Meet Our Team

As Vice President of Recruitment & Talent Acquisition, Candy supports all our teams as they search for candidates for our partnering school districts. Prior to this role, she served as ESS Director of Operations for districts in Middle Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri, and Arkansas. Her experience with ESS includes oversight of recruiting and retention, management of vendor relationships, account management, and customer service. Candy graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and a Master of Business Education. She has more than 25 years in the Staffing Industry and holds a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification from HRCI.

Matt has over a decade of experience in the accounting sector. He graduated from Rowan University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, majoring in accounting, along with attaining his MBA.  He joined ESS as a staff accountant in 2011 and has since become Controller.  Matt enjoys Philadelphia sports, traveling and spending time with his family.

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As General Counsel for ESS, Jeff oversees all aspects of legal matters, including compliance, vendor contracts, employment matters, and policy development. Jeff has vast experience representing the best interests of educational institutions, having privately represented public K-12 school boards for 17 years and practicing educational law.  Jeff was appointed solicitor for three large school districts in New Jersey and served in that position for 14 years until he joined ESS.  Jeff earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and a law degree from Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware, where he served as a member of the ATLA Trial Competition Team and the Phi Delta Society.

Carrie is a highly skilled human resources leader with over 25 years of extensive experience in all facets of HR operations. Since joining ESS as our Senior Director of Human Resources in July 2017, she has strategically planned and executed initiatives that align with our organization’s long-term goals. Carrie’s strategic focus includes driving employee recruitment, retention, and development efforts that underpin the success of our partnering school districts.

Her in-depth understanding of state and federal employment law and regulations and her auditing experience ensure our organization maintains the highest compliance and risk management standards. Carrie also strongly advocates for continuous employee development, designing and implementing comprehensive training programs that empower our teams and foster a culture of growth and belonging. She serves as a Senior Advisor on the ESS DEIB Council.

Carrie’s exceptional communication skills and hands-on approach enable her to sustain positive employee relations by effectively mediating conflicts and counseling staff. Carrie has demonstrated expertise in developing, implementing, and refining company policies to ensure they meet regulatory requirements and support our strategic objectives and HR best practices. Carrie continues to lead with a forward-thinking mindset, ensuring the organization remains adaptable and prepared for future challenges.

Jennifer has over eight years’ experience working at ESS. She provides marketing and sales support throughout the company. Prior to joining ESS, Jennifer worked as an Art Director for a south New Jersey company. She has ample experience in design and marketing and helps support ESS’ regional and sales teams. For four years, Jennifer was a board member of Camden Schools Foundation, New Jersey. She graduated from Saint Joseph’s University, Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Arts.

April has been with ESS since 2019, starting out as an area manager in Duval County, Florida overseeing the ISI region. April expertly cultivated relationships with partner schools, built specific action plans designed to support ESS educators in the classroom which increased substitute teacher retention and fill rates. April has now transitioned to our Implementations team where she will transition districts to ESS by collaborating with District personnel to discuss expectations, develop timelines, and execute plans which includes software implementation, transitioning existing and/or new substitute teachers and working hands-on with training local management team members. Prior to ESS, April worked in civilian and military human resources for Department of Navy, as well as government contracting agencies bringing 15+ years of experience. April is a proud veteran, who served as an Operation Specialist in the United States Navy. In addition, April has a Bachelor of Science degree in Supervision and Management.

Joseph is passionate about education. He enjoys opportunities to discuss ways of improving student performance with school district leadership teams. Joseph believes in transparency in all business relationships. For almost two decades, he has delivered customized solutions to over 500,0000 students at approximately 45 school districts in nine states. Joseph enjoys mentoring employees, building teams, and providing the appropriate resources so that employees can reach their potential. Joseph is a senior member in the Mountain/West Region leadership team, joining ESS in 2014. As a strategic thinker, he provides improved operations by exploring practical creative solutions to address issues such as staffing, low fill rates, and quality educational instruction. Joseph received his bachelor’s degree in international relations from Brigham Young University and his Master of Business Administration from the University of Texas. Joseph enjoys working with financials and data as he creates customized solutions for ESS clients. Joseph likes to travel, play soccer, and resides in the Salt Lake City, Utah area with his wife and children.

