Introducing 2010 Inspire Fellow: Tiffany Hawkins

Hometown: Fort Washington, MD
Organization: Eagle Academy Public Charter School (EAPCS)
Previous Employer: Accenture

All of my past job experiences have been either working directly in the public sector or with public sector clients and I always felt good about the work that I was doing. But even then I still felt as though my direct connection to the overall organization, the mission and the outcomes themselves was not there. Thinking about specific issues that I was passionate about and could talk about for hours I was left with urban education. This has brought me to where I am now, knowing that I want the work that I do to make a lasting impact, even if it’s in just one community to improve the chances that children in urban environments have at receiving a quality education.

What is your current position, and a typical day like?
I am currently working with Eagle Academy Public Charter School (EAPCS) as Project Manager for Growth. My position is primarily focused on improving the use of technology within the organization. My primary project is working with a software application, Powerschool, which is a student information system that allows the school to manage student information in different ways. My current focus with this project is very change management oriented whereby I am training the teaching staff as well as others on the key functions of the software. Another upcoming task will be to analyze the software to fully understand how we are going to utilize its many functions moving forward.

A typical day generally consists of many discussions with our IT Team to ensure that student information is being updated appropriately, researching the different ways in which other school districts and charter schools are using Powerschool and helping staff retrieve the information they need from the system in a timely manner.

What is your professional background and areas of expertise?
Prior to switching to the nonprofit sector I was a Management Consultant working with government clients on ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) implementations within the Supply Chain Management space (i.e. Materials Management). In this role, I was primarily responsible for understanding the current business processes and working with a team to design the future business processes within the context of the new software application.

What are you involved in outside of work?
Prior to moving back to DC I was involved in different school related volunteer programs in the Philadelphia area which ranged from organizing back-to-school supply drives and participating in day long school beautification projects, one of which resulted in a beautiful Harlem Renaissance inspired mural which was created with the help of 2nd and 3rd graders. I look forward to getting involved in similar activities in and around DC.

Tell us about your past leadership experiences and how they are helping you in your current role.
In my past role I was responsible for specific team deliverables from start to finish and thus had to manage my portion of the work effectively while ensuring that it fit in with the other work being completed by other team members. The responsibility for managing something from beginning to end will be one of the most helpful past experiences that I will use going forward in my current role.

I think that either group would probably say – competitive, practical, and caring.

debunked by your experience?
My experience thus far has shown me that not all organizations operate with the just the bare essentials. There are nonprofits that continuously invest in their organization on many levels, whether it’s through professional development opportunities, expanding technology infrastructure, general business operations as well as many other areas.

Where else have you lived?
Shortly after graduating college I moved to Philadelphia for a change of pace. Going to school locally at the University of Maryland really increased my desire to experience another city. Philadelphia is a great city, but for me nothing comes close to everything that the DC area has to offer.