About Us

 

Nathan Levenson

Nate Levenson leads New Solutions K12. Nate has spent the last 25 years working to improve the lives and outcomes for students who struggle. His practical and innovative ideas have been implemented in school districts across the country. He brings a unique perspective to this mission having served as a school superintendent, school board member, author, speaker, and consultant to over 250 districts in more than 30 states and around the world. He has advised governors, state legislators, state commissioners of education and the Secretary of Education. His thought leadership has been published in more than 30 articles, six books, and white papers for leading think tanks including The American Enterprise Institute, Center for American Progress and The Fordham Institute.

As Superintendent in Arlington, MA  he oversaw efforts that reduced the high school special education achievement gap by 40 points and reduced number of struggling readers K-5 by 68% all during a time of tight budgets.

Nate’s work with school districts span the continent and the globe from California to Florida to Vermont to the Middle East. He has supported improving services for students with special needs in school systems as large as 1,000,000 students (NYC) to as small as 100 students (VT). These efforts have included in depth reviews of current practices, facilitation of crafting realistic yet bold implementation plans and working on the ground with school and district leaders through multiyear implementation.

Statewide support includes helping shape a fundamental overhaul of special education in Vermont, a comprehensive review in Wyoming, and extensive training across Florida. Nate has also partnered with the Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio and Washington departments of education.

As Superintendent in Arlington, MA  he oversaw efforts that reduced the high school special education achievement gap by 40 points and the number of struggling readers K-5 by 68% all during a time of tight budgets.

A sought after speaker and leader of professional development, Nate has led PD in over 100 districts, provided training for aspiring or new superintendents in Connecticut, Florida, Louisiana, and Vermont. He has keynoted for the Connecticut, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Vermont, Colorado, and Los Angeles area special education leaders. State Business Officials Associations in Massachusetts, Louisiana, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire have also invited Nate to speak on many occasions. He has spoken at National conferences hosted by AASA, NSBA, ASCD, ASBO and numerous think tank thought leader gatherings.

A prolific writer, his publications include:

Nate received a BA from Dartmouth College, an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School and is a graduate of the Broad Foundation Superintendents Academy (now part of Yale School of Management). He served as Chair, Boxford, MA School Board, Vice President, Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity and UNCF, North East Region board supporting Black students attending college.

Nate has three grown children, all successfully launched into the world, and enjoys traveling and collecting antiques with his wife Leslie.

David James

David is managing director of New Solutions K12. He brings experience as a teacher, school leader, consultant, and author to his work partnering with educators to improve opportunities and outcomes for students of all backgrounds. He supports leaders of schools, districts, and state education agencies in addressing their most pressing challenges related to elementary and secondary scheduling, budgeting, program evaluation and management, supporting students who struggle, and strategic planning. He has partnered with districts as small as a single-school districts in rural North Dakota to as large as urban districts such as Los Angeles Unified School District and Seattle Public Schools, and every size of district in between. David leads the firm’s scheduling practice and has helped over 100 schools in over 12 states design schedules using a data-driven approach.

David began his career as an 8th grade science teacher in Chelsea Public Schools in Massachusetts, where he helped implement a new block schedule and led his students to achieve the highest passing rate on 8th grade science and technology state exam in district history. He went on to teach 6th grade science in Boston Public Schools and later planned and led the turnaround of a 6-8 middle school in Lawrence Public Schools (MA) as part of state-led district improvement effort. As co-director, he designed an innovative cohort schedule and helped lead the school to become the fastest improving middle school in the state of Massachusetts in only its second year, as measured by student academic growth.

He is co-author of It’s Time for Strategic Scheduling: How to Design Smarter School Schedules That Are Great for Students, Staff, and the Budget (ASCD, 2023). His work on secondary school scheduling and on change management has also been published in the District Management Journal and featured in the Marshall Memo.

David is currently the chair of the young professional advisory board at UP Education Network, a nonprofit school management organization that works with local school districts to transform chronically under-performing schools. In addition to his experience as a K-12 educator and consultant, he has spent time as a management consultant in the healthcare industry and as an analyst with a global investment bank.

He received his BSBA in Business Administration (cum laude) from Bucknell University, M.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction from Boston University, and MBA from Babson College, where he was a President’s Scholar.

David has two young daughters and a golden retriever, named Beacon. He and his wife, Sarah, enjoy hiking and traveling with all three of them.