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Jenna currently serves as ESS’ Vice President of Operations for partner districts in Texas. Jenna’s primary responsibilities include overseeing all operational aspects to include customer satisfaction and retention, onboarding, and transitions, as well as onsite management and sales support. With a background in multi-unit level management, Jenna’s passion lies with driving results and building great teams. This has been demonstrated through her highly motivated support staff whose focus is providing the best customer experience possible for their respective clients.

“Courtney is ESS’ Vice President of Operations in Oklahoma and parts of North Texas. She directly oversees all operations, including customer satisfaction, staff retention and onboarding, program implementation, as well as onsite management and support.
With a background in higher education and PK-12 education, Courtney’s passion lies in relationship building within her team and the district partners. Her passion carries over to her highly motivated team, which is often celebrated for the overwhelmingly positive customer service they provide and for maintaining some of the highest substitute fill rates in the country.
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Errin has over 10 years of experience in customer service. Originally from Akron, Ohio, Errin attended the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff on a golf scholarship where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, concentration in Marketing. Errin relocated to Jacksonville, Florida in 2021 and shortly after started working for ESS as an Implementation Specialist, where she assisted with the onboarding of over a dozen new districts in the Southeast region. Errin enjoys working with people and bringing great customer service to our clients and partners. Errin loves to travel to new districts, meeting the staff and substitutes and when she isn’t traveling, you can find Errin in the gym or on the golf course.

Becky has over ten years of experience in Human Resources in the education field. She was previously a client of ESS in Tennessee handling the implementation of our program in her district before joining our team in July of 2017, overseeing our first district in Florida. Becky spent over four years as a Regional Manager for ESS Southeast region before moving into her current role as Vice President of Operations for the South Central division.  She has overseen multiple districts and states, specializing in our operations and recruitment. Becky leads her team with a focus on relationship building and communication which drives increased recruitment.

Mary has been with ESS since early 2020 but has been working in Higher Education since the early 2000s. Her career in education started at The University of Southern Mississippi where she obtained her bachelor’s in psychology and master’s in education. Mary has extensive background in education, operations, Human Resources, as well as teaching in Higher Education. Mary drives and coaches her Team to success through data analysis of her accounts and obtaining feedback from the School Districts & Subs she works with. Knowing her clients and their needs drives Mary to institute changes that will be beneficial to all parties. Mary has been a major contributor to Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Indiana and Illinois.

A resident of Saint Augustine, Florida, Jamie holds a Bachelor of Science in business management, a Master of Science in organizational leadership and many industry-related certifications. She has over 20 years’ experience in education with an emphasis in leadership, human resources, and recruitment. Jamie is directly responsible for the startup and operations of many districts throughout the Southeast Region. Additionally, she provides robust reporting, staffing solutions and welcomed guidance to our partner districts. Jamie is directly involved in the hiring, training, and management of the regional teams in South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and provides support as needed in North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. She served as past President of the Employee Services Management Association (ESM) and has received many accolades throughout her career, including multiple Visionary Awards, Employee of the Year awards, Outstanding Customer Service, and Service Excellence awards.

Anthony is an experienced professional with over ten years of extensive experience in operations management in the K-12 industry. He currently serves as Vice President of Operations at ESS. With a proven track record of optimizing processes, improving efficiency, and driving organizational growth, Anthony plays a pivotal role in overseeing all aspects of operations in the state of Florida. His strategic vision, leadership skills, and dedication to excellence have consistently contributed to the success of ESS. Anthony graduated from Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics. He is deeply dedicated to guiding and nurturing teams while cultivating a supportive atmosphere of innovation and advancement within the company.

