People on the Move
Kolloru, Adams, Gallman, Metcalf, Serafin, Deveaux Named to Executive Positions
- By Kristal Kuykendall
- 06/06/22
Editor’s Note: THE Journal welcomes submissions about new hires and promotions among ed tech industry executives and K–12 public school administrators in the United States. Contributed news items will be published regularly on THEJournal.com; the archives can be accessed at any time at THEJournal.com/articles/list/people-on-the-move.
To submit news about new leadership and management changes at K–12 ed tech companies and at nonprofits in the K–12 ed tech space, complete the form at bit.ly/EdTechPeopleNews. To submit news about new hires and promotions among K–12 public schools administration, complete the form at bit.ly/K12AdminNews. News releases should be emailed to [email protected].
Pearson Names Kolloru as Chief Strategy Officer
Global digital learning company Pearson has appointed Sulaekha "Sue" Kolloru as its new Chief Strategy Officer. With more than 15 years of global strategy experience, Kolloru most recently served as Vice President of International-Portfolio Strategy and Transformation at Delta Air Lines, where is credited with identifying opportunities and leading the execution of short-and long-term operational changes leading to greater efficiencies through Delta and its partners' collective scale, Pearson said in a news release. Kolloru also served as Delta’s Vice President of Corporate Strategy, leading many of the company’s strategic and cross-functional programs.
Reporting directly to Pearson CEO Andy Bird, Kolloru will “drive strategic planning across the company, advise on critical global and business priorities, help refine Pearson’s direct-to-consumer strategy, as well as chart the course for future growth,” the commpany said. Also under Kolloru’s charge are the teams responsible for data, mergers and acquisitions, and other investments and partnerships that support Pearson's strategy. Kolloru began her new role at Pearson on May 16.
Prior to working at Delta, Kolloru was partner and managing director at The Boston Consulting Group, where she worked with many technology and telecommunication companies and their leaders on improving business and operational strategy and organizational effectiveness.
Kolloru earned an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor of science in electrical engineering from the University of Ottawa in Canada. She has served on several boards and non-profit councils focused on diversity and STEM, including the advisory councils for The Jimmy Carter Center, Women in Technology, and The University of Ottawa Engineering Department. Kolloru is based in Atlanta.
Learn more at Pearsonplc.com.
Otus Adds Adams, Gallman to Executive Team
Otus, a student performance platform that gathers and visualizes real-time student-growth data for educators, has added two K–12 ed tech professionals to its executive team: Heather Adams and Kevin Gallman.
Adams, Otus’ new Vice President of People and Operations, will focus on three strategic areas in her new role, Otus said in a news release: people development, employee engagement, and talent acquisition and management. Adams previously served as the HR director at Reading Plus, which was recently acquired by DreamBox Learning.
Gallman, Otus’ new Vice President of Sales, will lead the company’s national sales team. Gallman worked as a high school teacher and assistant principal for 13 years before transitioning to the ed tech sector, Otus said in a news release; he previously led the sales teams at Reading Plus and Edmentum Inc.
Gallman, based in Indianapolis, is “dedicated to serving the education community to provide the power and potential to deliver greater outcomes through better access and visualization of data with the Otus platform,” the company said in its announcement.
The Otus platform is used by more than 2,500 schools in conjunction with 20-plus ed tech partners. Learn more at Otus.com.
Waterloo Schools’ Facility Director Metcalf Joins Architecture Engineering Firm ISG
ISG has named former Waterloo Community School District Facility Director Marty Metcalf as Project Manager in ISG’s Education Business Unit.
Metcalf has over 40 years of facility management experience, including oversight and maintenance of 21 school facilities with over 10,000 students, ISG said in a news release. In his new role, Metcalf will “collaborate with school districts in Iowa and across the Midwest to develop strategic and implementable long-range plans,” ISG said. “Having led numerous new construction and renovation projects, he understands the goals and priorities of districts, how to work within a set budget, and the benefits of consulting with project teams to pinpoint the immediate needs and solutions that will benefit staff, students, and the community.”
