Serving Community School Sponsors, Schools and Developers

Meet Our Specialists

A team of experts that shares your school's commitment to excellence

Each member of the Charter School Specialists team brings years of relevant expereince and a solid commitment to school success to their unique roles. Team members' collective knowledge and expertise provide for a high level of organizational capacity and are levarage each and every day in support of Ohio's charter schools.

President: Dave L. Cash, Jr.

Dave founded Charter School Specialists in 2004, but his commitment to helping children learn, grow and succeed is a life-long passion. His experience working for the Ohio Department of Education, where he was involved in supporting Ohio’s community school program in its early years, spanned all aspects of school development, contracts, evaluation, compliance and technical assistance. Early in Dave’s career, he served as a school leader working with disadvantaged and troubled youth, gaining a special appreciation for the difficult roles of administrative and teaching staff.

Vice President of Sponsorship Services: Yvonne Adkins

Yvonne brings to her position more than 12 years of experience working with board relations, governance and compliance. She has acted in the capacity of a director of board relations, compliance officer and governance instructor. For the last several years she was the vice president of governance and compliance for a large Ohio-based charter school management company, where she was responsible for working with more than 50 governing boards and their school leadership across multiple states. Yvonne strives to strengthen communications and enhance relationships with board members, school leaders and other stakeholders to ensure that charter school boards have the knowledge and resources necessary to govern their school effectively.

Federal Student Programs Director: Faith Behringer

Faith’s 20 years of experience in education includes teaching, certification and licensure expertise, grant administration, educational program monitoring and compliance, and district and community school diagnostic assessments of all educational operations. Her background and extensive knowledge of federal education programs serves charter schools well. She provides valuable technical assistance and guidance related to federal programs, NCLB, ESEA, IDEA Part B and professional certification/licensure, and is well known throughout the state for her expertise in these areas.

Assistant Treasurer: Lisa Biederman

Lisa has served public schools and education-related organizations for more than 20 years, including employment as an interim treasurer, assistant treasurer, customer service coordinator, fiscal coordinator and software consultant. From payroll and other HR support, to accounts payable/receivable, bank reconciliation and budgeting, Lisa’s experience in the education environment makes her a great asset to charter schools.

Vice President of Special Education: Dr. Christine Burke

Dr. Burke leverages her extensive experience – as a special education teacher, school psychologist and manager of a major urban district’s special education department -- to help ensure school compliance with IDEA and other laws governing special education services. From data collection, reporting, general service delivery, and addressing individual students’ unique needs, Dr. Burke serves as a hands-on, accessible resource to charter school board members, administrators and staff. Her training and consulting services are highly valued by the schools she serves.

Assistant Program Manager: Debra Crosby

Deb’s background in administration and the medical field has honed her organizational skills, enhancing her effectiveness in coordinating CSS staff involvement in various school and board meetings and compliance assessments. Her attention to detail serves schools well, and her expertise in technology is an asset to CSS staff in her internal support role. Deb has held a number of executive administrative positions throughout her career including employment by The Ohio State University.

Director of Curriculum and Professional Development: Brian Dunbar

A former teacher and administrator, Brian has served Ohio community school parents, students, boards and leaders since 2001. He leverages his demonstrated success in the classroom as a teacher, curriculum coach and administrator in support of Ohio’s charter schools. He serves as chair of the Charter School Specialists Local Professional Development Committee Consortium, which helps teachers identify and pursue appropriate professional development opportunities needed for license renewal and ensures that schools are compliant with state law.

Special Projects Director: Carla Issac

Carla has worked in education for nearly 10 years. Her expertise in project management, document management and special projects coordination makes her a valued resource to schools sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage, helping to ensure their compliance in a wide range of areas. She serves as a vital link between schools and the Ohio Department of Education, and ensures timely, accurate submission of key information.

Northern Ohio Regional Representative: Delores Junior

Delores’ 35+ years experience in public education includes teaching and administration in a major urban district. She has focused extensively on improving student achievement, and has served as a curriculum specialist, summer school coordinator, professional development coordinator, and coordinator for prevention programs for students at risk. She brings a unique, hands-on perspective in supporting charter schools throughout northern Ohio.

Director of School Improvement: Deborah Kozlesky

Debbie has a proven track-record of success as a former assistant superintendent, and as a principal achieving a dramatically improved school rating of “effective.” She works closely with charter school leadership teams to develop comprehensive improvement plans based solidly on analysis of student data. She serves as an adjunct professor for a local university and is a leading expert in the Ohio Improvement Process. Debbie provides hands-on assistance to schools in their efforts to improve student performance, and works closely with Director of Federal Programs Faith Behringer to align the essential components of the OIP educational plans with the CCIP.

