Our Mission
We provide scaffolded support and development in governance, leadership, and operations for school improvement.
Our Vision
To strengthen and transform the school landscape to generate more equitable and high-quality education options for children.
Our Team
As experienced leaders in charter schools, we have first-hand experience navigating the nuances of governance and operations. Consider us your charter management resource.
Holly Amaya | Executive Director
Holly Amaya is a strategic and inclusive leader with over 20 years of specialized experience across the charter school ecosystem. Having served as a charter school administrator, a licensed school counselor, and an authorizer, Holly brings a rare 360-degree perspective to her work at CharterSource. She previously directed Minnesota’s federal Charter School Program (CSP) grant project, where she managed high-stakes funding and compliance for emerging and replicating schools. Her expertise in strategic planning and organizational development is rooted in a deep understanding of how systems of accountability drive school success. Holly holds a Master of Arts in Educational Psychology and a Certificate in Organizational Development from the University of Minnesota and is a dedicated lifelong learner.
Mary Cannon | Operations Manager
Mary Cannon empowers charter school boards and our organization with effective systems and streamlined processes. Mary has spent over fifteen years in the education and nonprofit sectors working in roles encompassing outreach, administration, communications, fundraising and leadership. In all her work, Mary’s attention to detail and steady focus on the mission drive her to succeed. In her free time, Mary enjoys making music, spending time outside and, together with her husband, tries to keep up with her 3 young boys.
John Cronin | Communications Manager
John has a BA in Strategic Communications from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities and brings broad expertise in managing digital campaigns, content creation, and community engagement. John has also produced two independent feature films and coaches basketball at Nova Classical Academy, where he was also a charter school student!
Alison Ford | Governance Program Manager
Alison Ford is an experienced fundraiser and board governance coach. Over the last decade, Alison has worked with charter schools to introduce and establish fundraising practices and systems. Additionally, Alison has served as board liaison, development chair, and board member on various work and volunteer nonprofit boards.
Before her work with charter schools, Alison was a higher education consultant and implemented admissions and financial aid systems at Georgetown University, The College of Holy Cross, and Indiana University.
Alison earned a Bachelor’s in Education and a Master's in Public Administration with a focus on education policy and school finance, both at Cornell University. As the descendant of a long line of teachers and educators, Alison channels her passion for education to convene key stakeholders, changemakers, and the community to advance educational equity. In her spare time, Alison enjoys spending time with her two adult children, walking her teacup golden doodle Mabel, gardening, and traveling.
Kelly Gutierrez | Lead Financial Consultant
As founder of St. Croix College Prep, Kelly has built one of Minnesota’s best K-12 charter schools. With a degree in accounting from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, she has orchestrated the expansion and development of their current campus in the East Metro. Prior to launching the school, she was an Assistant Controller at Bank One and an auditor for Coopers & Lybrand. She has engaged with our partner schools on strategic budgeting, bond covenant reporting and analysis as well as growth readiness. She enjoys spending time with her three adult children and resides in the East Metro.
Hannah Johns | StartRight Strategic Advisor
Hannah Johns is a seasoned strategic and operational leader with deep experience in the charter school sector. She served as Chief Operating Officer at Harlem Village Academies and held leadership roles at Uncommon Schools, where she led school and network-level operations to drive instructional and organizational excellence. Prior to that, she worked with Teach For America and Achievement First, focusing on instructional leadership and program development. As a consultant, Hannah partners with charter schools and education nonprofits to support strategic planning, improve team operations, and strengthen talent systems. Hannah and her family are based in Houston, TX.
Kate Mazurek | Director of StartRight
From teaching, school leadership, instructional design, and school operations, Kate has experienced the gamut of school oversight. Kate was formerly the Head of Schools and Director of Instruction at KIPP Minnesota. Before joining the KIPP Minnesota team, she spent 12 years with KIPP Chicago. In Chicago, she was an 8th-grade ELA teacher for three years. She moved on to serve as the founding leader of the second KIPP Chicago school and continued to serve in leadership for seven years as the organization scaled.
Kate received her B.A. in History and Math at Northwestern University and an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In addition, Kate participated in the Miles Family and Fisher Fellow program through the KIPP Foundation.
