Meet our team

We’re parents, educators, engineers, designers, and storytellers who have come together to build a new kind of education system.

Ryan
Co-founder & CEO
Ryan
Co-founder & CEO
Ryan
Ryan was homeschooled from Kindergarten through 8th Grade, and started Primer to help homeschool his own kids. He's spent the last decade building tech companies at Square, Gumroad, and Omni.
Stephan
Growth Operations
Stephan
Growth Operations
Stephan
Stephan has spent the bulk of his career leading projects and managing operations in DC and Miami for both large organizations and small start ups. He’ll never pass up an opportunity to travel and likes to stay active through running and sports.
Carly
Brand Storytelling
Carly
Brand Storytelling
Carly
Carly started her career as a broadway performer and sketch comedy writer. Before Primer, she co founded the Reach Out Party and built communities at Ness Labs, Northeastern University, and NuMarket. She loves The New Yorker comics and a good coffee shop.
Garrett
Operations
Garrett
Operations
Garrett
Garrett co-founded Standard Cyborg, a computer vision machine learning company, and before that, designed neonatal medical devices at Equalize Health.
Lindsay
Curriculum
Lindsay
Curriculum
Lindsay
Lindsay Freeman has 20 years of experience teaching and leading across the country.
Joe
Regulatory Operations
Joe
Regulatory Operations
Joe
Joe is passionate about innovation in regulated industries. He's previously worked on Stripe Atlas to help increase the GDP of the Internet and is a member of Maximum New York, a civic institution committed to the renaissance of local politics. You can find him hiking, surfing or at a local park, depending on the weather.
Jessenia
Admissions
Jessenia
Admissions
Jessenia
Jessenia has been a trailblazer in and out of classrooms, developing nationally recognized programs since 2008. She is a Champion of Change in Social Innovation and Civic Participation, recognized by the Obama White House Administration, and her favorite song to perform at karaoke is Juicy from the Notorious B.I.G (RIP).
Pia
Admin
Pia
Admin
Pia
Pia studied Nursing and has worked as a Nurse in a private hospital, then worked as a Customer Support Specialist at LexisNexis. She loves staying indoors or exploring places with cool temperatures. She enjoys reading, organizing, and watching movies on Netflix.
Esther
Design
Esther
Design
Esther
Prior to Primer, Esther designed financial experiences at Betterment and studied visual art and photography. In her free time, she enjoys knitting, playing video games, and bouldering.
Robert
Engineering
Robert
Engineering
Robert
Prior to Primer Robert co-founded Subso, a social media startup. He has a deep passion for building meaningful products, health and changing education after dropping out of highschool.
Soomin
Engineering
Soomin
Engineering
Soomin
Soomin studied computer science at MIT and loves teaching and coding. In her free time, you’ll find her reading, going to concerts, skateboarding, and making stuffed animals.
Ian
Head of Schools
Ian
Head of Schools
Ian
Ian learned the most while skipping school. Then he became a teacher and founding school leader in NYC and Miami for 15 years. He wants to build engaging spaces where all kids (including his two little girls) can thrive every day.
Stacy
Culture Queen
Stacy
Culture Queen
Stacy
Stacy is a shy squid, she prefers to be home with her friends or even by herself. Big groups of Squishmallows make her a little nervous, so she loves to learn and explore through books. She's quiet at first but all her friends know she can be very silly.
Bojan
Engineering
Bojan
Engineering
Bojan
Bojan has been writing (and occasionally fixing) bugs since 2013. He studied computer science at MIT and worked at Coinbase before joining Primer. As a kid Bojan fell in love with learning through the Math Olympiad programs in Macedonia.
Gale
Recruiting
Gale
Recruiting
Gale
Gale has worked for years in the recruitment field making her an expert in connecting with young people and professionals. She loves to bake, cook, and find new ways to organize things.
Eric
Product
Eric
Product
Eric
Eric has spent the last ten years building software for organizations as large as the Federal Reserve and as small as brand-new startups. He studied economics and math at Arizona State before winning the Thiel Fellowship.

Primer Team Members

Diana
Liberty City
Diana
Liberty City
Diana
Diana has dedicated her career to Early Childhood Education for 7 years across New Jersey, Florida, and California. She brings experience as a Team Leader in Miami and as a Director of a project based learning program in Los Angeles, CA.
Sydney
Math
Sydney
Math
Sydney
Sydney Diana has 7 years of experience teaching 3rd and 4th grade in New York City. Most recently, she spent the last 3 years as a 4th grade team lead. She was recognized as a Labsite teacher, where she hosted classroom observations and created instructional videos to improve teacher practice across the school’s network.
Brittney
Small Group Reading
Brittney
Small Group Reading
Brittney
Brittney Jeffries has 7 years of elementary experience in North Carolina and Philadelphia. She’s a Founding Kindergarten and First-Grade Teacher, and most recently she spent three years as a K to 4th grade Reading Interventionist.
Jasmin
English Language Arts
Jasmin
English Language Arts
Jasmin
Jasmin Song has 6 years of elementary teaching experience in New York City, where she taught Grades K-4 and served as a Kindergarten Grade Team Leader and Literacy Specialist. She was recognized for her contributions by being named the 2019 Excellence Award recipient.
Celeste
Liberty City
Celeste
Liberty City
Celeste
Celeste Taylor has been an educator for 24 years. She has experience as a preK to 3rd grade teacher, ESOL educator, and an as ESE specialist. She is passionate about literacy and reading.
Monique
Liberty City
Monique
Liberty City
Monique
Monique Bridges has 7 years of experience teaching at the elementary level. She has been the leader of her 3rd grade team and is also a recipient of the New Teacher Award and Bright Spot Award.
Jenna
Coconut Grove
Jenna
Coconut Grove
Jenna
Jenna Schmidt has 10 years of experience teaching grades K-4 in the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition to teaching, she has worked as a Director of Curriculum, math specialist and mentor teacher.
Myra
Science
Myra
Science
Myra
Myra McCormick has 20 years of experience as a teacher and school leader in Boston, New York, and Seattle. Past positions include 5th grade team and instructional leader, founding Dean of Academics and Principal, and Founding Assistant Principal. She’s excited to get back to what she loves - teaching science.
Stevie
Kendall
Stevie
Kendall
Stevie
Stevie Strauss has 9 years of experience teaching and developing curriculum in New York City. She has worked in multiple innovative education startups in the United States, Africa, and China. Stevie loves sailing, running, and the ocean.
Apryl
Liberty City
Apryl
Liberty City
Apryl
Apryl Shackelford has 19 years of experience teaching and leading across grades K-6 in Miami and Jacksonville. She is a former District Teacher of the Year and a State of Florida Teacher of the Year finalist.

All of our educators have a Bachelor's degree or higher in accordance with Florida Statutes.

We’re hiring!

Join our team