Treasurer: Dan Lamb

Dan’s experience in fiscal support and assistant treasurer roles for two traditional public school districts in Ohio serves as a solid background for his position at Charter School Specialists. Dan is a licensed school treasurer with hands-on experience in payroll processing, accounts receivable/payable, budgeting, monthly and year-end account reconciliations, state audits and records retention. He has also helped coordinate cooperative purchasing programs, contracts and lease agreements for public school districts. Prior to working in Ohio’s education arena, Dan held several positions in financial services.

Treasurer: Bob Lotz

Bob has dedicated his career, which spans more than 40 years, to public education. His 20 years of service as a district school treasurer – coupled with his service as a district superintendent and, early in his career, as an assistant principal – serves as a solid foundation in providing strong fiscal support to Ohio charter schools. In 1995, Bob was named “Treasurer of the Year” by the Ohio Association of School Business Officials. He is a past president of the association, and has served as a board member for the Northwest Ohio Computer Services Cooperative for whom he organized and chaired the Cooperative Worker Compensation Group.

Educational Programs Assistant: Angie Mann

Angie brings more than a decade of experience providing administrative support in a variety of work environments, including the Ohio Department of Education’s Office of Professional Conduct. Her attention to detail and commitment to consistently meeting deadlines are valuable assets in her role of providing support to the CSS School Improvement team, which was created to assist schools in achieving academic excellence. In addition to helping ensure that schools are compliant with federal program requirements, she also provides valuable assistance in other areas of CSS operations, including sponsorship contract renewals and monthly “school-at-a-glance” reports.

Treasurer: Mary Markle

Throughout Mary’s 30 years of service as a district treasurer/fiscal officer, she maintained a solid commitment to ensuring operational integrity. That commitment, and her extensive knowledge and expertise, makes her a highly-valued asset to the charter school community. Mary has received recognition from her peers as a recipient of the Ohio School Board Association’s “Innovations in School Finance Award,” as well as a number of awards for audit excellence from the Ohio Auditor of State. She has demonstrated strong leadership skills through her service as treasurer/secretary of the Five-County Chapter of the Ohio Association of School Business Officials.

Chief Fiscal Officer: Tom Mellott

Tom has leveraged his fiscal expertise as a certified public accountant throughout his 25-plus year career in public accounting, and in the roles of controller and chief financial officer for both not-for-profit and for-profit organizations. He has also taught undergraduate accounting courses and currently serves as an adjunct accounting instructor at Franklin University. His knowledge and experience make him a valued asset to both internal and external customers: conducting schools’ monthly fiscal reviews, and providing essential fiscal support within the CSS organization.

General Counsel: Tammie Osler

An attorney and former assistant prosecutor, Tammie provides assistance and support to charter schools sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage, relying on her past experience with the ODE Office of Professional Conduct. Her knowledge of Ohio charter law provides a solid foundation for conducting schools’ compliance reviews and providing quality technical assistance. She plays a key role in executing contracts between Charter School Specialists and the many schools it serves.

Vice President of Governmental Relations: Catherine West

Catherine has more than 25 years of professional experience in public and media relations, including serving as press secretary for the Ohio Senate Majority Caucus in the late 1990s as the DeRolph school funding legal case was being considered by the Ohio Supreme Court and the General Assembly was focused on K-12 accountability and funding. She understands the legislative process, the political dynamic and the Statehouse culture, and uses her unique perspective in support of Ohio charter schools.

Treasurer: Arlene Wilson

Throughout a career that spans more than 40 years, Arlene has committed her talents and expertise to public education. Her experience includes service as treasurer/CFO for two public school districts, as well as for a four-county public career center, and employment as a consultant for the Ohio Department of Education. She is a member of the Ohio Association of School Business Officials and the Association of School Business Officials International, and previously served as treasurer of the School Employees Retirement System.

School Improvement Coordinator: Sue Mash

Sue’s 25+ years of experience in education is distinguished by strong background in school improvement and systems of support. She has been a classroom teacher, teacher leader, mentor, coach, state-level agency manager and educational consultant. Her in-depth experience in standards-based education includes curriculum alignment, unit and lesson design, instructional strategies, formative and summative assessments, and literacy across the curriculum. Sue has designed and facilitated high-quality learning experiences for novice and experienced educators. Her tenure with the Ohio Department of Education focused on development, coordination, and implementation of products, services, and technical assistance for improving learning and closing the achievement gap for all students.