Charter Application Bootcamp

Sarah brings over a decade of experience in supporting school founders to this online course. As SchoolWorks’ Managing Director of School Developer Supports, Sarah has participated in the successful launch and renewal of more than 30 charter schools by providing hands-on application writing, management, and support services. She has also served as a qualified charter application evaluator, reviewing dozens of charter applications submitted to authorizers in Louisiana, North Carolina, and Illinois. Previous to her role with SchoolWorks, Sarah was responsible for authoring new school and renewal applications for National Heritage Academies to support the organization’s operation and expansion. Sarah holds both an M.A. and a B.A. in English from Grand Valley State University.

Michelle has a record of success in helping charter school founders progress from vision to launch. While working for one of the nation’s top charter school incubators, Michelle managed a fellowship for charter school founders in Tennessee. Every fellow under her direction was authorized to open their charter school, and some have gone on to open additional schools. On behalf of SchoolWorks, Michelle primarily focuses on school quality (in traditional district and charter schools), authorizer quality, and charter school application evaluation and support. She has worked with clients such as the Louisiana Department of Education, Rhode Island Department of Education, Ohio Department of Education, Indiana Department of Education, and the Maryland State Department of Education. Michelle has an M.Ed. in Learning and Instruction from Vanderbilt University.

Raj Thakkar is the Founder & CEO of Charter School Business Management (CSBM), a national provider of accounting and finance back office services and education for charter schools and charter management organizations. Widely regarded a national expert on charter school finance, Raj has presented at conferences and workshops across the country and has been featured in numerous publications. He was named N.Y. State’s Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration in 2018, and under his leadership, CSBM was named Small Business of the Year for Eastern Region of the U.S. by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce three times. As a Minority Owned Enterprise, Certified B Corp and a NY Benefit Corporation, CSBM was awarded Best for the World by B Lab multiple times, as well as one of the Best Places to Work by Crain’s N.Y. Business. Raj teaches Understanding Social Enterprise: How to Use the Power of Business as a Force for Good as an Adjunct Professor at NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service. He is the Board Treasurer of Camelback Ventures, which supports women entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color launch and scale their nonprofits, schools and social enterprises. Raj serves as a Board Advisor of BE MORE, a social enterprise focused on eradicating unconscious racial and gender bias. Before founding CSBM in 2006, Raj served as the Chief Financial Officer for Explore Charter School. He has an MBA in Finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business and a BS in Engineering Science from Hofstra University.