For four decades, the Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) has been at the forefront of creating equitable educational opportunities. We believe the strongest supports for a child’s education already exist within the homes and communities we serve. Our role is to act as thought partners and collaborators—breaking down silos and dismantling obstacles through strategic planning, skill-building, and direct partnership.
How We Drive Transformation: Everything we do is community-centered, trauma-informed, healing-focused, and culturally relevant. We don’t just work in schools; we come alongside educators at the county, district, and school-site levels to assess assets and develop strategies that build vibrant, inclusive learning communities.
Because education transformation is a journey and every community starts from a different place, LAEP offers tailored entry points designed to meet your unique needs and capacity.
The Ultimate Goal: We empower families and educators to drive liberation, ensuring that children of every age, race, gender, socio-economic status, and ability are developmentally and academically prepared for success in school and in life.
LAEP offers a variety of entry points, each tailored to the unique needs and capacity of your learning community:
Parents are a child’s first educator. Using a holistic approach, we empower parents to be early childhood development and educational advocates. Our personalized support begins with prenatal education and support for parents-to-be. It continues from birth until the child’s third birthday with home visits, socialization groups, developmentally appropriate activities, connections to social and health services, and assistance for families of children with special needs.
Ready2Teach, the latest pilot program from LAEP, is an ambitious project that will address early childhood education shortfalls across Los Angeles County. It will increase the number of qualified infant/toddler teachers and strengthen the capacity of licensed childcare sites to serve children ages 0-5.
Our Teaching & Learning Coordinators are practitioners who:
STEAM Teaching & Learning Coordinators integrate STEAM learning into campus culture through coaching, programming, and curriculum development.
Our team builds partnerships among school staff, students, parents, and community organizations to coordinate academic, health, and social services in order to address systemic inequities and student needs. LAEP’s community schools embrace cultural humility, remove barriers to learning, leverage resources, and increase opportunities. We provide technical assistance as well as full-service community school implementation.
LAEP provides workshops and coaching to support schools, districts, and other professional leaders in becoming trauma-responsive and resilient. Our CORE coaches help leaders implement and promote policies and practices that build equitable, safe environments that increase the health and well-being of staff and the community they serve.
We facilitate whole-school, team-based, and group-specific professional development that supports school staff in managing the demands of a constantly changing environment. We do this by enhancing the craft of group development, instruction, and leadership.
Looking to collaborate, but unsure of where to start?
Contact us to discuss an approach that fits your needs.
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.
