Dr. Strickland has served young people for more than three decades in a number of instrumental roles and capacities. He began his career working in his family’s preschool business. This valuable experience instilled a love for education while cultivating an entrepreneurial spirit. He has described himself as an “edu-preneurial”, a passionate educational leader with an entrepreneurial mode of operation
Salvador Montanez was born and raised in Michoacan, Mexico. He moved to the United States in 2011 when he was a sophomore in high school and graduated in 2014. Salvador attended Johnson County Community College and then transferred to the University of Kansas City Missouri, graduating in 2020.
Hilary Cohen Singer joined Jewish Vocational Service (JVS) in 2010 and has been Executive Director since 2014. Hilary has over 20 years’ experience in nonprofit leadership, program development and strategic planning. Prior to joining JVS, Hilary was a Planning Executive at UJA-Federation of New York, working to support community-building efforts in the Russian Jewish Community.
Jade Valdez is a recent graduate of East High School and was a 2021 recipient of the Hispanic Development Fund Scholarship and is attending Avila University in the Fall. Born in California into a close-knit immigrant family, Jade is the oldest of four children and is a first-generation college student.
A year has passed since the nation witnessed the brutal murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minnesota police officers, forcing the world to face the undeniable truth that racism and discrimination against black people remains prevalent in society, and signifying there is still much work to be accomplished to achieve equity for our race.
Partnership With Artist JT Daniels Celebrates Teachers Post-Pandemic SchoolSmartKC today revealed that a new mural honoring teachers will be installed at the location of their office at 3105 Gillham, Kansas City, Missouri. Plans for the mural originated from joint...
New partnership will allow existing program to expand to younger students, more schools. SchoolSmartKC today announced a new grant and partnership with 20/20 Leadership. This grant will allow the 20/20 Leadership Program to expand into two new schools, and also extend...
SchoolSmartKC has released two new Requests For Proposals (RFPs) as part its ongoing commitment to support schools as they address COVID related learning challenges for students. This newest effort follows the distribution of over $2M to local schools and education...
Following her graduation from Hampton University, Tara joined the New Teacher Project (TNTP) and taught middle school English and Language Arts in Shreveport, Louisiana. It was here that she developed a middle school all-girls mentoring program that focused on mindfulness, college preparation, and community service.
Jennifer Collier has served as an educator in Kansas City Public Schools for 21 years. She has served in the capacity of Teacher, Assistant Principal, Principal, Director of Human Resources, and most recently, Chief Human Resources Officer and Chief of Staff.