Faculty & Leaders

Emily Bisso – 5th Grade History
Ms. Bisso comes to Ocean Hill Collegiate from Community Health Academy of the Heights in Washington Heights, where she taught ELA, Social Studies, and reading intervention. Ms. Bisso is a New York City Teach For America alum, and prior to joining Uncommon Schools, Emily worked for two years as Literacy Specialist with the Teach For America NYC Institute. She received dual B.A. degrees in Psychology and English from Washington & Lee University and her M.A. in Secondary Education from Pace University.

Hanna Campbell – Director of Operations
Hanna Campbell, the founding Director of Operations for Ocean Hill Collegiate Charter School, received her training as an Operations Fellow at Bedford Stuyvesant Collegiate Charter School. Previously, Ms. Campbell served as a Teach For America corps member in the Atlanta region, where she was a Reading Teacher and Department Contact for Renaissance Middle School. Prior to starting the Uncommon School Leader Fellowship, Ms. Campbell worked as a School Operations Manager for the 2009 Teach For America Atlanta Institute. She graduated from Amherst College with a B.A. in English.

Timothy Carey – 5th Grade Science
Timothy Carey comes to Ocean Hill Collegiate from The Urban Science Academy, where he taught 7th and 8th grade Science as a member of the Teach For America corps. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Zoology from Miami University and a Master of Science Education from Lehman College. Mr. Carey enjoys running and travelling, and is incredibly excited to begin work at OHC!

Olabisi Dele-Michael – Dean of Students
Bisi Dele-Michael Day is very excited to be joining the Ocean Hill Collegiate team as the Dean of Students. Born and raised in Staten Island, New York, she often proclaims to be the “only native New Yorker” amongst her colleagues! Mrs. Dele-Michael Day holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Biology from Binghamton University, and a Master of Science in Education from Hunter College. She comes to Ocean Hill Collegiate from Democracy Prep Charter School, where she taught 6th grade Math for two years and 7th grade Math for one year. Prior to Democracy Prep, she worked as a Math Instructional Specialist at Promise Academy Charter School. Mrs. Dele-Michael Day is very excited to be working at Ocean Hill Collegiate with an amazing founding staff and looks forward to a structured, fun and positive year!

Maura Faulkner – 5th Grade Reading
Maura Faulkner is thrilled to be a member of the Ocean Hill team! She comes to OHC from Boston, where she previously taught at Boston Preparatory Charter School. An avid Irish dancer, Ms. Faulkner holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, and a Master of Arts in Education, both from Simmons College.

Lauren Harris – Associate Managing Director, Collegiate Network
Prior to serving as Associate Managing Director with Uncommon Schools, Lauren Harris co-founded Kings Collegiate Charter School in 2007, and served as Principal from August 2007 – June 2010. Before moving to New York City to join Uncommon Schools, Lauren taught 7th and 8th grade mathematics at Roxbury Preparatory Charter School in Boston, MA, and Ferndale Middle School in High Point, NC. During her last year at Roxbury Preparatory Charter School, her students ranked #1 out of all districts statewide on the 8th grade Math MCAS exam. While at Roxbury Prep, she also served as Grade Level Team Leader and Numeracy Inquiry Group Facilitator. Ms. Harris earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Middle Grades Education at Appalachian State University in North Carolina and a Master of Education degree at the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University.

Kelsey Jones – 6th Grade Math
Kelsey Jones comes to Ocean Hill Collegiate after interning at Breakthrough New York, and is thrilled to be one half of the fifth grade Math team at OHC. An alumnus of the Teach For America corps, Ms. Jones previously taught 7th grade Math at Frederick Douglass Academy II. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, a Master of Education from Pace University, and a master’s in Educational Leadership, Advocacy, and Politics from NYU.