Elliot Smalley | StartRight Strategic Advisor
As the former Executive Director of Palmetto Excel, Elliot launched the first adult high school of its kind in South Carolina, on the campus of Trident Tech University. They received over 2,000 applications for 150 seats and consistently exceeded enrollment goals. Palmetto earned state approval for two additional campuses statewide. He also served as the Deputy Superintendent for the Charleston County School District, where he led the development of Charleston's strategic plan and spearheaded the district's communications efforts. He served as Chief of Staff for Tennessee's Achievement School District (ASD), where he led ASD's communications and outreach efforts and played a key role in developing the ASD's start-up strategy.
Elliot is a NACSA Board member, Broad Academy Fellow, Broad Resident, Aspen-Pahara Fellow, and Chief for Change who still believes that revolutionary change in our education system is both needed and achievable. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts and earned a master’s at the University of Cincinnati. He recently relocated from South Carolina to Minnesota.
Our Board
Our board members have great depth of experience in the charter sector from school start-up entrepreneurs, authorizing experience, to facility development. Their collective expertise helps guide our organizational drive to provide more high-quality student options.
Phyllis Saltzman | Board Chair
Phyllis Saltzman is committed to closing the opportunity gap by building the capacity of charter schools. She began her career counseling at-risk youth and families and went on to establish a career in organization and leadership development. In 2000, she founded Saltzman Consulting, working with schools, nonprofits, and businesses on strategy and effectiveness. She previously held organization development roles within multinational corporations and taught leadership development at the university level. Phyllis was a founding board member of Minneapolis College Prep and supported several charter schools in strategic planning and governance. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and a Master of Science in Organization Development from Pepperdine University. Phyllis resides in Minneapolis.
Beth Finch | Founder
With over 20 years of school experience, Beth Finch launched CharterSource to provide boards and school operations with the foundational frameworks and systems to operate efficiently.
As a founder of Lake Country Academy, a Pre-K4 through 8th-grade school in Wisconsin, she understands the complexities of leading and building schools. Beth is also the former Board Chair of KIPP Minnesota. As Board Chair for over 5 years, she supported the growth and facility strategy to launch the opening of the KIPP elementary school.
Beth has served on multiple boards, including Lake Country Academy, Mounds Park Academy, and Wilderness Inquiry. She served on the founding board of Great MN Schools and continues to serve on the Great MN Schools Advisory Board.
Her passion and cornerstone of her work are supporting schools in the effort to foster opportunity and equality for all students. She is a graduate of the College of St. Benedict's and resides in the east metro.
Kou Vang | Board Treasurer
J. Kou Vang became President of JB Vang in September of 2002. He brings with a wealth of experience in finance, accounting, and Investment. Before to joining JB Vang he was Vice President of Commercial Lending and an Investment Advisor for Western Bank in St. Paul, MN. While at the Bank, he managed both a commercial loan portfolio and an investment portfolio. He was heavily involved in commercial real estate lending and development/construction projects. Prior to joining the Bank, Kou was President of an Asian food importer and distributor. He has held a number of other finance/accounting positions with other organizations. Kou is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin at Madison with a degree in Economics with a focus on financial models.
Molly McGraw Healy | Board Member
Molly McGraw Healy is the Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships at the University of St. Thomas and is proud to serve as the founding liaison between the University’s School of Education and the Collaborative School at Maxfield Elementary, a lab school launched in 2023. She holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School and received her Bachelor of Arts from St. Olaf College. Prior to her current role she served as the Director of Charter School Authorizing for the University of St. Thomas and was an active member of the authorizing community, serving three years as chair of the state’s authorizer organization, and acting as presenter and consultant nationally and locally. She is an alumna of the inaugural cohort of both the National Association of Charter School Authorizers’ Leadership Program and University of St. Thomas’ Leadership Program. She enjoys spending time at home and ‘up north’ with her husband and two sons, mountain biking and skiing green circle trails, reading, gardening, cooking, and spending time with friends.
Our Results
Click here to view our 2025 End of Year Report.
Support our work!
Your gift powers stronger schools. CharterSource has trained over 2,250 board members and supported 75 charter schools, helping 25,000 students access the quality education they deserve. Donate today to help us continue equipping charter school leaders with the governance, financial, and operational tools they need to thrive.
We are a registered 501c3 nonprofit organization and your donation is tax deductible.