Implementation and Partnership – school and district coaching, social emotional learning, equity-focused strategic planning
As Director of Implementation and Partnership, Marcus Bratton coaches school and district leaders in multiple projects focused on increasing support for social emotional learning and restorative justice, expanding concurrent enrollment, and facilitating community-driven equity councils and strategic planning efforts. Marcus joined the CEI team in July 2020, bringing over a decade of experience in public education in Colorado, including as a credit recovery high school teacher, instructional coach, adult facilitator, and school administrator.
Natalie Gonzalez, Development Associate – development systems, project and event management
As Development Associate, Natalie Gonzalez manages CEI’s business development and grant tracking systems and supports project and event management across CEI teams. Natalie joined the CEI team in August 2021 after first interning at CEI in 2019, bringing experience supporting nonprofit operations in literacy arts and education.
Valeria Martinez, Associate, Implementation and Partnership – equity councils, family and community engagement
As Implementation and Partnership Associate, Valeria Martinez supports multiple projects focused on accelerating equity and community engagement, including facilitating equity councils, supporting districts in developing community graduate profiles, and launching a culturally responsive family partnership learning series for the state of New Mexico. Valeria joined the CEI team in February 2020, bringing experience working for a public charter school network and leading family engagement and advocacy efforts.
Katherine Novinski, Assistant Director, Implementation and Partnership – career connected learning practices and policies
As Assistant Director of Implementation and Partnership, Katherine Novinski coaches school and district leaders in multiple projects focused on expanding work-based learning and building equitable pathways that enable student success in college and career, including support for career and technical education pathways, concurrent enrollment, industry credentials, and other career development efforts. Katherine joined the CEI team in September 2021, bringing years of experience as a math teacher, career preparation manager, and instructional designer, including work with DC Public Schools to develop and manage industry partnerships and internship programs and with CityWorks DC to launch CareerWise DC and expand youth apprenticeship programs across the U.S.