Improving Schools’ Coaches are ALL past school leaders with proven track records of advancing teacher and studdent growth and achievement in NY, NJ, GA, MI and beyond. Our Coaches have over 100 years of school/district leadership experience combined, and are poised to share our experience, support your schools, and continue to learn and grow.
Our Team Improving Schools works with schools, networks, districts, and states to improve school performance by offering school systems evaluations, leadership development, teacher coaching, and related school improvement/turn around support.
Prior to starting the Improving Schools, Ryan Schetelick helped engineer the launch of 124 new schools in New York City — part of an initiative that the education and social policy research organization, MDRC, has found to have significantly increased high school graduation and college enrollment rates for disadvantaged students of color. Ryan, Rolandria, and Adam all worked at School Empowerment Network for 5+ years doing similar school improvement work in Massachusetts, Louisiana, Michigan, and Atlanta.
Today, Improving Schools is hyper focused on the implementation of school improvement efforts that produce dramatic gains for underserved students.
Ryan has 20+ years of experience leading and learning within schools and school districts. Ryan was a school leader at Bronx Charter School for the Arts, a blue ribbon arts-integration school in the South Bronx. Ryan then served as a leadership/literacy consultant in Newark, NJ where he helped dramatically improve student performance in 8 schools before going on to the Office of New Schools at the NYCDOE, where he led the selection and development of new school principals for small new schools in NYC. Following his tenure with the DOE, Ryan joined School Empowerment Network (SEN), an educational non-profit focused on school design and leader development. Ryan then founded Improving Schools, Inc to bring the successful school improvement practices to other districts around the country.
Ryan is a graduate of Amherst College and a post-graduate of Teachers College Columbia University, and is a certified Structured Literacy Teacher (C-SLCT).
Rolandria Justice started her career in education as a middle school teacher in Newark, NJ. After several years in the classroom, Rolandria realized how vital effective school leadership is to the success of the school. She earned her Master’s in Educational Leadership and became an administrator supporting the development of positive learning environments and systems to increase achievement in schools in Harlem and Brooklyn. Her passion for educational leadership and entrepreneurial spirit caused her to relocate to Massachusetts where she became the founding principal of a charter school in New Bedford. Here, she was able to build a strong culture from the ground up designed around principles of quality, accountability, integrity, persistence and service. When she got married and began to have children, her life as a school leader ended, but her desire to support them did not. She became a consultant and has partnered with several organizations, districts, and schools to create and facilitate high-quality leadership programs for school and teacher leaders. She is currently completing her doctorate in educational leadership with the hopes of centering more Black, female voices in important school and educational conversations.
Dr. Simon’s educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics Education and a Master of Science in Mathematics from Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She also received her Education Specialist Degree (Instructional Media and Technology), Educational Leadership Certification, and doctorate degree in School Improvement from the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, Georgia.
She was recognized as an exemplary teacher leader and was promoted to the assistant principal position at Mays High School in 2006. After five years as an assistant principal, Dr. Simon was selected to serve as the principal at Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy Middle, and in uly 2015, became the school principal at Towns Elementary School where she was named the Atlanta Public Schools Principal of the Year in 2017. In 2018, Dr. Simon was selected as principal of the new Douglass Cluster elementary school, Harper-Archer Elementary School (HAES). In July 2022, Dr. Simon began a new step in her journey as the Director of Innovation and Redesign in the Office of Innovation, Improvement & Redesign. She proudly and joyfully continues to serve the Atlanta Public Schools community.
Rosetta is an accomplished award-winning educational leader with experience in K-12 and graduate-level education including teaching, supervision, coaching/mentoring, and senior leadership in complex environments. As an educator, she has been committed to making a positive difference in the lives of children and serving as a catalyst for educational improvement and equity in schools for over 20 years in NY/NJ. Rosetta earned her Doctorate in Education Leadership from Fordham University.
Lena Smith is a Bronx, NY native and a future graduate of Brooklyn College with a degree in Cinematography and Film/Video Production. Lena works as a free-lance photography and social media consult.
Improving Schools Inc is a national non-profit educational services provider focused on improving outcomes for all students.