Meet the Team

 Dr. Chawanna Chambers, NBCT

Director, Culturally Sustaining Candidate Support Network

Dr. Chawanna Bethany Chambers, NBCT, is a national award-winning PK-20 career educator with teaching experience spanning primary, secondary, and higher education. She has taught a variety of content areas in multiple classroom settings, coordinated tutoring programs, developed curricula across the world, supported teachers through instructional coaching, published educational research, and served in several leadership capacities over the years, including Chief Academic Officer and Deputy Superintendent. In addition to being named New Teacher of the Year in 2009, the National Council for Teachers of English awarded her with one of its Early Career Educator awards. She received the Principal’s Award on her campus in 2010. Chawanna was a class of 2018 New Leaders Council San Antonio fellow and 2019 Leadership SAISD cohort member.

Chawanna, known as Dr. Chae to many, thrives at the intersection of educational theory and practice. Understanding students’ experiences in school is integral to delivering what will help create a lifetime of meaningful success and joy for each of them. Using research and relationships as the cornerstone of her work, she aims to design learning environments that encourage belonging and mastery for K-12 students with equity, anti-racism, and decolonization at the center. She is an entrepreneur and has fundraised and won over $11 million in grants for educational and service organizations.

Chambers holds a Bachelor of Arts in Multidisciplinary Studies specializing in Early Childhood through Grade 4 from Texas Lutheran University, a Master of Education in Educational Administration: School Leadership from Grand Canyon University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum & Instruction from Capella University. Chawanna enjoys the blessings of a multigenerational household in Texas with her two children and grandmother.

Danielle Belanger

Senior Manager, Grant and Project Management

Danielle Belanger serves as the Senior Manager of Grant and Project Management at the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Bringing over a decade of experience in nonprofit management and philanthropy, she has a proven track record of success leading large-scale projects and managing complex budgets. Before joining the National Board, Danielle spent much of her professional life supporting grantmakers and their portfolios of nonprofit partners. During that time, she launched and led an inaugural learning and giving collaborative focused on the intersection of trauma and poverty, a program that is ongoing to this day. In this work and throughout her career, she has always valued the opportunity to develop deep relationships across organizations to ensure the achievement of myriad, diverse missions and goals. 

In Danielle’s role at the National Board, relationship-building remains a key part of her work as she leads the day-to-day coordination of the Culturally Sustaining Candidate Support Network. This network is a grant-funded project aimed at supporting and promoting teacher diversity, quality, and retention. Leveraging her extensive experience in grant and project management, she works closely with partner sites from across the country to ensure the effective use of resources for their culturally-responsive, data-driven teacher support efforts.

Danielle holds a Bachelor of Arts in French and History from Franklin & Marshall College. A long-time New Englander, she currently lives in Maine with her partner. When they aren’t hiking or camping, you can find her tending to her native, pollinator-friendly plants, reading a fantasy novel, or enjoying time with friends and their pets!

Claire Brown

Senior Associate, Grant and Project Management

Claire Brown serves on the NBPTS Margins to Center grant under the Experience and Activation team as the Senior Associate for Grant and Project Management. Her work focuses on supporting budget objectives and grant project management. Her work will bolster the success of our team and our partners as we implement our strategies for the grant.

Prior to joining the National Board, Claire was a Pantry and Seasonal Program Manager at Metrocrest Services, a nonprofit located in the Dallas Metroplex, with her work focused primarily on food security within the community. She supported the organization’s expansion as it grew in client demand by 400% during the pandemic and was responsible for program management and growth.

Claire is a strong believer in the power of music education and has been a private piano instructor for the past 5 years, with a current studio at the Coppell Conservatory. She has been a member of the Music Teachers National Association for the past 6 years, chairing multiple committees and events for the Carrollton Chapter.

Claire holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Applied Music from Baylor University. She lives in Dallas, TX with her German Shepherd, Bonnie. She enjoys taking Bonnie on long walks and spending time with friends and family.

Jéri Ogden

Senior Manager, Network Learning and Engagement

Jéri L. Ogden is an educator, writer, and facilitator with a passion for and emphasis on equitable practices and cultural competence. She serves as the Senior Manager of Network Learning and Engagement. Jéri graduated from Howard University with a B.A. in Communication and Culture and from American University with an M.Ed. in Educational Leadership and Policy. Upon her undergraduate graduation, she spent one year working at DC’s first all-boys public charter school as a substitute teacher and assistant director of the after-school program before her training as a Summer 2010 DC Teaching Fellow. Jéri has taught at both public and charter schools in DC and Houston, as well as an international school in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Prior to joining the staff, she managed teacher residents and later was the Director of the Professional Learning Community at ASCD.

With over 14 years of progressive teacher leadership, Jéri is also the founder of P.U.R.P.L.E., a consulting firm that provides purposeful, uplifting, and restorative professional learning experiences to organizations and communities. Jéri is currently pursuing her Ed.D in Educational Leadership and Organizational Innovation at Marymount University where her research is centered on burnout and the experiences of Black women principals. She is a former member of the adjunct staff at Trinity Washington University where her courses focus on restorative practices, relationship building in school systems, and empathy. Her work is rooted in the philosophy that you cannot separate the tree from its roots so understanding the context of people and places matters. You will often hear Jéri say, “equity is not a buzzword”.

Miranda Frederick

Senior Associate, Network Learning and Engagement

Miranda Frederick joined the National Board in March 2023 as the Senior Associate for Network Learning and Engagement. She provides administrative support for logistics, operations, and partner collaboration for the Culturally Sustaining Candidate Support Network.

Miranda is an experienced event planner and proud alumna of Coastal Carolina University. In her free time, she enjoys reading, writing, and skincare.