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Lauren O’Neill has dedicated 31 years to the educational reform movement in California, advocating for school choice and equitable access to quality education. As a founding teacher of Odyssey Charter School in 1999, she played a pivotal role in its development, serving in various leadership positions and ultimately becoming Executive Director in 2007. 

With the support of a dedicated and diverse team, she led Odyssey to more than double its student body, growing from 260 to 485 K-8 students. She successfully navigated three charter renewals and spearheaded the network expansion with the opening of OCS South Charter School in 2018 serving TK-8 grade students.

 

Established as a public nonprofit in 1999, Odyssey Charter Schools now operates two campuses that prioritize academic excellence, social-emotional well-being, and social responsibility through a Diverse by Design model. Under Lauren’s leadership, Odyssey consistently ranked in the top 10% of public schools in California.

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As a founder and school leader, she brings firsthand knowledge and experience of the critical role educators play in the successful implementation and transformation of school communities. With over 30 years of experience as a dedicated charter school educator, she has developed expertise in leadership effectiveness, charter start-up and renewal processes, fiscal management and planning, shared governance, strategic planning, California charter law, and special education law and regulations.

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Building on this foundation, Lauren founded Camino Educational Consulting to leverage expertise in supporting schools through specialized services such as school design and development, team building and coaching, individual leadership coaching, and charter school-focused solutions. 

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As an Insights licensed practitioner, she is dedicated to helping leaders thrive by fostering strong leadership skills, creating effective teams, and innovative school models that advance the impact of school design in our communities.​

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Lauren holds a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Santa Clara University and a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education, along with a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from Pacific Oaks College.

Professional Experience

Founder and CEO of Camino Educational Consulting                                                                   Present 

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Director of Growth and Strategy                                                                                                       2023 - 2024          Odyssey Charter Schools, Pasadena CA

  • Support Executive Director on board development, governance best practices and policies that identify roles, responsibilities, and overall structure

  • Oversee, implement and write annual development of LCAP and monitoring of progress towards LCAP goals and local indicators

  • Support leadership team on trainings and development for required reporting for CDE, LACOE and all related compliance reporting

  • Oversee California State Dashboard to support school practices and development of an academic improvement plan

  • Develop leadership team with direct training and coaching aligned with strategic plan

  • Research, draft, and submit grant proposals that support the strategic goals of the organization

  • Collaborate with Community Liaisons to engage parent voice in support of charter funding and programs

  • Advocate and partner with organizations on to support charter schools; including CCSA, CSDC, LACOE, SELPA, and others

  • Support and project manages the charter renewal processes from gathering stakeholder input, revising petitions, working with legal and authorizers for submittal

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Executive Director                                                                                                                              2007 - 2023
Odyssey Charter Schools, Pasadena CA

  • Chief Executive Officer for two schools with full enrollment over 1,000  TK- 8th grade students

  • Design, lead and implement the vision for Odyssey Charter Schools 

  • Develop and manage 5 year strategic plan 

  • Recruit, hire, support, supervise, and evaluate Odyssey’s leadership team 

  • Collaborate with CBO to plan and manage over $6M school budgets

  • Collaborate with the Governing Board regarding Board recruitment, leadership, and diversity

  • Collaborate with team to inform the Governing Board of student performance, along with recommendations for continuous improvement

  • Oversee and manage submission of charter petitions and renewals 

  • Secure external funding to enhance the programs and services available to students 

  • Develop partnerships with local community organizations and foundations

  • Expert knowledge of charter renewal, accountability, and special education laws and regulations

 

Assistant Director                                                                                                                               2003 - 2007

Odyssey Charter School, Altadena, CA

  • Trained teachers in curriculum design, implementation and management

  • Devised classroom assessment strategies aligned to campus teaching philosophies

  • Managed student recruitment and enrollment 

  • Oversight of campus operations and physical plant

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Adjunct Faculty, Department of Teacher Education                                                                         2005-2006

Pacific Oaks College Pasadena, CA

  • Taught graduate level coursework

  • Facilitated rigorous, authentic discourse

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Lead Teacher                                                                                                                                        1999 – 2003

Odyssey Charter School, Pasadena, CA

  • Created and implemented curriculum aligned with school mission

  • Oversight and training of new teachers

  • Facilitated bi-weekly cohort meetings

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Elementary School Teacher                                                                                                                  1995 - 1999

Linda Vista Elementary School, Pasadena, CA

  • Created a successful multiage primary program for students in kindergarten through 2nd grade

  • Provided ongoing parent education on curriculum and child development

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Bilingual Elementary Teacher                                                                                                               1991 –1994

Jefferson Elementary School, Pasadena, CA

  • Created bilingual literacy curriculum for students in 1st and 2nd grade

Leadership & Professional Activities

  • Board member of Learning Works Charter School, Pasadena, Ca

  • Charter Advocacy Training & Regional Support, California Charter Schools Association (CCSA)

  • Charter Schools Accountability Project, Charter Schools Development Center (CSDC)

  • Charter Schools Annual Conference, California Charter Schools Association (CCSA)

  • Cognitive Coaching Certification, UCLA Center X

  • Contexts for Learning Math Institute, Heinemann Publishing

  • Critical Friends Group Coach Training, National School Reform Faculty

  • Facilitator- Leadership Institute and Governance Training, Charter Schools Development Center (CSDC)

  • Governance Academy, Charter Schools Development Center (CSDC)

  • Improving Schools: The Art of Leadership, Harvard Graduate School of Education

  • Leadership Institute and Governance Training, Charter Schools Development Center (CSDC)

  • Project Zero Classroom, Harvard Graduate School of Education

  • Ralph M. Brown Act Training, Middleton, Young & Corr, LLP

  • Responsive Classroom, The Northeast Foundation for Children

  • Singapore Math Training, Pi Project

  • Teaching Tolerance: Perspectives for a Diverse America Institute, Museum of Tolerance

  • The Reading and Writing Project Summer Institute, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York

Education

Master of Arts, Education                                                                                                                                               2002

Pacific Oaks College, Pasadena, CA

 

Teaching Credential, Ryan Professional Clear Multiple Subject Credential                                                               2002

Pacific Oaks College, Pasadena, CA

 

Bachelor of Arts, Liberal Studies & Spanish                                                                                                                   1990

Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA

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