With unending passion for learning and with unwavering optimism, Mr. Piscal’s leadership is the heart of CAPS. A long-time educator and New Jersey native, Mr. Piscal worked together with local business leaders and educators to create CAPS as a choice for parents who want to prepare their children for college and career. Since its inception, the organization has grown quickly and steadily under his continued leadership.
Mr. Piscal is a pioneer in the charter school movement. He previously founded the Inner City Education Foundation, the first charter school management organization in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1999, this network of 15 high-performing public charter schools has sent over a thousand students to the best colleges and universities in the nation, including Stanford, Brown, Dartmouth, Duke, MIT, UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UCLA, Bryn Mawr, Bowdoin, Pitzer, Howard, Morehouse, and Spelman.
Mr. Piscal’s work has been featured in the New York Times, NY Daily News, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and Good Morning America. His schools have received support from leaders in the community, including Magic Johnson and New Jersey’s own Brian Taylor of Perth Amboy and Princeton University fame.
Dr. Mills, born and raised in Paterson, New Jersey, always possessed a fervent affection for providing urban youth with an alternative perspective on life. As a high school student, he quickly acknowledged the significance of becoming an educated African-American male in his community. He sought empowerment through education, discovering its significance to personal and societal development.
As Chief Performance Officer of CAPS, Dr. Erlichson oversees the collection and analysis of a wide range of data about our scholars, their learning, and our programs and services. She also initiates dialogue within the CAPS community about that data and collaborates with leaders and teachers to help them formulate effective plans in response to it. After, she helps steer those plans and evaluate their effectiveness, continuing the cycle.
Mrs. McInerney began her career outside the education world, on Wall Street. Working in the legal advisory department at Merrill Lynch Asset Management for over a decade, she held a VP role in her final years. However, having grown up in New Jersey, and having a strong desire to work with young people, she changed careers. Earning an M.A.T. at Monmouth University, she joined the staff of St. Catharine’s in Spring Lake, where she taught both grade K and middle school English. Earning a second master’s degree at Seton Hall in Education Leadership Management and Policy, she later become Assistant Principal at St. Catharine’s. She has also served as an adjunct professor at Brookdale College.
As Chief Financial Officer for CAPS, Mr. Corso is responsible for all of the financial aspects of the organization as well as the coordination of all financial and operational functions at each of the three CAPS schools.
As Operations Consultant for CAPS, Mr. Hespe guides the organization on a range of issues, including policy, compliance with state regulations, school funding, and our major initiatives.
Mr. Parry currently serves as the Facilities Director for College Achieve Public Schools. In this role, he is responsible for assisting with new leases and property expansion, managing maintenance contracts, and overseeing construction projects conducted at all College Achieve campuses. Prior to joining CAPS in 2018, he spent nearly 30 years working as the Property/Project Manager for the Durst Organization. In this role he was responsible for managing the construction and maintenance on some of the tallest and most energy efficient buildings in New York City!