Our Organization

Dr. Brandi Chin has dedicated her career to advancing educational equity and excellence. She has more than 16 years of experience in K-12 and higher education, with an award-winning track record of developing school and network leaders, and building strong organizational culture.

Previous to becoming the partner of quality schools for The Opportunity Trust, Brandi served as assistant superintendent at Uncommon Schools in Camden, N.J., and as founding school director of the Denver School Science and Technology Middle School at Noel Campus. Under her leadership, her schools achieved top academic results in both the city and state (first in Denver for academic growth in English and math combined, and second in Colorado for academic growth in English and math combined). She holds a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Studies from the University of Michigan, a master’s degree in K-12 Curriculum & Instruction from Regis University, and a doctorate in Education Policy from the University of Denver.

Amelia Corl joined The Opportunity Trust in February 2023 as chief of staff. Amelia previously served as the managing director of local programs at GHR Foundation leading Minneapolis-based grantmaking and governance initiatives. Prior to her work at GHR, Amelia served as chief of staff at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington, D.C. where she led strategic planning, M&E, budgeting, and human capital initiatives. Earlier in her career Amelia worked at the U.S. Agency for International Development, where she worked closely with the chief strategy officer and the head of the Bureau for Policy, Planning, and Learning. While there, she advised the leadership team on management, communications, and policy priorities. Amelia also served as a senior consultant at International Business Machines (IBM) in the Global Business Services division, where she led change management projects, IT implementations domestically and overseas, as well as communications activities. Amelia attended the University of Minnesota’s graduate program in sociology and completed her Bachelor of Arts degree at Macalester College.

Throughout Jesse’s career, he has worked on advancing educational equity at the early childhood, K-12, workforce development, higher education, non-profit, state, and federal levels. Jesse was formerly the special assistant to the superintendent of the St. Louis Public Schools where he managed federal grant programs, charter sponsorship, and launched the strategic planning process that led to the District’s re-accreditation. He also spent four years in East St. Louis where he oversaw educational programming for 2,500 students year-round – including a 1,500-student Head Start program where he initiated a two-generational education strategy leading to hundreds of Head Start parents being prepared and employed in family-sustaining wage careers. As an education policy consultant to states, districts, and schools, Jesse directed the launch and management of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Office of District and School Turnaround, a national model for how states can successfully intervene in chronically underperforming school districts. Jesse earned his master’s in Education Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Before joining The Opportunity Trust, Lennel spent 17 years  in the fields of architecture and construction. Over this time, he gained exposure to all aspects of the project design and delivery cycles. 

His current role marks a return to education. In 2003, he was a Teach For America corps member in St. Louis Public Schools. Lennel taught eighth grade algebra for two years and was appointed as the eighth grade faculty team leader. Lennel earned a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from Washington University in St. Louis. He became a licensed architect in 2018 and serves on the board of directors for the St. Louis chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Lennel is also the board chair of The Leadership School, a charter school in Pagedale, Missouri, open to children in the Normandy Schools Collaborative district.

Dr. Samantha March is the founding Associate Partner of Early Learning. Dr. March comes to The Opportunity Trust from the St. Louis Public School District, as the former Director of Early Childhood Education where she led the district’s early childhood education department and the largest pre-kindergarten public school program in the state of Missouri.

Born and raised in the City of St. Louis, Dr. March brings almost 20 years of local experience in urban education and incredible depth of knowledge in early childhood education. She has a robust skill set; having worked as a pre-kindergarten teacher, instructional coach, program administrator, professional development coordinator and district-wide leader. Dr. March specializes in learning through play with an emphasis on literacy. She earned her Cum Laude bachelor’s degree and certification in Early Childhood Education from the University of Missouri – Saint Louis and holds a masters and a doctorate degree in Educational Leadership from Maryville University.

As an active member of the PBS/Nine Network Community Advisory Board, the Office of Financial Empowerment College Kids Advisory Board, the St. Louis Literacy Regional Association Board, The Gateway Early Childhood Alliance Board and the United 4 Children Regional Leadership Hub Member, Dr. March believes serving the community is of utmost priority. She strives daily to make an intentional impact and believes that connecting community fuels limitless learning. As a servant leader, Dr. March is firmly convicted in the notion that all children deserve the best educational opportunities available and considers serving the youngest, most vulnerable in our community to be a lifelong commitment

Antonio Pacifico brings more than a decade of experience in advancing educational equity in schools. He has a track-record of
achievement in every school he has worked in.

