A hallmark of America’s Choice solutions is intense, sustained, and effective professional development and high quality, research-based materials.

Our professional staff comprises highly qualified, certified educators, including former state and district leaders, principals, coaches, and teachers with proven success in the field.

Every staff member who works with states, districts, and schools completes a rigorous, one-year certification program, specializing in instructional leadership, literacy, mathematics, or science.

We also have longstanding partnerships with leading national and international researchers and practitioners who collaborate with us in developing all of our educational solutions. 

MANAGEMENT

Judy B. Codding
President and Chief Executive Officer
Judy B. Codding is President and Chief Executive Officer of America’s Choice. She was previously the Vice President of the National Center on Education and the Economy, the parent company of America’s Choice. Before assuming these positions, Dr. Codding was the award-winning principal of Pasadena High School, a large urban comprehensive high school in Los Angeles. Dr. Codding has been a teacher and principal at Bronxville High School and Scarsdale High School in New York. Dr. Codding was a charter principal of the Coalition of Essential Schools, a national high school reform effort. She was an Associate in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She served as an education consultant to the Ministry of Education in the People’s Republic of China and the U.S. Department of Defense schools. She also served as a commissioner on the California Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards.

Ken James
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Ken James joined America’s Choice as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in 2009. He is a former Arkansas Commissioner of Education and also served as President of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). A 36-year veteran of the world of public education, James helped propel Arkansas to the forefront of the education reform movement; he is credited for the state’s aggressive, successful efforts to improve student achievement. Recently, he has been a key voice in the movement for common core standards, testifying before Congress on the potential of common academic standards to prepare students for college and careers in the 21st century. Before becoming commissioner in Arkansas, James served as superintendent in Lexington, Kentucky, and in Little Rock, Van Buren, and Batesville, Arkansas. 

John A. Wozniak
Chief Financial Officer
John A. Wozniak has been the Chief Financial Officer of America’s Choice since 2005. He has over 30 years’ financial experience that includes initial public offerings, secondary offerings, bank financing, mergers, acquisitions, and turnaround situations. He has held various senior-level financial and operating positions in both publicly held and privately held companies. In addition, Wozniak has worked extensively with consumer product companies and professional services organizations. He has held senior positions with Young & Rubicam, RJR Nabisco, Adidas, DVC Worldwide, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Wozniak is a Certified Public Accountant.

Judy Aaronson
Chief of Staff
Judy Aaronson serves as the Chief of Staff for America’s Choice. Her previous position with America’s Choice was Deputy Director of Field Services. Before joining the organization in 1999, Aaronson worked for the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) in a number of positions—teacher, assistant director, special assistant, and director. Her expertise is in the areas of curriculum development, professional development, and training. Before her career with DCPS, she served as a Foreign Service Officer for the U.S. Department of State.

Sherry P. King
Vice President, Field Services
Sherry P. King joined America’s Choice in 2005. As Vice President, Field Services, she oversees three regional offices and staff who work in partnership with states and districts to help turn around the performance of generally low-performing schools. Previously, Dr. King served as superintendent for the Mamaroneck Public Schools and the Croton-Harmon Public Schools in New York. She has been a high school principal, assistant principal, and English teacher at Scarsdale High School. Dr. King was involved with a number of educational movements, including those led by the National Center on Education and the Economy and the Coalition of Essential Schools. She was a senior researcher for the Chicago Small Schools, funded by the Joyce Foundation. She is an Annenberg Fellow and a trustee on the Board of Directors for Jobs for the Future.

Lawrence Molinaro
Vice President, Programs
Larry Molinaro has been the Vice President, Programs since 2005. He oversees the development program for products and services and is responsible for associated research and quality assurance. Molinaro joined America’s Choice in 2002 as the Director of the National College, a position he still holds. The National College provides certification and continuing professional development for America’s Choice professionals and consultants.  Before coming to America’s Choice, Molinaro was the Global Director of Learning and Development for the James Martin Companies, an international management consulting firm focused on information technology. While there, he oversaw executive development and business management programs, consulting services, and technical training. He has also worked in non-profit organizations, including the American Red Cross, where he managed e-learning initiatives.

