Our Team

We’re a team of experienced, results-driven education executives with over 10 decades of executive experience leading CMOs across 10 of the largest charter school markets in the U.S.

Veronica Conforme

CEO

  • Veronica Conforme is a Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Greenhouse E3. She joined Greenhouse in June of 2023 after leading UP Education Network for six years in Massachusetts. She previously served as Chancellor of the Education Achievement Authority (EAA) of Michigan from 2014 to 2017. As Chancellor of the EAA, Veronica oversaw the state district focused on transforming the turn around of schools in the City of Detroit, spearheading important improvements in those schools by reversing long standing trends for students in math and reading.

    For over a decade, she served in senior leadership roles in the NYC Department of Education including Chief Operating Officer overseeing a $23 billion budget and 130,000 employees. Veronica also worked as Vice President for the Access to Opportunity campaign at The College Board.

    Veronica’s deep content knowledge, experience at the senior most levels of two of the country’s largest urban school districts, and leading turn around work and transformation in the charter sector has prepared her for leading Greenhouse E3.

Nikeira Roker-Harewood

PROGRAM OPERATIONS MANAGER

  • Nikeira Roker-Harewood is the Project Coordinator and Executive Assistant of Greenhouse E3. She is self-motivated and progress-driven, with an extensive background in education. With over 15 years of experience in education and most of those years with the largest charter network in the country, KIPP Public Schools, she has made tremendous gains as a teacher, grade-level lead, instructional coach, and operations manager.

    Nikeira founded two KIPP Schools and served as an operations manager, focusing on planning, and implementing logistics, managing computer systems, and communicating with stakeholders.

Jessica Cunningham Akoto

PARTNER

  • Jessica Cunningham Akoto is a Partner at Greenhouse E3. In this role, she leads the organization’s thought leadership work and serves as a faculty member for GE3 cohorts. Prior to joining the Greenhouse E3 team, Jessica was the Chief Executive Officer at KIPP Philadelphia Public Schools from 2018 - 2023. During her tenure, KIPP Philadelphia Public Schools grew from five schools serving 2300 students to seven schools serving 3000 students, with annual revenues of $60M.

    Jessica began her career in public education as an elementary school teacher with D.C. Public Schools. Jessica later joined KIPP DC where she founded the organization’s third middle school, WILL Academy, and served as the school’s principal for four years. During her time with KIPP DC Jessica went on to serve as both a high school principal and Chief Academic Officer. After 14 years with KIPP DC, Jessica joined the KIPP Foundation as an Executive in Residence, where she provided coaching and on-site support to KIPP regional leaders to identify and execute the necessary steps to improve student outcomes.

    Jessica is a Fellow of the fourth class of the Pahara Fellowship and a 2015 Milken Educator Award winner. She also serves as chair of EdFuel’s board of directors.

Herneshia Dukes

NATIONAL DIRECTOR, FELLOWSHIPS

  • Herneshia Dukes serves as the National Fellowship Director for Greenhouse E3. Before joining the team, Herneshia held the position of Executive Director of School Leadership for New Schools for New Orleans. Her primary responsibility was to develop and oversee the E3 Fellowship, a program focused on creating leadership pipelines for aspiring chief-level executives for charter organizations in the city of New Orleans. Herneshia is thrilled to have the opportunity to expand E3 beyond NOLA and to provide a world-class fellowship experience for CEO's and charter leaders across the country.

    Prior to her work with E3, Herneshia served as a founder, principal and head of schools with KIPP Public Schools. While school leader, her campus received a letter grade of an “A” for growth four years in a row and was publicly recognized by Orleans Parish School Board and the state of Louisiana in 2018-2019 for their performance. In 2018, her school ranked in the top quartile in the KIPP national network for the quality and effectiveness of professional development. Herneshia has also served on faculty for KIPP School Leadership Programs (KSLP) where she coached, designed and led programming for KIPP leaders.