Matthew Kelly – 5th Grade Math
Matthew Kelly holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Bard College and a Master of Science in Teaching Students with Disabilities from Pace University. He is an alumnus of the Teach For America corps, where he taught Literacy at Middle School 80 in the Bronx. Mr. Kelly also taught Math at Democracy Prep Charter School in Harlem. He is geared up and ready to work with Ocean Hill scholars!

Kristen Ross – Special Projects Coordinator
Kristen Ross comes to Ocean Hill Collegiate from Southwest Early College Campus in Kansas City, MO where she taught Music Appreciation and Choir to 6th-12th grade students as a part of the Teach For America corps. She holds an undergraduate degree in Music Education from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

Claudia Martin – Student Support Coordinator
Claudia Martín holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from UC Davis, and a Master of Sciences in Teaching from Pace University. Before coming to Ocean Hill Collegiate, Ms. Martín was a Special Education teacher with the Teach For America corps and at Democracy Prep Charter School. She enjoys reading and salsa dancing, and is thrilled to join the OHC team!

Laura Lee McGovern – Chief Operating Officer, Collegiate Network
Laura Lee McGovern is the Chief Operating Officer of the Collegiate Network of Uncommon Schools. Ms. Lee joined Uncommon Schools in 2007 as the Founding Co-Director of Operations at Kings Collegiate Charter School. Ms. Lee helped establish the systems, processes and cultural foundation that has led Kings to early outstanding achievement and parent/student satisfaction. Ms. Lee also worked as a Summer Fellow and Education Pioneer with Uncommon in 2006. In this capacity, she helped develop school inspection and performance measurement processes. Previously, Ms. Lee worked as a management consultant at Katzenbach Partners LLC, advising companies on strategic and organizational issues, and also served as the founding Director of Analytics in student enrollment at the New York City Department of Education. Ms. Lee received her MBA from Harvard Business School, where she was a Baker Scholar and co-leader of the Education Leadership Group. Ms. Lee earned her A.B. in Social Studies at Harvard College and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Brett Peiser – Managing Director, Uncommon Schools New York City
As Managing Director of Collegiate Charter Schools, an Uncommon Schools network of middle and high schools in Brooklyn, Brett Peiser is the Founder of Williamsburg Collegiate, Kings Collegiate, and Bedford Stuyvesant Collegiate Charter Schools. From 1998 to 2005, Mr. Peiser was the Founder, Principal, and Executive Director of Boston Collegiate Charter School, a college preparatory middle and high school serving 450 students. Prior to this, Mr. Peiser taught History at Midwood High School in New York City. Mr. Peiser received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brown University and a Master of Public Policy degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Nyah Piper – Office Manager
Nyah Piper is so excited to be starting at Ocean Hill Collegiate as the Office Manager. Nyah comes from Help USA, where she provided administrative support to the director. She looks forward to meeting all the students and families of OHC!

Ira Rigaud – 6th Grade Writing
Mr. Rigaud is delighted to be the inaugural writing teacher at Ocean Hill Collegiate. Mr. Rigaud received his Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, and his Advanced Certificate in Teaching from Pace University. Before coming to OHC, he taught second grade as a member of the Teach For America corps at CES 126, and taught sixth grade English at Mott Hall III Middle School, both in the Bronx. Mr. Rigaud speaks French and Haitian Creole, loves eating good food, traveling just about anywhere, and swimming early in the morning. His favorite genre to read is non-fiction, especially biographies and books about history, and he is obsessed with geography.

Hannah Solomon – Founding Principal
Hannah Solomon, the founding Principal of Ocean Hill Collegiate Charter School, spent the last year at Williamsburg Collegiate Charter School, where she received training as an Instructional Fellow and served as a member of the leadership team. Prior to joining Uncommon Schools, Ms. Solomon was the founding Instructional Leader at Democracy Prep Charter School in Harlem. She started her teaching career at Frederick Douglass Charter School in Boston and also taught at Village Academy Charter School of Harlem. Ms. Solomon received her M.A. in Teaching and Learning from Harvard University and her B.A. in Afro America Studies and Judaic Studies from Brown University.