Capstone Director

Dr. Genevieve Siegel-Hawley received her Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Education from the University of California, Los Angeles Graduate School of Education and Information Studies. Her research interests focus on examining the impact of segregation and resegregation in American schools, along with exploring viable policy options for a truly integrated society. Siegel-Hawley received her B.A. from the University of Virginia, her M.A.T. in Secondary Social Studies Education from Johns Hopkins University, and her M.Ed. in Education Policy and Management from Harvard University. Siegel-Hawley taught two years of high school history in Baltimore, Maryland with Teach for America, and later returned to teach for an additional two years in her hometown of Richmond, Virginia. She joined UCLAs Civil Rights Project in 2007 and has worked on a number of research projects linked to the Initiative on School Integration. Siegel-Hawley is currently a research associate for The Civil Rights Project at UCLA and an assistant professor at VCU Education Leadership program.

The Team

Ram Bhagat is a science teacher, conflict transformation trainer, and community arts leader committed to healing the traumatic effects of racism. Bhagat has designed culturally responsive curricula for Richmond Public Schools with generous grants from Partners in the Arts, the Community Foundation, and the Yale National Initiative to Strengthen Teaching in Public Schools. His approach to Aesthetic education has stimulated the creative problem solving skills of urban minority youth, through the integration of ARTS into STEM content areas. Bhagats commitment to social justice and the social emotional health of African American and Latino male adolescents was triggered by the untimely death of his younger brother. Ram is engaged to Traci Johnson. They live in Richmond with their daughter Shanthi. He is actively involved with several community organizations and his personal blog site can be found at rambhagat.wordpress.com. Brian Maltby is an Assistant Principal at Patrick Henry High School in Ashland, Virginia. Previously, Brian worked as a teacher and coach at Virginia Randolph Community High School in Henrico, Virginia. Brian is seeking his third degree from VCU having already earned a BFA in 1999 and a Masters in Educational Leadership in 2007. Brian is married and lives with his wife and 3 pets in Richmond. His blog can be seen at brianmaltby.wordpress.com

Damon Richardson spent the first part of his professional career in the private sector; first as an engineer for a manufacturing company, then as a project manager for a technology company. Damon began is his career in education after joining Richmond Public Schools (RPS) in 2004 as the division technology coordinator, and more recently, as the division director of testing. He graduated from Virginia Military Institute with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, and received an MBA from Averett University. Damon was born in Richmond, Virginia, and is a product of RPS. He currently lives in Glen Allen, VA, is married to Kimberly Richardson and has two boys, Gabriel, 13, and Jalen, 11. Damon is an active member of the board of Team Up Richmond, and his personal blog site can be found at damonrrichardson.wordpress.com. Joe Koontz is the principal of Donahoe Elementary. Donahoe is a Title One school that serves a diverse community in Eastern Henrico. For the past 10 years, he has been a teacher, coach, and administrator at the elementary level in Henrico County. Joe is a career switcher with a background in business and technology. Joe has a bachelors degree in Business and Information Technology from Duquesne University. He received his Masters in Teaching from Towson University and Post-Masters in Educational Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is married to a second grade teacher, Allison, and has three young children. His personal blog site can be found at josephkoontz.wordpress.com.