LEADERSHIP

MEET THE Members
of Cafécs

We love what we do,
but that’s not even the half of it.

Every single person behind CAFÉCS is driven by the idea of empowering all students in Chicago Public Schools (CPS) with meaningful experiences in computer science. We’re a diverse group of people who share the same vision and values of those working to affect change and eliminate disparities in education – specifically in computer science education – to create equitable opportunities for student success.

From day one, we have been dedicated to instilling equity and inquiry strategies in the classroom, school, district and state levels that help support students and better prepare them for the future.

CURRENT LEADERSHIP

Lucia Dettori

Ronald Greenberg

Steven McGee

Andrew Rasmussen

Dale Reed

Don Yanek

CAFÉCS EVALUATOR

Erin Henrick

PREVIOUS LEADERSHIP

Brenda Darden Wilkerson, Troy Williams

Lucia Dettori

Dr. Lucia Dettori is a member of the CAFÉCS leadership team. She is an Associate Professor in the School of Computing at DePaul University, where she also serves as the Associate Dean of the College of Computing and Digital Media. Through a research leave from DePaul, she also served as the Director of the Office of Computer Science at Chicago Public Schools. Dr. Dettori holds a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from University of Paris XI. She has been involved in efforts to broaden participation in computing for 15 years both as a researcher and most recently as a practitioner through her position at Chicago Public Schools.

Dr. Steven McGee

Dr. Steven McGee serves on the CAFÉCS leadership team as the research director. He is president of The Learning Partnership, an independent research organization that focuses on development and implementation of STEM interventions. Dr. McGee has two decades of expertise in fostering long-term partnerships between researchers and practitioners. As one of the first learning scientists in the nation, he studies how to support learning from an individual cognitive perspective as well as from the perspective of systems and social contexts. He has formerly served as a Northwestern University faculty member in the School of Education and Social Policy, Director of Technology and Assessment at Loyola University, and Chief R&D Officer for the NASA Classroom of the Future.

Don Yanek

Don Yanek is a member of the CAFÉCS leadership team. He is an instructional coach for the Office of Computer Science at Chicago Public Schools, a veteran high school teacher, a founder and former President of the Chicago Chapter of the Computer Science Teachers Association, and has served as co-PI on National Science Foundation (NSF) computing education grants: Accelerate ECS For All, Chicago Alliance For Equity in Computer Science (CAFÉCS), and Taste of Computing. The goal of the Accelerate ECS For All research grant is to develop a coaching and peer mentoring protocol for computer science teachers, while the Taste of Computing Grant facilitated professional development for teachers in Chicago and Illinois. Don is a national Exploring Computer Science teacher professional development facilitator, a pilot for the AP CS Principles course, an AP CS A teacher, and an advisor for the Teacher Education in Computer Science (TECS) program at Illinois State University and the Illinois CS Task Force. He’s a National Center for Women & Information Technology Aspirations in Computing Educator Award winner and plays drums in the indie rock band The Purcells.

Dr. Ronald Greenberg

Dr. Ronald Greenberg is a member of the CAFÉCS leadership team. He is a Professor of Computer Science at Loyola University Chicago and serves as Undergraduate Program Director for the Department. He received his Ph.D. in Electrical engineering and Computer Science at MIT and four prior degrees at Washington University St. Louis (B.S./M.S. in Systems Science and Mathematics, B.S. in Computer Science, and A.B. in Mathematics). Dr. Greenberg has been involved for over a decade in a variety of efforts to broaden participation in computing; he and his students have engaged in many outreach efforts throughout the Chicago area.

Dr. Dale Reed

Dr. Dale Reed is a member of the CAFÉCS leadership team. He is a Clinical Professor in Computer Science at the University of Illinois in Chicago. He earned a Ph.D. in Computer Science at Northwestern University. Dr. Reed has led CS outreach programs in Chicago since 1993 and is indebted to area high school teachers for sharing teaching wisdom with him. He believes technology education is a justice issue for our time and believes that with preparation every student can succeed in learning CS. He believes learning should excite curiosity. He knows how to juggle and ride the unicycle, and someday hopes to do both at the same time.

Dr. Andrew Rasmussen

Dr. Andrew Rasmussen is a member of the CAFÉCS leadership team. He is the Project Developer for the Office of Computer Science at Chicago Public Schools. In this role he guides the implementation of research projects supporting computer science education within CPS, and serves as a connector between the Office of Computer Science and numerous partners internal and external to CPS. He has been involved in efforts to broaden participation in and understanding of computer science since the middle of his graduate work in chemistry at Northwestern University.

Erin Henrick

Erin Henrick is President of Partner to Improve, an education research and consulting group supporting improvement and systemic change in education through powerful partnerships. Dr. Henrick is an Research Practice Partnerships (RPPs) researcher, evaluator, and professional development provider. She was the lead investigator of a WTGrant Foundation study which resulted in a framework for assessing the effectiveness of RPPs. Dr. Henrick is faculty in the Vanderbilt online Ed.D. program in Leadership and Learning in Organizations. Prior to evaluating RPPs, Dr. Henrick was a researcher on a 10 year NSF funded RPP (known as MIST) focused on improving math instruction across large urban districts. She co-authored the book Systems for Instructional Improvement-Creating Coherence from the Classroom to the District Office. Dr. Henrick received her Ed.D. in Leadership, Policy, and Organization from Vanderbilt University.

Brenda Darden Wilkerson (Founding member)

President and CEO of Anitab.org. Prior to Anitab.org, Wilkerson founded the “Computer Science for All” initiative in Chicago and was the founding Director of the Office of Computer Science at Chicago Public Schools. She holds a computer science degree from Northwestern University.

Troy Williams

Director of Customer Success at Anitab.org and Co-Founder at CS for Success. Troy previously worked in education at Chicago Public Schools and City Colleges of Chicago, supporting the CS for All initiative and implementation of IT and CS pathways focusing on increasing access to CS for young women and students of color. Prior to that, Troy spent 18 years in corporate as an IT professional at various levels.