Management Team
Barbara Dreyer, President and CEO
Ms. Dreyer was one of the co-founders of Connections Academy and has been leading the company since January of 2002. She has served in the senior management of a variety of technology companies that provided educational applications using web-based software and telecommunications including Speakout.com and CSTI. Most recently, she served as chief operating officer and co-founder of Ntercept Communications, an online market research company that also operated a site for political issues and was one of the top 500 web sites during 2000. Ms. Dreyer has held senior management positions in start-ups that were sold to Motorola, MailWell, Union Carbide and Agency.com. She was a Partner with New Enterprise Associates, one of the nation's premier venture capital firms. She has taught at the university level and has been active in the development of distance learning technologies. She is an emeritus member of the Board of Visitors for the University of Maryland University College, a leading international provider of distance learning degrees, and serves on the Board of Visitors of Towson University, a leading teacher training institution. Ms. Dreyer also serves as the Secretary and Treasurer of the National Council of Education Providers (NCEP). In May of 2010, she was honored for “Outstanding Leadership by an Individual in the field of Distance Learning” by the United States Distance Learning Association.
Dr. Steven Guttentag, Executive Vice President and Chief Education Officer
Dr. Guttentag was one of the co-founders of Connections Academy. He began his career as a classroom teacher and has spent the last 20 years designing and deploying technology solutions to improve K–12 education. In addition to his classroom experience, Dr. Guttentag has held several senior school district administrative positions, with responsibilities in the areas of technology, facilities, special education, policy analysis, labor relations, budgeting, restructuring, and grants management. He led KPMG Consulting's Midwest education practice, and more recently was the Chief Education Officer for Education Networks of America, a provider of complete, managed Internet access solutions to the education community. Dr. Guttentag also serves as the President of K to the 8th Power, a wholly owned subsidiary of Connections Academy. His academic credentials include a B.A. from the University of Michigan, a M.E. in Teaching and Curriculum from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in Policy and Administration from the University of Pennsylvania.
Susan Fancher, Senior Vice President, Marketing
Ms. Fancher brings more than 20 years of experience in marketing to Connections Academy. Most recently, before joining Connections Academy, Ms. Fancher served as director of marketing at Barnes & Noble, Inc., where she launched and managed the company's loyalty program, Barnes & Noble Membership. She also led marketing programs integrating the in-store and online customer experience. Prior to Barnes & Noble, Ms. Fancher held marketing and analytical positions with leaders in the retail and financial services industries, including American Express, Chase Manhattan, and Harley-Davidson Financial Services (HDFS). As director of marketing at HDFS she was responsible for all marketing communications, direct marketing activities and promotion of services through the dealership network. While at HDFS she helped develop and launch the Harley-Davidson Chrome Card credit card. Ms. Fancher earned a B.S. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an M.B.A. from New York University’s Stern School of Business.
Earl W. Grier, Jr., Vice President of Schools
Mr. Grier brings a wealth of hands-on educational experience to Connections Academy with more than 44 years in teaching, school level administration, district level administration, educational consulting, and computer training. In 2003, Mr. Grier was appointed the founding CEO for Commonwealth Connections Academy. After three years of leading CCA, he was appointed Senior Director of Schools where he provided leadership support for all of Connections Academy schools, as well as principal training and leadership workshops. He also developed a training program for future school leaders and helped design the Career Ladder Program for teachers to develop the skills necessary to become successful virtual school leaders. Additionally, Mr. Grier has spoken at various local, state and national education conferences. He has a B.S. degree from Lock Haven State College and a Master of Education degree from West Chester State College. Mr. Grier earned his principal certification from Temple University and has completed graduate coursework in education at Villanova University.
Marc Guerrasio, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer
Mr. Guerrasio was one of the co-founders of Connections Academy and brings 15 years of software and Internet technology experience to Connections Academy. He most recently served as the CTO of Versient, an online marketing services company. He was also VP of Engineering and CTO of Ntercept Communications, an online market research company that developed a standards based language for the creation of interactive, online surveys. Mr. Guerrasio was responsible for the technical development of SpeakOut.com, a political portal site that served over 350,000 users during the 2000 elections. He has held other senior engineering positions with OutReach Technologies and VideoGrafects.
