Renaissance Content Quality Advisory Council

Dr. Chastity McFarlan is the Director of Content Quality at Renaissance and the Chair of the Content Quality Advisory Committee. She oversees the process for ensuring content across Renaissance’s products is appropriate, inclusive, and representative. Prior to joining Renaissance, Dr. McFarlan provided technical assistance to charter school authorizers across the country and evaluated academic programs of charter schools across New York State. Dr. McFarlan earned her PhD in Developmental Psychology from Howard University.

Dr. Porsche Boddicker-Young, is the Racial Equity Manager and Research Scientist at Child Trends. Dr. Boddicker-Young’s research interests include culturally responsive pedagogy, disciplinary practices of Black students, and the relationship between racial identity and student achievement. Prior to joining Child Trends, Dr. Boddicker-Young worked for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and at Duke University’s Department of Community and Family Medicine. Dr. Boddicker-Young earned her PhD in Developmental Psychology from Howard University.

Bhavana Gandhi is the Director of Curriculum Innovation at National Geographic Society developing cutting edge educational resources and making them globally accessible. Prior to joining National Geographic, Bhavana worked at Chicago Public Schools where she led the work of building culturally responsive, standards-aligned PK-12 assessments across 7 different content areas. Bhavana holds master’s degrees in Applied Psychology from University of Bombay and in Educational Leadership & Societal Change from Soka University of America.

Dr. Kelli Peterson, is the Founder and Principal Consultant of The Ed.ucateD Approach, a national education consulting firm. Dr. Peterson is deeply invested in alleviating inadequate educational experiences for historically excluded populations. Dr. Peterson served as a teacher and school administrator, the Chief Portfolio Innovation and Accountability Officer at NOLA Public Schools, and as the Assistant Superintendent at the Louisiana Department of Education. Dr. Peterson earned her EdD in Curriculum Planning from Tennessee State University.

Ms. Lytia Reese is the Superintendent of Schools for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh. She co-founded the Drexel Institute which has a long-term vision of laying the groundwork to create schools that value, celebrate, and welcome families who have been marginalized. After teaching for over 15 years, Ms. Reese served as principal of two Catholic schools in Memphis, Tennessee, before serving as Associate Superintendent of Schools in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.

Cindy L. Martin is a member of the Oklahoma Choctaw Nation and a Family and Community Counselor at Muskogee Public Schools. Mrs. Martin currently serves as the JOM Family and Community Counselor for Muskogee Public Schools. Mrs. Martin is a Founding Member of Tulsa Indian Coalition Against Racism which was established in 2001 and served as a County Appointee to the Greater Tulsa Area Indian Affairs Commission for 13 years.

Dr. Edith Treviño, also known as “Dr. ET,” is a dynamic presenter, storyteller, author, and advocate of language and students. Dr. ET’s research is focused on teacher perceptions of Mexican immigrant students’ lived experience with border violence on the Texas-Mexico Border. Her passion and research are grounded on the border life of La Frontera, bilingual education, culture, social equity, language, historical trauma and social emotional well-being, and how those lived experiences intertwine and impact education.