Board of Directors
Ms. Amankulor is a long-time advocate for enabling greater high-quality educational opportunities for disadvantaged families. She is the former Director of PennCAN: The Pennsylvania Campaign for Achievement Now, a statewide advocacy organization working to enact commonsense reforms to ensure that every Pennsylvania child has access to a high-quality education. Prior to moving to Pittsburgh, she worked as Assistant General Counsel at Success Academy Charter Schools in New York City, the largest and highest-performing charter school network in New York City, nationally known for eradicating both racial and income achievement gaps.
She can be reached at r.amankulor@catalystacademy.org
Majestic Lane has over 20 years of experience as a non-profit executive, municipal leader and social entrepreneur. Currently, Majestic is the Chief Equity Officer for the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. In this role, Majestic leads the Conference’s efforts to advance economic equity and inclusion for the ten-county region of Southwestern Pennsylvania. Prior to his leadership at the conference, Majestic served as Deputy Chief of Staff and the inaugural Chief Equity Officer in the office of Mayor William Peduto where he established the city of Pittsburgh’s first Office of Equity and led the Peduto administration’s focus on opportunity for all residents of the City of Pittsburgh in Education, Workforce Development, Safe & Healthy Communities and Digital Inclusion. Majestic has also served as a director on a number of boards including the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh, Partner4Work & Repair the World. Majestic attended the University of Pittsburgh & Lives in North Point Breeze.
Ms. McCarthy has devoted her entire career to working to achieve equity and excellence for all students. She spent seven years working at the Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) in a variety of leadership positions, including Executive Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment, Director of Academic Initiatives, and the Gifted and Talented Coordinator, Since 2016, Ms. McCarthy has been working for Teach For America where she currently serves as a vice-president. She holds a Pennsylvania Teaching certification and Principal certificate.
She can be reached at a.mccarthy@catalystacademy.org
Mr. Walenchok is a licensed certified public accountant in Pennsylvania with more than 28 years of experience in public accounting. He is a partner at Baker Tilly, providing assurance and consulting services to clients in the public sector, including higher education, not-for-profit and governmental organizations. His prior board experience includes serving as treasurer and board member of the Pittsburgh Three Rivers Marathon, Inc. and as treasurer for Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School.
He can be reached at t.walenchok@catalystacademy.org
Ms. Harris is a long-time advocate for children and an experienced non-profit leader in Pittsburgh. She served for 13 years as Deputy and then Executive Director of A+ Schools. Currently, she is the CEO of Literacy Pittsburgh, and is also the former executive director of the Pennsylvania Early Learning Investment Commission where she worked to form successful public-private partnerships to advance access to high quality early learning. Ms. Harris serves on numerous state and local boards and committees. Most recently she was appointed to serve on the City of Pittsburgh’s Early Childhood Education Task Force.
She can be reached at c.harris@catalystacademy.org
Mr. Jones is a life-long resident of Pittsburgh’s Garfield community and a long-time advocate for youth in Pittsburgh. He is the President & C.E.O. of Brothers and Sisters Emerging (B.A.S.E.), a non-profit organization that serves as the umbrella agency for the Garfield Youth Sports Organization. B.A.S.E is a year-round organization offering after-school, summer camp, and mentoring programs to over 200 Pittsburgh youth. The mission of B.A.S.E. is to strategically advocate and connect youth and families to life sustaining resources. Mr. Jones also co-founded the Garfield Youth Sports Organization and serves as a volunteer football coach for the Garfield Gators.
He can be reached at b.jones@catalystacademy.org
Ms. Stiling is an experienced educator and educational consultant focusing on strategic planning, school effectiveness, whole-school improvement efforts, and literacy intervention. Prior to relocating to Pittsburgh, she served as Founding Director of Special Education and Dean of Curriculum and Instruction at a middle school in Boston within the nationally renowned Uncommon Schools charter school network. She was part of the team that helped Uncommon Schools generate the greatest student academic gains of any large charter network. Previously, Ms. Stiling taught elementary school in Chicago Public Schools. She also serves as an Adjunct Faculty member for the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Education.
She can be reached at e.stiling@catalystacademy.org
Schedule of 2023-24 School Year Board of Directors Meetings
Board meetings are held at:
Catalyst Academy Charter School
7061 Lemington Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
Note: 2023-2024 school year board meetings can also be accessed online via Zoom as healthy and safety conditions warrant. The meeting information is updated a few days before each meeting.
All board meetings begin at 6pm unless otherwise noted.