Staff

After receiving his Doctor of Philosophy studying mathematical physics at the University of Oklahoma, John taught at the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics before moving on to join the physics faculty at California Polytechnic State University. He went on to become the Regional Lead for the multimedia arts department at National University. John left the university field to perform education research and professional development. He founded The Standards Company LLC in July 2007.

Ben earned his Master of Education in instructional leadership and curriculum design at National University and a Bachelor of Science in geology at Mississippi State University. A former Department Chair at Palm Springs Unified School District, Ben was one of the two founding members of InfoSIS LLC, a company that specializes in analyzing assessments and curriculum for school districts and state agencies. He has also performed professional services centered on curriculum for Pearson Education, NCS Learn, and Simon and Schuster. Before joining us, Ben was the Senior Web Architect for E-Design, Inc. Besides being one of our most experienced curriculum specialists, Ben is also the developer of Ruby, our curriculum analysis software.

Zepure earned her Master of Public Health Administration at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and is a former Director of Nursing at two area hospitals. Zepure is responsible for accounting and human resource management.

The former manager of the programming department for a local education research company, John is one of the original members of The Standards Company LLC. John currently administrates the computer network and is leading the development of Sapphire, the company's electronic classroom observation application.

Jennifer is the manager of the curriculum review department and earned her Bachelor of Science in physics at California State University. She has extensive experience in curriculum review, having analyzed the enacted curriculum for hundreds of schools while training new analysts in the process. She is also a former public school mathematics teacher. Jennifer currently oversees quality control for Ruby projects related to mathematics and science.

Karen earned her Master of Education at the University of Louisville and her Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Oklahoma. Prior to joining us, she was a professional consultant in aligning curricular materials to state content standards for numerous publishing firms. Her duties included correlating educational texts to state and national standards using both traditional methods and Web-based interfaces, correlating test bank materials to state educational standards, writing standards-based material for teacher edition textbooks, and writing standards-based test preparation and review material. Karen currently oversees quality control in Ruby projects related to the liberal arts.

Deborah earned her Bachelor of Science in English at Westmont College and was a ten-year veteran of teaching before joining us. She has taught almost every school grade level, in both public and private settings, and in three different states. Her multiple-subject teaching credential encompasses a supplemental authorization in English as well as authorization in English Learner strategies. Her current interests center on multiple intelligences, depth of knowledge, and English Learner strategies.

Gerlinde earned her Master of Arts in science education at Fresno Pacific University and her Bachelor of Arts in liberal arts from California State University. A former KQED Teacher of the Year, she was a presenter for the AIMS math and science program and the Lawrence Hall of Science EQUALS curriculum. She is also a former coordinator for the Fort Miller Medical Career Center and has taught both middle and elementary school.

Dennis earned his Master of Arts in educational administration and leadership at California State University and a Bachelor of Arts in both Russian studies and political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Dennis has served in various leadership positions in California and Wyoming, including the principal position at five public schools and Superintendent of Pine Ridge (CA) School District.

David earned his Doctor of Philosophy in historical geography at the University of Illinois and his Master of Arts in geography and Bachelor of Arts in social studies at California State University. Since that time, he has taught in elementary schools as well as at numerous universities. He also functions as the company's chief technical editor.