John C. Fryer, Jr.
Vice President, Business Development
John C. Fryer brings strong leadership skills to his role as Vice-President, Business Development.  Fryer’s 46-year career includes service as an America’s Choice Senior Fellow, two years as President and CEO of the National Institute for School Leadership, seven years as superintendent of Duval County Public Schools (Florida), two years as General Manager of Cubic Applications, Inc., and three decades of distinguished service in the U.S. Air Force, retiring at the rank of Major General. He was Commandant of the National War College and interim President of the National Defense University. As Duval County’s superintendent, Fryer headed the nation's 20th largest school system with 128,000 students, 13,000 employees, 160 schools, and a $1.4 billion budget. Under Fryer’s leadership, the district became a model for how an urban school system can be reshaped through aligned internal systems and focused training for principals and teachers.

Jason Dougal
General Counsel
Jason Dougal is the General Counsel of America's Choice. He has been in this role since January 2005. He is also counsel for its parent company, the National Center on Education and the Economy, and its sister company, the National Institute for School Leadership. In addition to providing legal services, he oversees the contracts and information technology departments. He also coordinates preparation of all proposals submitted in response to formal requests for proposals. Before joining America's Choice, Dougal was a corporate associate at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Chadbourne & Parke LLP in New York. He has extensive experience in all types of public and private corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, and securities transactions.


SENIOR FELLOWS

Ann Borthwick
Senior Fellow
Ann Borthwick has 30 years’ experience working on school improvement in the United States and Australia. In 1994, Borthwick took the leading role in standards development for New Standards, a joint initiative of the National Center on Education and the Economy and the University of Pittsburgh. She has worked on development and implementation of America’s Choice programs since 1998.  After beginning her career in teaching in Australia, Borthwick worked on state and national initiatives to improve the quality of curriculum and instruction. She directed curriculum and professional development of the Victorian Certificate of Education, a major overhaul of senior secondary schooling. She also served as executive director of the national committee on work-related competencies and the board responsible for independent policy advice to the Australian Government on employment, education and training.


Phil Daro
Senior Fellow
Phil Daro works on advancing the design and use of leadership tools for improving mathematics instruction at every level of the educational system and consults with states and school districts on their accountability systems and mathematics programs. He has served as Executive Director of the Public Forum on School Accountability, directed the New Standards Project, and managed research and development for the National Center on Education and the Economy. He directed large-scale teacher professional development programs for the University of California, including the California Mathematics Project and the American Mathematics Project. Daro is a member of the Shell Centre at the University of Nottingham. He currently serves on the mathematics work group of the Common Core State Standards Initiative.

Sally Hampton
Senior Fellow
Sally Hampton is a Senior Fellow for America’s Choice. Most recently, she was a Senior Scholar at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Previously, she was the Director of English Language Arts for the National Center on Education and the Economy and also served as its Deputy Director of Research and Development. Dr. Hampton has taught in both urban and rural classrooms, directed a National Writing Project site, and developed a K–12 research-based writing program and the staff development materials to support this program. She currently serves on the English language arts work group of the Common Core State Standards Initiative.

Pat Harvey
Senior Fellow
Pat Harvey is a Senior Fellow for District Initiatives with America’s Choice. Before assuming this position, Dr. Harvey served six years as superintendent of Saint Paul Public Schools, where significant gains in the achievement of all student groups were made under her leadership. She holds the Carmen Starkson Campbell Visiting Endowed Chair in Urban Education at the University of Minnesota. Prior to her time in Saint Paul, Dr. Harvey served as Senior Fellow and Director of Urban Education at the National Center on Education and the Economy, where she also directed the America’s Choice School Design. Dr. Harvey has been a teacher and principal. She was the Chief Accountability Officer in the Chicago Public Schools, where she was one of the architects of a dramatic turnaround in the 1990s.