Prior to becoming associate partner of school design at The Opportunity Trust, Antonio served as a principal at schools in Denver and New Orleans. The school he led in New Orleans was the lowest performing school in Louisiana for 30 years when he arrived. By his departure, the school was in the top third of schools in all of Orleans Parish. At his school in Denver, Antonio joined a team that had the most growth ever achieved in all of Colorado, and pushed the school to become the top-ranked school in the Five Points neighborhood. He has also served as an assistant principal and fifth grade ELA teacher.

Antonio holds a B.A. in English and Political Science from the University of Colorado, as well a
master’s degree in Instructional School Leadership from RELAY Graduate School.

Rachel Powers is a proud St. Louis native and has spent her career elevating the voices of communities to recognize and actualize their power to make change. In her previous role, she served as Communications Manager for Noble Schools in Chicago, Illinois. There, she managed external and internal communications, public and media relations, social media, and brand management for the organization’s 17 high schools and one middle school. Rachel also served as Dean of Students at Muchin College Prep, where she guided high school students to their goals through academic and social-emotional counseling; and led strategic partnership development to enhance learning outside of the classroom. Previous to working in Chicago, Rachel was a Consultant at Vector Communications in St. Louis, where she galvanized communities to address public policy issues in Missouri and Illinois. In this role, she managed marketing, public relations, community, and stakeholder engagement in the areas of health and human services, transit, transportation, and education. Rachel serves on the board of JADASA, a local non-profit, serving women and children victims of domestic violence. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a master’s degree in Social Work with a concentration in social and economic development and management, from Washington University in St. Louis.

Izzy is dedicated to using data to improve access to educational and economic opportunities for all students. Her experience includes professional development, employee training, and people analytics. Izzy has previously worked at the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, the George M. Pullman Educational Foundation, and the Harvard Graduate School of Education Admissions Office. She also served as the Curriculum Development Manager for Juntos Boston, an organization whose model for supporting unaccompanied youth to graduate high school earned a Semi-Finalist award in the 2020 Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge. Izzy holds a B.A. in Psychology and Romance Languages and Literatures from the University of Chicago as well as an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is a 2020 Strategic Data Project Fellow with the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University.

Eric began his career in education teaching middle school science in the Bronx in New York City as part of Teach For America. He had a number of roles on Teach For America’s staff including helping to open the St. Louis region and to lead the San Francisco Bay Area region through a major expansion. In these roles, Eric helped to codify the organization’s regional growth and fundraising strategy and then served as Teach For America’s Chief of Strategy and External Affairs nationally. In this role, he oversaw the unprecedented growth of the organization: opening 16 new sites, growing regional fundraising from $82 million to $228 million, and securing over $50 million in federal funding that fueled a 67% increase in the size of the national teacher corps. After 15 years working to scale Teach For America’s impact nationally and being a part of bold and successful reforms of public education systems in cities across the country, Eric returned to St. Louis to launch The Opportunity Trust to help catalyze and steward necessary change in St. Louis. He serves on the Board of Directors for Forest Park Forever and Innovate Public Schools based in San Jose, CA, and is an Aspen Institute Fellow. Eric was the first in his family to graduate from college, graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Washington University in St. Louis.

In her previous position, Tanesia Simmons served as a Founding School Leader at KIPP St. Louis High School. In this position, her primary goal was to drive academic and cultural outcomes for students, and to develop talent within the building, which includes hiring, instructional coaching, and retention. Tanesia’s career in education started in Chicago with the Noble Network of Charter Schools at Muchin College Prep, as the Founding Dean of Operations. In this founding role, she was responsible for helping to build and launch the school by overseeing all finance and operations functions necessary to run a high-performing school. This included budgeting, procurement, facilities, technology, student enrollment and attendance, student data, regulatory compliance, and academic operations support. During her time at MCP, Tanesia also took on the role of AP US History Teacher and ultimately became an Assistant Principal. Muchin College Prep currently ranks in the top 5% of Illinois high schools.

As a native St. Louisan and product of St. Louis Public Schools, Tanesia holds a B.A. in Urban School Alternatives from DePaul University and an M.Ed. from the University of Houston in Educational Administration and Supervision.

Libby is a St. Louis native passionate about improving outcomes for children in our city. She began her career at Saint Louis Public Schools, first as a kindergarten teacher through Teach for America. Libby went on to work at the district level in their Office of Institutional Advancement, focusing on community relations and marketing and communications. She then moved into the role of Community Relations Manager at Sherwood Forest, a non-profit serving low-income children in the St. Louis region. Libby remains involved with Teach For America St. Louis where she is currently an Exploring Leadership Fellow.