    Herneshia is the founder and lead coach at I.D.E.A. Education Consulting, where she provides coaching, training and development for districts, charter networks, and non-profit education programs.

Malka Borrego

EXECUTIVE COACH

  • Malka Borrego is a Partner at Greenhouse E3. As the founder of the MB Consulting Company, she brings expertise in the areas of school system leadership, educational equity, and community engagement.

    She is a Latina who has successfully founded a charter management organization that has created positive change and high-quality educational opportunities for students in the community where she was raised. Her leadership is a testament to her commitment to her community and her passion for educational equity. Malka Borrego has over 15 years experience as a successful CEO. She is positioned to support organizations, their leaders and boards in strategy, change management, finance, facilities, talent, communications, DEI work, programs, community engagement and fundraising.

    She earned a BS in Sociology from Pomona College and an MA in Social Science from Stanford University’s School of Education.

Julian Torres

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

  • Julian serves as Chief Operating Officer at Greenhouse E3. In this role, he leads the organization’s full operations portfolio—including finance and accounting systems, budgeting and reporting, HR and talent processes, contract management, and vendor partnerships—building the infrastructure that enables strong program delivery and sustainable growth.

    Julian began his career with Teach For America in Dallas, Texas, and went on to serve as a campus and network leader with Uplift Education, where he led operations. He has since held executive operational leadership roles across multiple nonprofits and served as COO of an expanding network of charter schools in the Southeastern United States.

    Julian is a graduate of Florida State University and holds an MBA from Syracuse University.

Natalia Reyes

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

  • Natalia Reyes is the Operations Coordinator and Executive Assistant to the Greenhouse E3 co-founder and co-CEO, Veronica Conforme. Originally from the Czech Republic and of Polish nationality, Natalia completed her Master’s Degree in education, specializing in teaching at elementary schools.

    After moving permanently to the USA, Natalia shifted her career path by obtaining a real estate license and delving into property management. Starting as an administrative assistant, she diligently advanced to the role of a property manager.

    Despite her success in property management, Natalia’s dedication to education never waned. Recognizing her enduring passion, she is now set to join Greenhouse E3, aiming to make a meaningful impact in the education sector. In her free time, Natalia enjoys spending quality time with her family, exploring new places, traveling, and running. She proudly completed the 2018 NYC marathon, showcasing her commitment and endurance.

Dr. Tracy Epp

PARTNER

  • Dr. Tracy Epp is the Chief Program Officer of Greenhouse E3 where she leads the development of GE3 curriculum, ensuring our fellows have a world-class experience.

    Prior to joining the Greenhouse E3 team, she served as the Chief Academic Officer for Richmond (VA) Public Schools where she led turnaround efforts, including the dramatic improvement of high school graduation rates, reduction in dropout rates, the development and rollout of a robust $100 million early literacy plan and the transformation of curriculum & instruction across the school district. Prior to joining the team in Richmond, she served as the Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer at The National Math + Science Initiative, where she led an overhaul of program design, and led the development of its five-year strategic plan.

    In addition to serving as the CAO in Richmond, Tracy has led academic strategy, program design and has been responsible for student achievement at both Achievement FIrst Public Schools and IDEA Public Schools as the founding CAO in both organizations, ensuring quality as both respective organizations scaled. She is passionate about utilizing curriculum to create transformative, equitable learning for all students.

Cristina De Jesus

PRESIDENT & CEO, GREEN DOT PUBLIC SCHOOLS - CALIFORNIA

Lynzi Ziegenhagen

INDEPENDENT CONSULTANT

Our Board

Dana Peterson

CEO, NEW SCHOOLS FOR NEW ORLEANS

Sonia Beatty

SPECIAL ADVISOR TO THE CEO, NEW LEADERS

Jeff Snipes (Board Chair)

FOUNDER AND BOARD CHAIR, MILLENNIUM SCHOOL / MILLENNIUM.ORG

Veronica Conforme

CEO & CO-FOUNDER, GREENHOUSE E3