Prior to his current position as one of ESS’ Vice President for Operations for the northeast, Brian joined the company in 2012 as a District Manager. Brian’s expertise lies in working closely with ESS’ partner districts in order to better understand their individual substitute staffing needs. As a result, he is able to craft a substitute program that effectively meets those needs while increasing district operation efficiencies and providing valuable cost savings for the district.  Brian and his team currently works with partner districts from New Jersey up to New Hampshire.   He graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration.

Tom has over 14 years of experience working in K-12 education. Since joining ESS in 2013, Tom has managed the delivery of ESS service lines to partnering public, private, and charter school districts across New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. A teacher by trade, Tom began his career in special education classrooms, teaching math and science curriculums to students in grades K-5.  He earned a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from West Virginia University, where he was a four-year student athlete. Tom has a strong drive for helping educators develop their skills and grow professionally. For the past eight years, Tom has been a nationally certified crisis prevention intervention instructor and has facilitated over 1,000 hours of training to ESS staff in the field.  Today, Tom manages ESS operations at partnering school districts across the state of New Jersey, and enjoys crafting specialized staffing programs to meet the evolving needs of school districts.

Rebecca was hired with ESS in 2013. She spearheaded and managed the company’s long-term department which specializes in finding experienced certified teachers to cover long-term absences in our partnering school districts. Rebecca was integral in facilitating the growth of this department, which started in one state and now successfully operates in many states across the country. After earning a bachelor’s degree in biology from Stockton College, Rebecca has cultivated expertise in customer service and client relationships through various managerial roles since 2000. She currently oversees a team of 20 individuals as our Vice President of Operations in NJ.

Jeff joined ESS in 2013 as a Recruiter in the company’s first office in Western Pennsylvania. As ESS’ business in the state grew, he built strong relationships with districts, staff, and the community. Jeff served as an Area Manager, District Manager, Regional Manager, and Sr. Regional Manager before transitioning to his current position of VP of Operations in 2022. Jeff currently manages 20 staff who oversee more than 70 school districts. He strives to support his staff and ensure that each of his districts receive a high level of service. Jeff earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from St. Vincent College. Utilizing his background in education, Jeff can relate to the perspectives and everyday needs of the districts he oversees, resulting in strong and productive business relationships.

Samantha is passionate about helping others and has an extensive background in education. She received her teaching degree from Chestnut Hill College and then taught elementary school students for several years in multiple states. Once she joined ESS in 2017, she knew she could thrive even more. Samantha started as a substitute and then transitioned to the corporate side as a Hiring Coordinator and has moved up through multiple roles, and is currently working as the Vice President of Operations in Eastern Pennsylvania. While she was a Regional Manager in Bucks County, PA, she maintained quality relationships with all 13 partner districts through understanding, professionalism, and humor. Samantha’s background in teaching helps her understand how to help the districts and her team. Samantha loves working with her team and supporting the partner districts.

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Myken was one of the first employees ever hired at Proximity Learning and has helped the company grow and succeed. She is now in charge of the full implementation life cycle for clients and ensures the quality of Proximity Learning teachers. Myken brings with her more than 12 years of experience working with K-12 institutions. Myken graduated from the University of North Alabama with a Bachelor of Business Administrations degree, specializing in human resources.

Yeva is an experienced speech-language pathologist and detail-oriented leader with extensive experience providing SLP services both in K-12 school. Before joining Academic Staffing in 2019, Yeva worked in various public and charter schools developing IEP goals and implementing treatment plans and served as a lead therapist for the Pre-K program in Broward Count Public Schools, Florida. She also worked several years in rehabilitation clinics evaluating, assessing, and providing direct treatment to children. Yeva earned her Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology from Nova Southeastern University and holds a Certificate of Clinical Competency from the American Speech and Hearing Association. Over the past four years, Yeva has been a leader in hiring, training, and managing Academic Staffing’s therapists providing services to our partner school districts and conducted over 500 speech and language evaluations for students in Pre-K through 12th grade.