BSCAA

2023–24 Officers

BSCAA leadership is composed of seven officers who are elected by the overall alumni body for a two-year term. In addition, a group of 20–30 Advisory Board members are invited to serve for as long as they remain active participants.

Margaret Ryan Evangelista, GSE ’01, Early Childhood and Elementary Education
President

Margaret Ryan Evangelista has 25 years of experience in public education with a deep passion and focus for education equity and culturally responsive learning environments. In 1997, she moved to New York from Boston as a Teach for America Corps member and remained in the classroom for six years as a middle school and elementary teacher. In 2003, she left classroom teaching and co-founded Harlem Link Charter School, a pre-K–5 public charter school serving close to 500 students from Harlem and the South Bronx. During her time at Harlem Link, she served as the founding co-principal, Director of Inclusive Learning and Supports, and as co-executive director. Margaret has been a member of BSCAA since 2013 and has served on its Advisory Board as secretary and vice president since 2015.

Erica Davis, GSE ’11, Principals Institute
Vice President

Erica first became involved with Bank Street when she participated in action research with the technology program Project ConText and with Saturday Math seminars. Across her over 20 years as an educator in the New York City public schools, she has worn many hats. While in PS 191 in Brooklyn and PS 234 in Manhattan she taught a range of both lower and upper grades and served as a school-based instructional coach with a focus on math, social studies, and SEL learning. After graduating from Bank Street she went on to serve as an Assistant Principal at PS 234 and a centrally-based administrator at the Brooklyn North Field Support Center, supporting the instructional needs of schools across Brooklyn. She is currently the principal of PS 261 in Boreum Hill, Brooklyn. An important part of her work has always been around deepening the social-emotional learning of children and striving to ensure that all children feel seen by their teachers, their community, and the curriculum. She has served on the BSCAA board as a Secretary since 2017.

Becky Hamilton Scudieri, GSE ’08, Middle School Special & General Education
Secretary

For the past 18 years, Becky garnered experience directly assisting a diverse range of high school students and their families in achieving their post-secondary goals. Currently, Becky is the Director of Career Services & External Partnerships for KIPP Forward in New Jersey leading both high school and alumni initiatives that support launching students into their careers. Becky also manages KIPP Forward’s External & College Partnership initiatives for KIPP New Jersey. Becky joined the KIPP Forward team first in New York City as Director of College Access and Career Services and, five years later, moved to KIPP Forward in New Jersey to serve as Director of College Persistence. Prior to KIPP, Becky founded a guidance department and college-going culture at a charter high school in Harlem and also served as an academic advisor for the Liberty LEADS program at Bank Street College of Education. Becky joined the BSCAA Advisory Board in 2013, became a representative-at-large in 2017, and began her role as secretary in 2019.

Vanessa Bangser, GSE ’10, Leadership for Educational Change
Representative-at-Large

Vanessa is a managing director at LeveragED Foundation, which invests in the success of educational leadership, connects education leaders to each other, and amplifies brilliant ideas. Prior to joining LeverageED, she was managing director for elementary schools at KIPP NYC. She began her career as a special education teacher in the Bronx and went on to win Teach for America’s Sue Lehman Award. She also worked as a teacher and leader at PS 42, as an assistant principal in Harlem, and founding principal of Success Academy Bronx 2, which was recognized for both academics (in the top 1% in New York State) and culture (as the first Bronx school to win a Blackboard award). Vanessa was selected as a member of Harvard Graduate School of Education’s 2020 Women in Leadership Cohort and, in August 2022, she was the guest speaker for the launch of the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)’s Center for Women in Leadership.

Amber Cartwright, GSE ’09, ’20, Early Childhood Leadership
Representative-at-Large

Amber has a renowned track record for providing thoughtful leadership in educational strategy and programming across public and nonprofit organizations. As the vice president at Teaching Matters, Amber leads the strategic growth and impact of core services, operations, and programming. Before Teaching Matters, at the New York City Department of Education, Amber built strong foundations for meaningful family engagement and played a key role in leadership as the Senior Executive Director of Family Empowerment & Community Partnerships. Through her work with large nonprofit organizations, including Jumpstart, Teach for America, and Bank Street College of Education, Amber has built strong relationships and skills in strategic management. She has held leadership roles in early childhood programs throughout New York City, developing powerful connections to our communities. Amber has received the Diana Trister Dodge Scholar award and the National Association for the Education of Young Children Award. She is a UCLA/Johnson and Johnson Head Start 2016 Fellow and has received recognition from the Office of the Honorable Ruben Diaz for her commitment to early care and education.

Misha Paskar, GSE ’13, Early Childhood Special & General Education
Representative-at-Large

Misha Paskar’s motivation to earn a graduate degree at Bank Street was to better understand the development of her own children, but with the new knowledge she gained came an unexpected career in teaching. She started working as an assistant teacher at Downtown Little School in Manhattan and advanced to head teacher before moving to the Katmint Learning Initiative in Brooklyn as a lead teacher and then to the YMCA of Greater New York, where she taught in 4K classrooms at the YMCA of Greater New York. There, Misha moved from teacher to educational leader, landing the role of assistant director and later director of the West Side YMCA Early Childhood Center. Through Bank Street, Misha discovered a passion for leading teachers to identify and correct implicit bias in their classrooms. To support her professional development efforts, Misha has stayed connected to Bank Street through the Bank Street College Alumni Association (BSCAA) Social Justice Committee.

Dana Wheeler, GSE ’09, General Childhood Education
Representative-at-Large

Dana M. Wheeler recently joined ExpandED Schools as the Pathways Fellows Program Director. Previously, she worked for the Police Athletic League, Inc. as the Director of Education and Program Development for more than 25 after school and summer day camp programs in New York City. Additionally, she is an advisory board member for AXS Lab, Inc., an advocacy ambassador with the New York State Network for Youth Success, and is on the alumni board of Bank Street Graduate School. Ms. Wheeler is currently enrolled in the Education Policy and Leadership graduate program at American University. She earned an MS in General Childhood Education from Bank Street Graduate School and a BS from Drexel University in Business Administration/Marketing. Before becoming an educator, Ms. Wheeler worked in various roles including in the online marketing division of Clear Channel Entertainment, now called Live Nation. Ms. Wheeler fondly looks back on her time as a record store manager in Philadelphia, as she is a music fan.

BSCAA Advisory Board Members

If you are interested in becoming a member, please contact the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@bankstreet.edu.