Experience

Overbrook School for the Blind

• Education Administration Programs
• 100 - 200 Employee

• Chief Financial Officer

  • Aug 2022 - Present

  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States



The Enrollment Management Association

• United States
• Education Administration Programs
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Chief Financial Officer

  • Feb 2020 - Aug 2022

  New Jersey, United States $20mm not-for-profit provider of admissions testing, best practices, and professional development for private-school enrollment professionals around the globe. Hired to lead this 60-year-old paper-based educational testing company to a SaaS-based subscription model with a combination of financial and operational leadership and digital systems expertise. •Led the transition to an AI-based at-home testing solution, offsetting the 100% loss of paper-based testing revenue created by… Show more $20mm not-for-profit provider of admissions testing, best practices, and professional development for private-school enrollment professionals around the globe. Hired to lead this 60-year-old paper-based educational testing company to a SaaS-based subscription model with a combination of financial and operational leadership and digital systems expertise. •Led the transition to an AI-based at-home testing solution, offsetting the 100% loss of paper-based testing revenue created by the pandemic. •Led customer-pricing sensitivity analysis, identifying 6 unique business revenue streams and enabling price increases from 5% to 18%. •Reduced capital expenses from $3MM to $1MM on a $20MM annual operating budget. •Performed 5-year technology assessment leading to the adoption of Salesforce CRM system that saves $2.5 annually, improves retention of institutional knowledge, and provides a financial modeling capability. •Integrated legacy financial systems, implementing Sage Intech ERP system and Vena budgeting and planning solution. •Led new product development, creating four new revenue streams generating $1MM in new revenue. •Pivoted from Wells Fargo to a new banking relationship, obtaining over $2M of Cares Act relief funding, and successfully retaining 50 staff members. Show less



The School District of Philadelphia

• United States
• Education Administration Programs
• 700 & Above Employee

• Deputy Chief Financial Officer

  • Sep 2016 - Feb 2020

  Pennsylvania, United States Philadelphia Public Schools with a $3.5 Billion Budget Hired to provide the school district with greater financial transparency and improved financial management. Built and coordinated 15 inter-departmental teams with 110 staff members across the District to lead processes improvements and increase transparency. Oversaw $3.5B operating budget and all ERP systems and labor expense tracking for 18,000 employees and 5 collective bargaining units. 7 direct reports and a total team of… Show more Philadelphia Public Schools with a $3.5 Billion Budget Hired to provide the school district with greater financial transparency and improved financial management. Built and coordinated 15 inter-departmental teams with 110 staff members across the District to lead processes improvements and increase transparency. Oversaw $3.5B operating budget and all ERP systems and labor expense tracking for 18,000 employees and 5 collective bargaining units. 7 direct reports and a total team of 100+. •Expanded and secured revenue sources by $60 million that were at risk due to city legislative changes. •Led four straight years of balanced budgets resulting in Moody's double credit rating upgrade and the first investment-grade rating since 1977 due to five straight years of balanced budgets. •Completed bond refunding that will save $100 million+ over the next 20 years •Invested $45 million in classroom technology and over 20,000 chrome books delivered to schools, $50 million invested in early literacy classroom modernization, $8 million invested in repainting over 824,000 square feet of space impacting more than 6,700 students. •Drove a $100MM increase in spending with women and minority-owned businesses by greatly simplifying the process for these vendors to do business with the school district. •Led successful ERP system selection and implementation across the entire $5B budget for the district. Led negotiations and implementation of a $50M systems project, negotiating contracts with Oracle, Kronos, Taleo, and subcontractors, including Cherry Roach Technologies and Worldgate. Show less



