About Laura

Laura's journey in education began as a fourth-grade teacher in a Florida public school. After four years, she sought opportunities to work with the broader community of children and families and spent 13 years working in Washington, DC. 

As a senior fellow and advisor on early and elementary education with the Education Policy program at New America, Laura focused on transforming kindergarten and promoting policy and practice that will strengthen the transition into kindergarten and the early grades of elementary school. Her work can be found here.

Laura was director of Early & Elementary Education Policy at New America for nearly seven years. During that time she wrote Getting in Sync: Revamping Licensing and Preparation for Teachers in Pre-K, Kindergarten, and the Early Grades. and was lead author of A Toolkit for Effective and Supportive Transitions for Children, Families, and Educators, Support Early Learning in America: Policies for a New Decade, From Crawling to Walking: Ranking States on Birth–3rd Grade Policies that Support Strong Readers, and Beyond Subprime Learning: Accelerating Progress in Early Education.

Laura’s work was cited in the seminal Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth through Third Grade consensus study from the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council in 2015. Laura has written for, or her work has been referenced in, national outlets and education publications, including The Atlantic, Chalkbeat, CNN, Education Week, Hechinger Report, NPR, Pacific Standard, the Washington Monthly, Phi Delta Kappan, Slate, and the Washington Post.

Before joining New America, Laura worked with several policy organizations in Washington, DC, including the Institute for Educational Leadership, The Forum for Education and Democracy, and Common Core (now Great Minds). Previously, Laura worked for the City of Orlando, FL, helping to implement its Parramore Kidz Zone, an initiative modeled on the Harlem Children's Zone.

In 2024, Laura felt drawn back to working in schools to ensure all students have opportunities to achieve at high levels and build a love for learning. She now works as an instructional coach in a Florida elementary school, working with teachers and school leadership. After completing her Educational Leadership certification, Laura will become a school administrator.

Laura also stays connected to education policy, continuing as a Policy Fellow at New America and consulting with other research and policy organizations.

Laura graduated from the University of Central Florida with a bachelor's degree in elementary education and a Master of Public Administration (MPA). Go Knights! She lives with her husband and two daughters in Florida.