Mark Claypool believes that all children can advance academically, behaviorally and socially if they are given the right tools in the right environment. While working as a social worker and education administrator for more than 20 years, Mark became frustrated by the decreasing resources for children with learning differences. He founded Educational Services of America in 1999. Today, the company serves more than 10,000 students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who have autism spectrum disorders (ASD), Asperger's syndrome or other learning/behavioral disabilities.
Allison O'Neill is responsible for the operations, strategic direction, integrity assurance, government relations, human resources, and sales and marketing of Ombudsman Educational Services. Allison began her career with Ombudsman in 1997 as a certified teacher and has served as regional manager, director of center operations and senior vice president of operations.
As chief operating officer, Gail Henderson oversees and directs the Spectrum division of ESA and has primary responsibility for operations, program quality, student safety and market development. Gail has more than three decades of education experience, including more than 20 years in special education. She has provided oversight to special education and therapeutic facilities, and has extensive experience in quality and assurance, crisis management, budgets, training, strategic planning and human resources.
Bryan Skelton directs the company's financial planning and reporting, investor relations, capital formation, risk management and management information systems functions. He has more than 15 years of experience in finance and accounting, including special expertise in financial modeling, project financing and acquisitions.
John McLaughlin has committed his professional life to ensuring that all children have access to education that meets their needs. A former high school administrator and tenured professor, John is also an expert on education policy at the federal, state and local levels. As director of research and analytics, he designs and executes empirical investigations related to the academic performance of both divisions of ESA.
An experienced educator and administrator, Karen LeFever directs the company's new business development strategy. She has special expertise in leading the development of partnerships that connect public school and school district achievement concerns with innovative services and programs that benefit students, school districts and communities.
Shirley Hanback has more than 30 years of experience in human resource management. She leads the company's HR department and is responsible for strategic human capital planning, development and execution of relevant and impactful policies and programs, talent acquisition and development, compensation, benefits, employee relations and legal compliance.
Don Whitfield has more than three decades of experience in both public accounting and private industry. He is responsible for the oversight of all accounting functions, including the establishment of accounting policies and procedures, financial reporting, audit relations, tax compliance and treasury management.
Alan Watson is a skilled technical leader with nearly 20 years of experience in information technology infrastructure and implementation. He leads the company's IT team and is responsible for development and continuous improvement of software, information systems, technical operations, infrastructure and internal technology solutions.
Cate Lewandowski is an experienced marketing, public relations and media professional. She has managed international and national marketing and communications programs for a variety of corporate, consumer and educational organizations and is responsible for the company's advertising, marketing and media communications.