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Description

Summary
Dr. Pamela M. Donnelly, an expert in education and author of a number one Amazon bestseller on equitable education, discusses her journey from education to politics and her passion for helping foster kids through the education system. She emphasizes the importance of funding models in addressing the challenges in public education and the need to value and support teachers. Dr. Donnelly also highlights the role of for-profit companies in the education space and the impact they can have in driving equitable access. She shares her work in building a career readiness platform for foster teens and the importance of storytelling in communication and education

Takeaways

• Funding models in public education need to be improved to attract and retain highly qualified professionals.
• For-profit companies can play a valuable role in driving equitable access in education.
• Building a career readiness platform for foster teens is crucial to ensure they don't age out of the foster system without a plan.
• Storytelling is a critical skill in communication and education, allowing for effective engagement and motivation.

Sound Bites

• "The funding models in public education are a big piece of the problem."
• "Nonprofits can be very profitable, and for-profits can have missions aligned with the highest good of students."
• "I started a new nonprofit to help foster teens so they don't age out of the foster system without a plan."

Chapters
00:00 - Introduction and Background
01:26 - Transition from Education to Politics
10:33 - The Role of For-Profit Companies in Education
14:55 - Building Career Readiness for Foster Teens
22:10 - Gender Dynamics in Business
25:40 - The Power of Storytelling
34:58 - Jason Palmer's Historic Primary Win

Guest: Pamella M. Donnelly [LinkedIn]
Socials: Instagram [pamelamdonnelly] & X [@PamelaMDonnelly] FB [https://www.facebook.com/PamelaDonnellyConsulting/] 

About Mark:
Dr. Pamela M. Donnelly is committed to increasing equitable college access for all students. 

She graduated summa cum laude from Columbia University in the City of New York. As a first generation student she finished a 4 year degree in 2.5 years with her BA in Literature/Writing and Secondary Education. She went on to earn her MA in Literature, and completed her PhD at Pepperdine University with a dissertation called The Axis of Access: A Quantitative Ethnography of Presidential Discourse on the Construct of College Access in the United States. 

State-certified three times (NY, VA, CA), in her early years as a professional educator she worked in public and private schools as an English teacher and college counselor.

Her first academic services business, Valley Prep Tutoring, operated 2012-2022 prior to shifting focus to this consulting practice. She built her reputation as a go-to academic expert trusted by parents as a direct result of her popular books SWAT Team Tactics for Getting Your Teen Into College and 4 Keys to College Admissions Success. 

Having become a passionate advocate for educational reform, Pamela has been voted one of the Most Inspiring Female Founders in EdTech by SuperCharger Ventures for her work with EdTech startup GATE.

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