Dr. Patricia Hoge, Vice President, Curriculum and Instruction
Prior to joining Connections Academy, Dr. Hoge served as Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Catapult Learning, overseeing the development of their K–12 instructional and teacher training programs. Additionally, she was Executive Director of Education for eSylvan, where she directed the development of the curricula for synchronous online delivery. Dr. Hoge spent over 15 years in the public schools as a speech-language pathologist, curriculum developer, and supervisor of reading/language arts. As a certified speech-language pathologist, she provided services to PreK–12 students. Dr. Hoge has served as a clinical supervisor and adjunct faculty member at Loyola College and adjunct faculty member at Towson University, and serves on several school advisory councils. She has co-authored numerous resource materials for teachers and speech-language pathologists. Her academic credentials include a B.A. in Speech Pathology and Audiology, an M.S. in Speech Pathology, and a Ph.D. in K–12 Educational Leadership.
Monte Kalisch, Vice President, Development
Mr. Kalisch has been with Connections Academy since November, 2002. With over fifteen years experience in technical positions spanning multiple industries, Mr. Kalisch has spent the last twelve devoting his attention to web-based application solutions. He was most recently the Director of Technology for Versient, an online marketing services company. He has also served as the Director of Web Site Engineering for Ntercept Communications, a marketing research firm, and SpeakOut.com, a political portal organization. Mr. Kalisch was a technical lead for the development of the first web-based crop management system for VantagePoint Network, a John Deere subsidiary. Mr. Kalisch holds degrees in computer science and mathematics from the University of Northern Colorado, as well as an MBA from Colorado State University. He has taught both graduate and undergraduate courses at both universities while working on his master’s thesis, “Supplementing Traditional Education with Internet Technology.”
Pat Laystrom, Vice President, State Relations
Ms. Laystrom began her career more than 20 years ago in the classroom after graduating from Indiana University and since that time has focused on bringing innovative educational solutions to K–12 educators. She has held senior management positions with leading educational companies including AHA!interactive, Scholastic New Media, and Educational Resources, a national distributor of educational technology and professional development programs. Since 2001, she has been with Connections Academy, a leading national provider of virtual public school services, focusing on identifying new opportunities, building key relationships, legislative activities and working with Connections Academy school boards across the country.
Ted Ochs, Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Ochs began his career as an industrial engineer with Corning and Black and Decker where he held both project management and production supervisory roles. He subsequently held financial management and executive positions in health care and retail. Most recently he served as Executive Vice President of Jordan Kitt’s Music and previously was the CEO and CFO of The VNA of Maryland and the Regional Finance Director for Manor Care, Inc./In Home Health, Inc. In addition to these corporate positions, he has served for more than twelve years as an officer on the board of the Hearing and Speech Agency in Baltimore, a provider of services to individuals with communication difficulties. Mr. Ochs’ academic credentials include a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Lehigh University and an M.B.A. from Duke’s Fuqua School of Business.
Mickey Revenaugh, Senior Vice President, State Relations
Ms. Revenaugh was one of the co-founders of Connections Academy. Previously, she oversaw product planning and research at Mindsurf Networks and served as Vice President for Education at HiFusion. Prior to that, she helped launch the multi-billion dollar E-rate program to wire every school and library in America to the Internet. Before E-rate, Ms. Revenaugh spent almost a dozen years at Scholastic Inc., serving as Editor-in-Chief of Instructor, Electronic Learning, Teaching and Computers, MiddleYears, and America's Agenda magazines. She continues to publish and speak extensively on education and technology issues. She is Chair of the Board of Directors of the International Association for K–12 Online Learning (iNACOL) and the Private Sector Chair of the Education Task Force of the American Legislative Exchange Council. Ms. Revenaugh is a graduate of Yale University and has an M.B.A. from New York University’s Stern School of Business.
David Schmidt, Vice President, Business Development
Mr. Schmidt has over 20 years of executive experience in marketing, strategy, business development, and operations with Fortune 100 companies, including Time Warner (AOL), Intel, Gateway, and Westinghouse. Most recently, he was the Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer for the Capitol Equity Group. He served for six years in the U.S. Navy’s nuclear submarine force, including two years as an officer instructor at Naval Submarine School. Mr. Schmidt has extensive experience in developing and delivering curriculum and instruction, working in this capacity for virtual school provider K12 Inc., the Navy, Westinghouse, Gateway, and The Wharton School. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an M.B.A. from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Deane Turner, Senior Vice President, Operations
Mr. Turner has been with Connections Academy since May 2002 and has over 20 years experience in various facets of technology, business process, and operations management. Prior to Connections Academy he was Vice President for Operations at Ntercept Communications LLC, an online market research company, where he developed and managed the technology infrastructure, client support, and event production departments. As a Senior Network Engineer at PrimeNet LLC, Mr. Turner chaired an information technology advisory committee and oversaw major data communications projects performed for the firm’s largest client, Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. Mr. Turner earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He is certified in numerous computer, communications, and engineering technologies.