Kelly Marrara
Director of Data and Student Assessments
Bachelor’s Degree, Elementary and Special Education, Elizabethtown College; Master’s Degree, Educational Development & Strategies, Wilkes University
Ms. Marrara’s career in education was set in motion back at the beginning of her own education—by her first-grade teacher. “The self-confidence and love for learning she cultivated within her classroom lasted far beyond the end of the school year,” Ms. Marrara recalls. Years later, she became an educator herself to inspire others the way that incredible teacher had inspired her.
It’s All About “the Connections (No Pun Intended!)”
From 2010 to 2016, Ms. Marrara worked at another Connections Academy® school as both a middle-school math teacher and special educator. She then took a position at an educational technology company, supporting virtual schools across the country.
However, she found that she missed the *connections* (“no pun intended!” … Ms. Marrara claims) with students, families, and colleagues that she had had as an educator. When she was offered the opportunity to help open Pennwood Cyber Charter School, it was an easy decision.
A Personalized Program for Every Student
As director of data and student assessments, Ms. Marrara is focused on using data to help understand each student’s unique set of strengths and needs, and to support decision-making and goal-setting for each student’s learning program. She is excited about what the data can illuminate and the story it tells. “I love being able to see students’ growth in the data!”
Ms. Marrara explains that Pennwood Cyber Charter School’s focus on career-readiness means something different for each student. “Whether they’re choosing to enter the workforce, enlist, pursue a trade, or continue their education,” she says, “we personalize each student’s educational program to help them develop the skills and abilities they’ll need to reach their goals.”