Phone: (651) 802-6994

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Danaya Franke

Assistant Director of Recruitment and Retention

Assist in designing, implementing, measuring and directing educator recruitment and retention efforts across the district, especially for our teachers of color. This effort focuses on:

  • Recruitment
  • Retention
  • Pre-service work with our 21 university partners
  • Licensure support
  • Grow Your Own teacher preparation programming

Phone: (651) 666-8554

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Dawn Ransom

Supervisor, Office of Teaching and Learning

Oversight Areas:

  • Teacher Development and Evaluation (TD&E)
  • Induction supports for new educators
  • Learning leads

Phone: (612) 476-5928

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Wouang Lao

Saint Paul Urban Teacher Residency (SUTR) Supervisor, Recruitment and Retention

Oversight Areas:

  • Train and support Residents
  • Oversee daily program operations
  • Maintain district and university partnerships

Phone: (612) 364-6938

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Anny Xiong

Recruitment and Diversity Specialist, Human Resources

Contact me about:

  • Available career opportunities within the district
  • Questions related to applications for open positions
  • Recruitment partnerships

Phone: (651) 392-8048

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Alicia Gutierrez

Recruitment and Diversity Specialist, Human Resources

Contact me about:

  • Strategic partnerships within our local community to support educators
  • National partnerships with our local community to support educators
  • Current and future career opportunities within SPPS

Phone: (612) 394-3720

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Lyle Dandridge

Retention Specialist, Recruitment and Retention

Contact me about:

  • Check-in interviews with new teachers
  • Stay interviews with veteran teachers
  • Affinity groups
  • General teacher support opportunities

Phone: (612) 368-6984

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Mary Yang

Tracks to Licensure, Recruitment and Retention

Contact me about:

  • MN tiered licensure system support
    • 1st Wednesdays of the month (Google Meet code: SPPSLICENSE)
    • Schoology support group for educators (Access code: 979H-W2VF-M46N5)
  • SPPS Pre-Service partnerships with higher education institutions
    • Student teacher practicum and field experience placements
    • Schoology support group for principals (Access code: RJSV-PHVD-T6DG4)

Phone: (952) 256-2756

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Isabelle Davies

SUTR Elementary Specialist, Recruitment and Retention

Contact me about:

  • Elementary muti-tiered SUTR graduate support
  • Induction seminar for SUTR graduates
  • Evidence-based practices in Elementary Education

Phone: (651) 279-2037

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Jillian Pultz

SUTR Special Education Specialist, Recruitment and Retention

Contact me about:

  • Special education muti-tiered SUTR graduate support
  • Induction seminar for SUTR graduates
  • Evidence-based practices in Special Education

Phone: (651) 728-1617

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Danielle Ferguson

HR Coordinator/SUTR Recruiter

Contact me about:

  • SUTR related questions about interest, applications, info session
  • SUTR recruiting opportunities (fairs, tabling, pds) and/or questions
  • SUTR interview support days, resident exit interviews
  • SUTR branding/ marketing opportunities


Phone: (651) 744-7141

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Serena Gong

Management Assistant

Contact me about:

  • Overall support for the Recruitment and Retention Team
  • Potential contracts, purchase orders, orders
  • Projects

Phone: (651) 744-2794

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Maryama Hussein

HR Service Associate

Contact me about:

  • Pre-Service Program applications, references, and background checks
  • Support and resources for the Recruitment & Retention Team
  • Support in Hiring Fairs 

Phone: (651) 744-7090

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Casey Ulrich

New Educator Induction Support, Office of Teaching and Learning

Contact me about:

  • Mentor-Mentee Program
  • Educator Support Pathway / Tenure Requirements
  • General New Educator Support Queries 

Phone: (651) 767-8315

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Sandra Smith

Teacher Development and Evaluation (TD&E) TOSA, Office of Teaching and Learning

Contact me about:

  • All Things TD&E
    • Individual Growth and Development Plan
    • Mid-Year & End of Year Reflections
      • Student Achievement, PLCs & Student Engagement
    • Peer Collaboration
    • Probationary and Summative Evaluations
    • PowerSchool Perform

Phone: (651) 744-4758

Email:

Degrees and Certifications:

Yu Zhang

Research Analyst

Oversight areas:

  • Data analysis
  • Supporting District efforts in staff recruitment and retention
  • General research and analysis for recruitment and retention