"A school is like any other organization," says Monica Plageman, a Lead Teacher at Aspire's latest Stockton school campus, "When you launch new ships, you need experience at the helm." Fortunately for the 160 students at the new elementary school, Monica Plageman has taken such a leadership position, drawing from unlikely experiences to guide her from being an educator to her new position as Lead Teacher. Although Plageman jumped into her new role after just six years of work in the classroom, she has established herself as a competent and inspiring Lead Teacher responsible for supporting and training teachers of all grade levels.

Aspire's pioneering strategy to catalyze change in the public school system has sparked the interest of many parties outside the education community, including savvy businesswomen like Plageman. After graduating from Cal State University Sacramento with a degree in Communications, Plageman spent nearly 15 years in management for the private sector. Eventually, with a Master's in Public Administration she settled into a position managing a reading program in the Sacramento area.

"Once and while I had to actually fill in for tutors," Plageman recalls "and I realized how much I enjoyed that work, of connecting with students." It wasn't long before Monica found herself back in school, yet again, working for her teaching credential. It felt like a dramatic career change, that even in the midst of a busy first month at a brand new school Monica says was "the best decision I ever made."

True to the goal-oriented approach that made her so successful in business, Plageman had a focus for her entrance into the field of education. Motivated by the work of teacher and author Jonathan Kozol (Savage Inequalities, 1991), she was looking for programs actively addressing the issue of disparity in urban schools. "I wanted to find a young, healthy, and innovative school that was working in the best interest of the children, and," she emphasizes "Aspire is that explicitly."

Her background in business proved immediately helpful, as she began her initial year of teaching with Mary Welch at Aspire's then-brand-new University Public School. "It was just like opening a new business. I knew to expect some chaos, and trusted that the logistics would work out." Even with the pressure of being in the classroom for the first time, Plageman found herself exhilarated by the entire process of opening a new school. "I thought, so we don't have a building yet? It's fine. We will."

Now in her seventh year of teaching, Plageman is still with Aspire and stepping into the shoes of a Lead Teacher. She predicts her experience in administration and the great role models she had at University Public School will sustain her accomplishments in this new position. In addition to teaching second and third grade, Plageman is also busy training five teachers new to Aspire and four new to teaching. Together, the staff is setting school-wide goals for reading and math comprehension among their students.

Focused on state standards, Plageman is stressing the importance of solid reading skills at the elementary school level. "If they can't read, then they can't read the math or the science," she explains. "Many of our students are great decoders, but we want them to be able to form an opinion about what they're reading and then be able to support it." Similarly, Plageman highlights the importance of developing problem-solving skills in early grades to foster critical thinking and success throughout life.

Her greatest contribution to Aspire, however, might be her ability to think about the broader goal. Monica is working to ensure that Aspire remains a beacon for the potential of public education as a whole, the same light it was for her when she decided to leave the corporate world to become a teacher. "When it comes to education," she says with determination in her voice "it's like love. When you put it out in the world, you don't lose it. You share it. The more people who see what we do, the more of a force we can be for change."