Leadership Team
Marcia Aaron, Executive Director - bio
maaron@kippla.org
Margarita Florez, Founding School Leader, KIPP Comienza Community Prep – bio
mflorez@kippla.org
Ayanna Grey, School Leader, KIPP Academy of Opportunity - bio
agrey@kippla.org
Mike Kerr, Founding Principal, KIPP Empower Academy - bio
mkerr@kippla.org
Angella Martinez, School Leader, KIPP LA Prep - bio
amartinez@kippla.org
Archana Patel, School Leader, KIPP Academy of Opportunity - bio
apatel@kippla.org
Amber Medina, Founding Principal, KIPP Raíces Academy - bio
amedina@kippla.org
Alma Cibrian, Director of Real Estate - bio
acibrian@kippla.org
Kim Dammann, Director of Special Education – bio
kdammann@kippla.org
Eric DeSobe, Associate Director of Teaching & Leadership Development – bio
edesobe@kippla.org
Keishia Kemp, Director of KIPP Through College - bio
kkemp@kippla.org
Annie Lin, Associate Director of School Operations and Finance - bio
alin@kippla.org
Matthew Peskay, Director of Information Technology - bio
mpeskay@kippla.org
Stacey Rossley Staples, Director of Development - bio
sstaples@kippla.org
About Our Team
Prior to being named Executive Director of KIPP LA, Marcia Aaron was the founding Board Chair of KIPP LA and the Board Chair of KIPP Academy of Opportunity in LA. Previously, she worked as a Senior Analyst at Pacific Growth Equities, and as a Managing Director at Deutsche Bank and Montgomery Securities. She is currently a member of the University of Oregon Alumni Center Campaign Committee and the All Stars Helping Kids’ Board of Directors. She previously served as a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Oregon Foundation and the University of Oregon Journalism Advancement Council. Marcia holds a BA in Journalism from the University of Oregon.
Margarita Florez joined KIPP LA in 2010 as a founding principal of KIPP Comienza Community Prep. Margarita came to KIPP LA from the KIPP Foundation, where she recruited outstanding educators and leaders to build KIPP schools all across the country. Prior to joining KIPP, Margarita worked as a second grade teacher and instructional coach for three years at Think College Now, a college-preparatory public elementary school in Oakland. Prior to that, Margarita taught first grade at Rowan Avenue Elementary School in East Los Angeles for two years, while completing her Masters of Arts in Elementary Education at Loyola Marymount University. Margarita earned her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley.
Ayanna Grey currently serves as a School Leader of KIPP Academy of Opportunity (KAO). Originally a native of Los Angeles, Ayanna joined the KIPP LA Team and Family as Assistant Principal of KAO in the fall of 2010, after serving three years as Founding Dean of Culture at Achievement First Bridgeport Middle School in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Ayanna earned her Bachelor’s Degree in American Studies from Occidental College where she also worked as Program Coordinator for L.A. Bridges After-School Program for several years upon graduating. Through her Teach For America placement in Baltimore, Ayanna earned her Master’s Degree in Education from Johns Hopkins University and began her teaching career as a fifth grade teacher. She remained in Baltimore where she worked as a second grade teacher, founding English Language Arts teacher, and Grade Level Chair.
Mike Kerr came to KIPP Empower Academy as a founding principal in 2010. Prior to coming to KIPP, Mike served for five years as the founding principal of Achievement First Crown Heights Elementary Charter School in Brooklyn, NY. In 2008-09, Mike’s final year as principal at Achievement First, his fourth grade students scored in the 97th percentile on their statewide exams with 72 percent scoring in the advanced category on their math exams. Mike began his career in education as a Teach for America corps member. Including his TFA commitment, he taught for five years at Public School 192 in Harlem, NY. At PS 192, Mike taught kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and third grade and was a grade-level leader and a liaison between his school and Teachers’ College Reading and Writing Project. Mike earned his BA from the University of Maryland, where he was recipient of the Byrd Citizenship Award, an honor bestowed upon the top all-around graduating male at the university. He also holds a Masters in Elementary and Early Childhood Education from the Bank Street College of Education and an MS Ed. in School Leadership from Harvard University.
Angella Martinez is the Principal at KIPP Los Angeles College Preparatory School in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles. In her first year as Principal, the school increased 101 Academic Performance Index points, making it the seventh highest performing middle school in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Prior to becoming principal and upon completing her undergraduate studies at UCLA, Ms. Martinez joined Teach for America corps where she taught at Ralph J. Bunche Elementary for six years. While teaching, she helped the school become the first California Distinguished School in the Compton Unified School District. To broaden her impact in transforming public education, Ms. Martinez left the classroom to work for the KIPP Foundation as the Recruitment Manager where she sought new KIPP school leader candidates for the highly competitive Fisher and Miles Family Fellowships. While recruiting, Ms. Martinez found her passion in educational leadership and became a KIPP school leader successor in 2008.
Archana Patel currently serves as a School Leader of KIPP Academy of Opportunity (KAO). Archana comes to KIPP LA from the East Coast. She attended Boston College, where she studied English and Philosophy. After earning her Bachelor’s Degree, Ms. Patel joined Teach For America and taught middle school in the Bronx, New York. She continued teaching at KIPP Rise Academy in Newark, New Jersey, where she served as Fifth Grade Level Chair and a Non-Fiction Studies teacher. She also spent time abroad, helping start Teach for India and working with the non-profit Indicorps to provide talented young people opportunities to engage in grassroots development work in India. Archana earned her Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the University of Southern California.
