Co-founder and founding principal of Synergy Kinetic and Synergy Quantum Academies in South Los Angeles

As a co-founder and founding principal of Synergy Kinetic and Synergy Quantum Academies in South Los Angeles. Barbara brings 50 years of experience in STEM education to EnCorps. She has taught in parochial, private, and public schools in grades 6-12, worked as a clinical laboratory scientist and completed research at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and City of Hope.

Barbara began her teaching career at John Adams Junior High School in 1973. In 1977 when she left John Adams, she promised to return and bring the same opportunities for the students that she had seen in schools in Beverly Hills and other affluent areas. While working on her dissertation, Barbara visited specialized schools of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and knew this is what she wanted to see in South Los Angeles.

She envisioned a vibrant school community where students, parents, teachers, counselors, and support staff worked together to bring about changes that would ensure that the students were prepared for the opportunities that would come. What she found was hardworking parents who wanted their child to have a better life than they had; teachers, counselors, and support staff who believed that every student could be successful if given the opportunity and proper support.