Learn more about the company’s education services at ISGinc.com.
Serafin Joins Building Hope as Vice President of Southwest Operations
Building Hope, a non-profit helping public charter schools fund, finance, and operate their school facilities, has named Allison Serafin as Vice President of Southwest Operations, where she will work with charter-school leaders throughout Texas to create real estate strategies to develop and fund new school facilities and expanding public-school options, according to a news release.
Serafin’s new role makes her a senior member of the organization’s real estate team; she will report directly to Building Hope Real Estate President Dru Damico, the organization said.
A native of Houston, Serafin brings more than two decades in experience to Building Hope from her career in education. She began her education career at Teach For America-Houston, where she was a corps member teaching at Attucks Middle School. Serafin went on to serve as the executive director of Teach For America-Las Vegas, supporting the Clark County School District Superintendent as a special consultant, launching Opportunity 180, and serving as an elected member and vice president of the Nevada State Board of Education. She also served as vice president of development for IDEA Public Schools throughout Texas, where she fundraised, managed the region’s real estate strategy and site acquisition process, and secured the first five campus sites for the region’s growth plan.
Most recently, Serafin worked at Dovetail Impact Foundation (formerly the David Weekley Family Foundation) as its domestic portfolio director, managing a portfolio of more than 60 U.S.-based organizations and their grants across five sectors including education, justice, livelihoods, health, and spiritual formation, Building Hope said in its announcement.
Serafin earned her bachelor of science degree in political science from Texas Christian University and a master’s of science in social work from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Learn more at BuildingHope.org.
Deveaux Named President of Hussey Seating Company
Hussey Seating Company, a leading manufacturer of seating for education, sports and entertainment, and performing arts markets, has named Brian Deveaux as its new president — the second time in the family owned company’s 187-year history that a non-family member holds the top role, according to a news release.
Deveaux’s appointment is effective on July 1; current President Gary Merrill will remain at the organization as CEO providing strategic oversight, the company said. Merrill, who has served as president and CEO since 2016, was the first non-family member to hold these roles.
For the past five years, Deveaux has served as Hussey Seating’s chief financial officer, overseeing all financial operations and playing a critical role in developing and executing the company’s strategic objectives. He will continue managing CFO functions as he takes the helm as president, according to the news release.
Prior to joining Hussey Seating, Deveaux was partner and co-founder of Leaders LLC, a Portland-based firm advising family businesses in strategic transactions; was chief operating officer of surgical instrument manufacturer Seabrook International; and held management positions in operations, planning, and inventory control at Bath Iron Works, a General Dynamics subsidiary. He holds degrees in math and economics from from Bowdoin College.
Learn more at HusseySeating.com.
ECMC Group Appoints Dan Fisher as President and CEO
ECMC Group’s Board of Directors has appointed Dan Fisher as president and chief executive officer, effective July 3, succeeding Jeremy Wheaton, who is leaving ECMC Group, according to a news release. Fisher also was elected to the board of directors of ECMC Group, Educational Credit Management Corporation, and ECMC Foundation, the organization said.
Since joining the Minneapolis-based ECMC Group in November 2000, Fisher has served as president of ECMC, managing and coordinating all Federal Family Education Loan Program activities for the organization, and as general counsel and corporate secretary of ECMC Group, where he was the primary legal advisor to the corporation and affiliates, including its executive management team and Board of Directors, according to the news release.
Prior to joining ECMC Group, Fisher served as an active-duty judge advocate in the U.S. Army in Georgia and the Washington, D.C., area, where his primary focus was court-martial litigation. Fisher also serves on the national board of directors for the nonprofit Credit Abuse Resistance Education (CARE), whose 50 state and local chapters aim to teach young people financial literacy skills.
Learn more at ECMCgroup.org.