(Dallas, Texas, September 6, 2016) – Young Women’s Preparatory Network (YWPN) has hired Karla Loya-Stack as Chief Program Officer where she will develop and expand programs with a focus on Respect Starts Here – Listen, Learn, and Act, an anti-bias program pursuing empathy and equity through education. To date, YWPN supports more than 4,600 students in 6th to 12th grades at eight all-girls, college preparatory public schools in Texas.
Previously, Loya-Stack served as Chief Program Officer at Girls Inc. of Metropolitan Dallas where she oversaw the program delivery for more than 1,000 girls at four Girls Inc. centers and other locations where its programs are offered. She helped increase the number of girls served by more than 40% with innovative outreach and program delivery methods.
Lynn McBee, YWPN CEO, said, “Karla’s strong background in education as a school teacher and with Girls Inc. will help us create and execute our programs with a focus on our pillars of college readiness, leadership and wellness life skills. She’s the perfect addition to our strong team.”
Loya-Stack served as a member of the National Girls Inc. Latina Initiative Pilot and Eureka! Summit Planning Committee to ensuring Latinas are exposed to STEM careers. Loya-Stack spearheaded Girls Inc. efforts to collaborate with four youth-serving organizations through the Imagine Science Collaboration, a pilot program to increase the number of youth that are receiving STEM education outside of school in underserved communities.
Before moving to Texas, Loya-Stack taught in The Public Schools of Brookline, Massachusetts, as an elementary world language teacher, where she supported the development of curriculum and cultural resources, mentored new teachers and served as a lead teacher in her school. She has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Boston College. She is a staunch advocate of the importance of investing in the education of girls and has been a featured speaker and panelist for several Fortune 500 companies and local organizations, and has spoken on the issues girls face on various media outlets.
About Young Women’s Preparatory Network:
Founded in 2002, the Young Women’s Preparatory Network is a nonprofit agency that partners with public school districts in Texas to operate the largest network of all-girls, public, college preparatory schools in the nation. The organization provides funding and other resources to eight Texas schools with more than 4,600* students in 6th through 12th grade. Each YWPN school features a STEM-focused curriculum and is largely attended by economically disadvantaged students. In 2015-2016, the Network’s 291 graduates received offers of more than $41.9 million in academic and merit scholarships and have matriculated to 115 different colleges and universities. More information can be found at http://youngwomensprep.org.
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*self-reported, Texas Educational Agency numbers to be released in Nov. 2016.
