Great schools aren’t built on isolated efforts; they thrive on collective expertise. In an era of increasing demands on school leaders, LAEP serves as a strategic partner—transforming school cultures into environments where collaboration, trust, and high-quality instruction are the standard, not the exception. Our Teaching & Learning Coordinators work side-by-side with instructional leadership teams to bridge the gap between a school’s vision and its daily reality, building the internal capacity of your staff to sustain growth long after our partnership concludes.
We enhance your school’s ability to drive student success and instructional excellence through:
Strategic Leadership Coaching: Utilizing needs assessments and continuous improvement processes to turn school priorities into actionable, data-driven goals.
Non-Evaluative Instructional Support: Providing “boots-on-the-ground” coaching and classroom observations that build teacher confidence and competence without the pressure of formal evaluation.
Culturally Responsive Practices: Modeling relationship-building and equity-driven instruction to ensure every student and family feels seen, heard, and valued.
Distributed Leadership: Moving away from “top-down” management by fostering collaborative decision-making and aligning individual staff goals with the school’s overall mission.
Traditional professional development often stops at the classroom door, but our Instructional Rounds break that barrier. This judgment-free, data-driven practice brings teachers, assistants, parents, and students together to observe instruction through a specific “problem of practice” lens. By identifying trends and celebrating successes in real-time, we move schools away from isolated “islands of excellence” toward a unified culture of growth where high-quality learning is a shared, visible experience for everyone.
At LAEP, we believe that all learning is STEAM learning. Rather than something extra to tack on to an already crowded instructional day, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) can be integrated into existing curriculum, practices, and school activities. LAEP’s STEAM Teaching & Learning team helps schools and districts align goals for integrated STEAM learning in K-12 settings.
Instructional Coaching & Support: We empower teachers to integrate STEAM into classroom instruction. We do this through observation, non-evaluative feedback, coaching, and instructional support (such as modeling, co-planning, and co-facilitation). We also support administrators in developing an instructional vision around STEAM learning.
STEAM Culture Building: We create engagement and excitement around STEAM among students, families, and the community through activities like:
Melissa Peña serves as the Chief Program Officer at the Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP), bringing more than two decades of experience advancing educational equity, youth development, and community-centered systems change. A mission-driven and strategic leader, she has dedicated her career to eliminating barriers to learning and seeking equitable outcomes for historically underserved youth. Prior to joining LAEP, Melissa spent over 14 years at Green Dot Public Schools where she launched and scaled high-impact initiatives that reduced chronic absenteeism by 27%, expanded access to wellness services, and built network-wide support systems for more than 600 homeless and foster youth across 18 schools. Her leadership is rooted in both entrepreneurial vision and disciplined execution—designing programs, teams, and infrastructure that strengthen outcomes for students while supporting the adults who serve them.
Melissa’s commitment to equity has shaped her work across roles in education, youth development, and human services, including senior leadership positions at The Door in New York City and national diversity recruitment efforts at Teach For America. She began her career as a fourth-grade teacher in Newark, New Jersey, a formative experience that continues to ground her belief that the key to ensuring every young person meets their full potential lies in the power of family–school–community partnerships. At LAEP, Melissa leads program strategy with empathy, clarity, and a deep belief that children thrive when systems work together from “diapers to diplomas.” She holds a Master’s in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.A. in Sociology from UC Santa Barbara. Outside of work, she enjoys researching her family history, exploring nature, and family movie nights with her husband and two children.
LaCora is a seasoned communications professional with a passion for using multimedia
storytelling to empower movements for social justice and equality. For over 13 years, she has
honed her skills as a versatile multimedia director, overseeing media operations across diverse
organizations, including the NAACP Beverly Hills-Hollywood Branch and The Shirley Chisholm
Education Foundation. Her deep understanding of the education and equity landscape fuels her
creative vision, allowing her to craft impactful narratives that resonate with audiences.
With strategic communication and collaboration, LaCora excels in developing and executing
compelling multimedia campaigns that not only raise awareness of critical issues but also
inspire action and drive meaningful change. Her proficiency in concept development, production
execution, and team leadership ensures projects are delivered with exceptional quality.
Furthermore, LaCora fosters strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders,
cultivating partnerships that maximize campaign reach and impact.
LaCora's educational foundation began with a Bachelor of Science in Theatre Education from
Florida A&M University. She then pursued a master’s degree in TESOL (Teaching English to
Speakers of Other Languages) from Alliant University of San Diego. This passion for
storytelling, fueled by her background in education, translates to her belief in the power of
shared narratives. Her work in this area was recognized through her selection as a Women in
Film Mentee and film director for Viola Davis’ sponsored film showcase, Diversity in Cannes.
Now, LaCora leverages her love of storytelling and commitment to educational equity in her role
leading marketing and communications for Los Angeles Education Partnership, while also
serving on the board of the Pasadena African American Film Foundation.
Dr. Eric Barela has worked as a measurement & evaluation professional for over 2 decades, helping organizations to better understand and act on their social impact. He’s currently a Senior Consultant with Raya Cooper Impact Consulting and previously worked at Salesforce, where he led efforts to measure the social impact of the company’s work with nonprofits and educational institutions across the globe. He began his career working with the Los Angeles Unified School District and with the nonprofit, Partners in School Innovation. Eric previously served on the Board of the American Evaluation Association and currently serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of the American Journal of Evaluation.
Eric grew up in East LA and was educated in the Montebello Unified School District. He holds a Ph.D. in education from UCLA. He loves a good road trip, with his husband serving as trusty navigator.