Independence Mission Schools

• United States
• Education Administration Programs
• 1 - 100 Employee

• CFO

  • Jul 2015 - Aug 2016

  Pennsylvania, United States A $30MM non-profit control entity for a Catholic School System of 15 schools. Hired to create centralized financial management, purchasing, and digital systems for this group of 15-member schools as they transitioned from a Catholic diocese to an independent group of schools. This model was then replicated in New York and Chicago. Oversaw accounting, fundraising, IT, HR, enrollment, and building maintenance. 6 direct reports with a total team of 50 of both direct and dotted line… Show more A $30MM non-profit control entity for a Catholic School System of 15 schools. Hired to create centralized financial management, purchasing, and digital systems for this group of 15-member schools as they transitioned from a Catholic diocese to an independent group of schools. This model was then replicated in New York and Chicago. Oversaw accounting, fundraising, IT, HR, enrollment, and building maintenance. 6 direct reports with a total team of 50 of both direct and dotted line reports. •Streamlined digital donation process, saving $49 per transaction and reducing merchant fee from 3% to 2.3% for annual cost savings of $35,000 while providing PCI compliance. •Improved technology for students and saved $100,000 annually in infrastructure and utility costs through group purchasing and obtaining government grants. •Achieved 100% teacher staffing through improved recruiting processes to support average enrollment increases of 10% annually. •Provided the Board with its first assessment of student retention and lifetime value, providing the catalyst to improve parent and student engagement. •Established a lifetime value of a student and predictive tools for each school, demonetarizing the value of student retention to the parent company's Board of Directors. Show less



SpArc Philadelphia

• United States
• Individual and Family Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• CFO

  • May 2012 - Jul 2015

  Pennsylvania, United States A $10MM non-profit vocational training day program for adults with IDD located in Philadelphia Hired to evaluate and reorganize the finance department and modernize business processes. Worked across three organizations to create a parent company, corporate structure, and operating budget. Formed a parent company and structured the business model for the funding of the two subsidiaries. Led the startup of three new social enterprises that provided employment opportunities for… Show more A $10MM non-profit vocational training day program for adults with IDD located in Philadelphia Hired to evaluate and reorganize the finance department and modernize business processes. Worked across three organizations to create a parent company, corporate structure, and operating budget. Formed a parent company and structured the business model for the funding of the two subsidiaries. Led the startup of three new social enterprises that provided employment opportunities for program participants. Implemented a time-and-labor management system and corresponding HRIS system, eliminating over 1,000 bi-weekly manual timecards and resulting In annual cost savings and revenue recognition of over $100K. Employed an applicant tracking system, resulting in annual savings of $30K. Obtained $200K Cornerstone Foundation Grant, the largest grant the organization ever received. Utilized outsourced SQL programmer to create a custom accounts receivable solution for billing, saving the agency the cost of purchasing a solution for $100K and increasing the accuracy of the accounts. Show less



SC Academy, Inc

• Director of Reporting and Budgeting

  • Sep 2011 - May 2012

  New Jersey, United States A $50MM for-profit, private-equity-backed, multi-state vocational training school for careers in the service sectors. Hired to perform financial analysis on potential acquisitions and bring newly acquired schools into a unified financial ecosystem, including financial reporting. Oversaw financial reporting to board and management for 8 schools in 3 states. Developed budgets and forecasts for acquisitions to achieve 1,000 enrolled students across 15 programs. Created an implementation… Show more A $50MM for-profit, private-equity-backed, multi-state vocational training school for careers in the service sectors. Hired to perform financial analysis on potential acquisitions and bring newly acquired schools into a unified financial ecosystem, including financial reporting. Oversaw financial reporting to board and management for 8 schools in 3 states. Developed budgets and forecasts for acquisitions to achieve 1,000 enrolled students across 15 programs. Created an implementation plan to migrate from QuickBooks to the new ERP system. Achieved the private equity firm's goal of increasing the size of the system by 100% and increased student enrollment by 30% in fewer than 12 months. Ensured ongoing flow of student loan revenue by demonstrating that past 5-year loan revenue did not exceed 90% of the total. Show less



Drexel eLearning

• United States

• Controller & Senior Accounting Manager

  • Sep 2007 - Aug 2011

  Pennsylvania, United States A for-profit subsidiary started by Drexel University establish to market and manage online degree programs Hired by the CEO and Board to build systems and processes for this digital learning business, enabling 300% growth. Moved from cash basis to accrual accounting. Implemented a business intelligence platform. Established pricing and revenue modeling. Grew from 1 region to 5 and formed 50+ corporate partnerships. Collaborated with peers on the leadership team to develop and… Show more A for-profit subsidiary started by Drexel University establish to market and manage online degree programs Hired by the CEO and Board to build systems and processes for this digital learning business, enabling 300% growth. Moved from cash basis to accrual accounting. Implemented a business intelligence platform. Established pricing and revenue modeling. Grew from 1 region to 5 and formed 50+ corporate partnerships. Collaborated with peers on the leadership team to develop and implement a strategy that achieved year-over-year growth goals of 20%, resulting in growth from $50M to $90M in annual revenues. Show less