Steve Sandoval

Steve is a senior consultant at New Solutions K12. He brings to his work more than 20 years of experience in school-based mental health and district leadership roles, as well as experience as an adjunct professor and author. He is passionate about providing all students–with and without disabilities–with quality education and seeks to support schools and districts in implementing best practices and strategic solutions to achieve this goal.

Prior to joining New Solutions K12, Steve served as executive director of special services for Westminster Public Schools in Colorado. Under his leadership, the district’s Special Education program improved dramatically, moving from a “Needs Intervention” state designation to “Meets Requirements,” and had zero due process complaints. A few of the initiatives he led for the district include: implementation of a nationally recognized Interventionist Framework under a Competency-Based System, a district-wide implementation of social-emotional learning (SEL) habits, a suicide prevention initiative, and a bullying reduction initiative. Before joining Westminster Public Schools, he served as director of special programs for Weld County School District RE-4 in Windsor, Colorado, where he led district-wide implementation of Response to Intervention, increased student outcomes through programming and professional development, and achieved a 94% parent approval rating of the district’s special education supports. His school-based experience includes having served as a pupil services specialist for Poudre School District and an elementary school psychologist for Weld Co. District 6, both in Colorado.

Steve is a nationally recognized and award-winning educational thought leader and author. He was named a Leader to Learn from by EdWeek. He created a nationally recognized Interventionist Framework and has also published extensively on best practices in psychology and intervention. Steve has delivered keynote speeches across the country on leading-edge topics in special education. He has also worked with and serves on many state-level committees and special education associations.

Steve received his Ph.D. in School Psychology and his M.A. in Educational Psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and received his B.A in Pre-professional Psychology and his Special Education Director’s Professional License from the University of Northern Colorado.

Karla Brooks Baehr

Karla brings a wealth of expertise to New Solutions K12 honed through more than 40 years of varied contributions to public education: as a teacher at the middle, high school, and university level; central office administrator specializing in curriculum and human resources; superintendent in suburban and urban districts, and deputy commissioner at a state department of education. Recognized for distinguished service by every major K-12 statewide education association in Massachusetts, Karla now uses her strong analytical and communication skills as a consultant, supporting district and state leaders to focus district work on improving student outcomes and advancing equity. She brings a deep commitment to making schools work better for both adults and students with special expertise in strategic and adaptive leadership, organizational and strategy development, and resource (re)allocation.

Sarah Levenson

Sarah is a senior consultant at New Solutions K12. In this role, she helps clients cost effectively raise student achievement and implement best practices for students who struggle. She began her career as a consultant in the financial technology industry providing complex data analysis and project management. She has had a lifelong passion for improving K-12 public education.

Sarah received a BA in Economics (summa cum laude) from Lafayette College.

Meghan Magee

Meghan brings much experience as a consultant with an extensive background in research, analysis, strategy and program management. She uses her analytical skills to execute projects and support program reviews. She has provided high level financial research, analysis and budget forecasting to address declining enrollment, conducted financial analysis for a Collaborative Feasibility study for multiple school districts to help them to better serve students with specialized special needs and provide economies of scale across a range of services and helped support stakeholder engagement efforts in order understand a district’s current needs & outlook academically, financially, and operationally. Prior to joining New Solutions K12 Meghan worked in Rwanda and Tanzania supporting schools and children.

Meghan holds a BA in Social Studies from Harvard University and graduated cum laude with a focus field in gender and education.

Jimena Samano

Jimena is a consultant at New Solutions K12. She regularly supports schools of all levels examining course and staffing practices as well as designing, building, and optimizing schedules. Previously, she spent time as a consultant in the manufacturing, healthcare, and e-commerce industries, and helped organizations transform and improve business processes and schedules.

Jimena received a BS Industrial and Systems Engineer from Tecnológico de Monterrey and is fluent in Spanish, English, and German.

Caitlin Varys

Caitlin is a consultant at New Solutions K12. She has worked in a variety of different roles prior to joining the team, including: working in trade settlements and investment administration at Wellington Wealth Management; in securities lending for Goldman Sachs; as a high school math teacher, grade-level leader, and Assistant Principal of Operations for a Boston Charter School; and as a new teacher coach & program manager for Teach for America. She brings to her work a passion for improving K-12 education and supporting educators and schools in order to see a world in which all children can succeed.

Caitlin received her BS in Business Administration with a focus on Finance and Economics from Northeastern University, where she graduated summa cum laude from the Honors Program. She received her teaching certification from Boston University.