Amber Young is the founder of California’s first KIPP elementary school, KIPP Raíces Academy. Most recently, she served as the Interim Principal at Ralph J. Bunche Elementary School, her original placement school through Teach for America. Prior to becoming principal, she served as a resource teacher. In this position, she coached teachers and oversaw the categorical budget, among other responsibilities in and out of the classroom. At Bunche, she also taught second grade, served as grade level chair, and created the school’s “College Bound” program. During her six-year tenure at Bunche, she played an integral role in transforming the school from low-performing to Compton Unified’s first California Distinguished School. Amber received her BA from Amherst College as a double major in History and Sociology. She also holds a Masters of Arts in Elementary Education and a Masters in School Administration from Loyola Marymount University. Amber was one of 13 Fisher Fellows selected out of approximately 550 applicants for the prestigious and rigorous KIPP School Leadership Program.
Alma Cibrian comes to KIPP LA from Pacific Charter School Development (PCSD), where she served as a Project Manager. Responsibilities included overseeing the development of KIPP LA Prep's current facility in Boyle Heights, a $3.2 million conversion of a tortilla chip factory into a school. Prior to her tenure at PCSD, Alma was a Research Director at Bentley Forbes and a Commercial Real Estate Appraiser and Consultant at Norris Realty Advisors. Alma holds a Bachelor’s in Economics from UC Berkeley and a Master's in Real Estate Development from the University of Southern California, where she was inducted into the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.
Kim Dammann currently serves as Director of Special Education for KIPP LA Schools. Prior to joining KIPP, Kim was a Resource Specialist Program Coordinator for Total Education Solutions where she managed the special education compliance and services for over 30 charter schools in the Los Angeles region. Kim also provided supervision, training and mentoring for a team of over 26 Resource Specialists. Prior to Total Education Solutions, Kim spent 10 years as a special education teacher with Five Acres, a residential treatment facility for abused and neglected children in the foster care system. With Five Acres, Kim taught kindergarten, second, sixth, seventh and eighth grades. Her last six years were spent in the role of Lead Teacher for the Junior High School Program. Kim graduated from California State University Northridge with a BA in Sociology and has both her Level II Education Specialist and Professional Clear Multiple Subjects credentials.
Eric DeSobe currently serves as Associate Director of Teaching and Leadership Development for KIPP LA Schools and spends most his time training teachers and future school leaders. Eric attended Emory University in Atlanta where he majored in history and studied abroad in Cape Town, South Africa. Following graduation, Eric joined Teach for America and moved to Los Angeles where he taught fourth grade for two years. Eric then moved to Boston and completed a two years Master's program in Theology at Harvard. Missing the classroom, Eric returned to Compton at Ralph J. Bunche Elementary and taught fourth and fifth grade science the next three years. He helped the school become the first California Distinguished School in LAUSD’s history. In his spare time, Eric consults for Teach for America and serves as President of the Del Rey Neighborhood Council, an elected office that oversees issues around community services, education, and land use and planning developments.
Keishia Kemp joined the KIPP LA team in the summer of 2010 as the Director of KIPP Through College. Prior to joining KIPP, Keishia worked for the Crossroads School of Arts and Sciences where she served seven years as an Academic Dean, College Counselor, and English teacher. During her tenure, she increased visibility and modernized the college counseling program with an annual college attendance rate of 99%. In addition, she established a mentoring program for African American male students, and spearheaded several multicultural curriculum initiatives. Prior to arriving in Los Angeles, Keishia worked as the Assistant Director of Admissions at Georgetown University, also her alma mater. Keishia holds a Master’s degree in Education from Harvard University, and a BA in English from Georgetown University.
Annie Lin recently joined the KIPP LA team as the Associate Director of School Operations and Finance. Prior to joining KIPP, Annie worked as the Dean of Student Services at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco where she provided strategic planning, coordination, and supervision services for three departments-student services, library services and housing-for nearly five years. She also has experience in the classroom from her time as an English Language Instructor in Tokyo, Japan. Annie holds a Master's degree in Education from USC, and a BA in Liberal Studies from Mount St. Mary’s College.
Matthew Peskay joined the KIPP LA team in the summer of 2009 after working at Edmunds.com and supporting its corporate IS infrastructure. Before moving to Los Angeles, he held the position of Manager of IT at the Teachers College, Columbia University. While in New York, Matthew also worked as a consultant for the FUND for the City of New York, developing and supporting technology for a wide range of non-profit organizations. Matthew holds a Master's degree in Philosophy and Education from the Teachers College, Columbia University, and has a background in theater, directing and co-producing the play In The Wire, a play chronicling the journey of an e-mail message across the internet.
Prior to joining KIPP LA, Stacey Rossley Staples was an Associate at the Joseph Drown Foundation, a grant-making agency whose primary funding focus is education. She has worked for several other education and non-profit organizations in Los Angeles, including a college access program called College Match. Stacey holds an MBA from the UCLA Anderson Graduate School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts from Amherst College.
