Meet the DLC Team
We are a team of educators, advocates, curious listeners, and courageous doers. We all share a passion for equitable access to education for all learners, and we live out this mission every day.
Brooke Allen
Executive Director
Brooke is the founding director of Diverse Learners Cooperative. She leads the DLC team’s efforts to equip and empower school and district teams to serve all learners. As a former special education teacher, leader, school founder, and consultant, she deeply believes in the potential of all students and the school teams that serve them. She received her B.S. and M.Ed. in special education, elementary education, and English learner education from Vanderbilt University and has been a Nashville educator since.
Laura Bantle
PROJECT MANAGER
As a project manager, Laura works with DLC partners nationwide to support system-level special education program development, implementation, and evaluation. She strives to dismantle the structural and belief-based silos often built around diverse learners and educators. Prior to her work at DLC, Laura was a founding team member of a charter high school in Nashville, TN, also serving on the school’s leadership team as an assistant principal and supporting a team of special educators, EL teachers, interventionists, and counselors. She earned her M.Ed. in high-incidence special education from Vanderbilt University while supporting school-based math intervention research and supervising pre-service teachers.
Mary Matthews Coffey
Program Director
As Program Director, Mary works with school teams to design and facilitate meaningful programs that support students’ academic and behavioral needs. She is a former special education teacher, Teacher of the Year, and Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). With a perceptive ability to identify team dynamics and student needs, she has contributed critical support to move school teams closer toward meeting their diverse learner goals.
Madison DeVincenzo
PROGRAM SPECIALIST
As a Program Specialist, Madison collaborates with the Diverse Learners Cooperative’s partners to support teachers and leaders in implementing best practices for inclusive education. She brings over 13 years of experience in the education field, including more than 6 years coaching educators and leading professional development. Madison holds a Master’s degree in the Art of Teaching from Relay GSE New York and a Bachelor’s in Special Education from the University of North Texas. Throughout her career, she has worn many hats, including those of Instructional Coach, Special Education Teacher and Academic Dean. Madison specializes in designing and facilitating targeted professional development sessions and supporting new leaders and teachers. At DLC, she is eager to continue advocating for inclusive practices, supporting schools in addressing the unique needs of their students, and creating impactful change in educational communities.
Justine Katzenbach
DIRECTOR, ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY
Justine began her teaching career as a Teach For America Corps Member in New Orleans, Louisiana. Since then, she has worked as a Special Education teacher and Behavior Analyst in Louisiana, Massachusetts, Tennessee and North Carolina. She is passionate about providing teachers with the tools and training they need to deliver high quality education for all of their students. As the Director of Organizational Strategy, Justine supports both external engagement and internal development.
Katava Johnson
PROGRAM SPECIALIST, SPECIAL EDUCATION
Katava Johnson has worked as a special educator and leader in Nashville and Memphis, TN. She received her M.Ed. in Special Education with a focus on low incidence populations while conducting Autism research with the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center. She believes that all students deserve access to equitable and transformational education, and is committed to working with schools and communities to implement creative and effective solutions that move closer to this vision.
Sage Pickren, Ph.D.
PROGRAM SPECIALIST, SPECIAL EDUCATION
As a program specialist, Sage works with DLC’s partners to support teachers and leaders with implementing best practices in special education. She graduated from Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College earning her Ph.D. in special education, with a focus on reading disabilities and behavior. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA-D) and is certified to teach both general education and special education. Prior to returning to school, Sage worked for Metro Nashville Public schools and served as the grade-level team leader and multilingual learner reading teacher. Sage believes that behavior plays an integral role in students’ academic success and lifelong outcomes.
Mary Rakes
FELLOWSHIP MANAGER
Mary Rakes is an educator passionate about the success of multilingual learners. She received her B.A. in Elementary Education from Taylor University in Upland, IN. From there, she went on to complete a M.Ed. in Reading Education with a focus on English Learners at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College. She taught ML students in MNPS, with a specific focused on teaching students who were new to the country. As a model classroom for the EL department and team lead for one of the largest multilingual school populations, she was able to share best practices, research and experience with other teachers. She is thrilled to be using her expertise and experience to help schools, teachers, and students succeed.
Cristina Villarreal Smith
ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST
Cristina promotes the extension of the DLC’s mission through strategic planning, meaningful outreach, and tracking toward shared goals. She also supports the DLC’s development goals through working closely with the team and board. Cristina has worked in education in a variety of roles, including as a high school Spanish teacher and family engagement specialist.
Chloe Walters, Ed.D.
PROGRAM SPECIALIST, MULTILINGUAL LEARNERS
As a Program Specialist, Chloe works closely with teachers and leaders to improve educational opportunities for multilingual learners. She has served as an ML teacher, co-teacher, and curriculum lead, and greatly enjoys working with students and colleagues to maximize academic environments and opportunities for multilingual learners. Chloe combines her teaching experience, MSEd. in TESOL, and Ed. D. in Learning Organizations & Strategic Change to tailor and communicate specific tools, strategies, and best practices based on the unique goals of an educator or educational institution.
Our Founding Story
A note from DLC's Founder, Brooke Allen
In my work as a special educator, I was tasked with uncovering learning solutions for students who had unique needs. It was often not the first or second solution that succeeded, but the sixth, seventh, or tenth. Special education is the ultimate practice in resourcefulness and persistence, built on a foundation of relationships with students and their families.
I found this creative work rewarding, but also challenging. I was the only or one of a few special educators in my school. Opportunities for professional development often included sitting in the back of a core content session because there wasn’t an option specific to diverse learner needs. Coaching meetings felt disconnected from my daily practice, and evaluation rubrics were difficult to use. Time for collaboration with my peers was hard to come by, and school systems designed to build community were sometimes less than inclusive of my students.
I found this creative work rewarding, but also challenging. I was the only or one of a few special educators in my school. Opportunities for professional development often included sitting in the back of a core content session because there wasn’t an option specific to diverse learner needs. Coaching meetings felt disconnected from my daily practice, and evaluation rubrics were difficult to use. Time for collaboration with my peers was hard to come by, and school systems designed to build community were sometimes less than inclusive of my students.
Given the opportunity to conduct a needs assessment of diverse learner practices in our community, it became immediately apparent my experience was not unfamiliar. Teachers reported feeling isolated, under-supported, unsuccessful, and burnt out. Special and EL educators were leaving their positions at higher rates than their peers, a trend that aligns with national data. We know that teacher turnover is costly from both financial and student outcome perspectives.
Out of these findings came an idea for an organization that filled this gap – an organization that would connect special and EL educators with relevant resources, high quality professional learning opportunities, and networks of their peers. If teachers felt equipped and empowered, would they stay longer and inspire better outcomes for students with all abilities and language backgrounds? The Diverse Learners Cooperative launched in 2018 to find out.
Out of these findings came an idea for an organization that filled this gap – an organization that would connect special and EL educators with relevant resources, high quality professional learning opportunities, and networks of their peers. If teachers felt equipped and empowered, would they stay longer and inspire better outcomes for students with all abilities and language backgrounds? The Diverse Learners Cooperative launched in 2018 to find out.
Join the Team
We are not currently hiring, but we plan to continue to grow Team DLC in the near future to meet the rising demand for our support and services. If you find yourself aligned to the DLC’s mission with deep experience in diverse learner education or a related field, please complete the inquiry form. We will be in touch should an open opportunity align with your profile.
Board of Directors
Membership & Alliances
Our work is inspired and informed by meaningful partnerships with local and national organizations.
Our Supporters
Our work would not be possible without the generous support from our current and past supporters.
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