The Charter Operated Programs (COP) Team is comprised of 15 Division of Special Education employees who collectively offer an extensive range of specialized expertise, supports, and experiences across a wide array of special education domains. The COP team includes three sub-teams focusing on: School Partnership Team (general special education supports), Consult Teams (behavior supports, mental health supports, and psychological supports), and Charter Support Team (behind-the-scenes school supports, compliance, non-public school supports, and due process, and COP team logistics). Each School Partnership Team lead supports a portfolio of charter schools and serves as their primary contact with LAUSD and the Division of Special Education. The School Partnership Team lead will refer charter schools to other COP sub-teams, depending on the need.

Ariel Williams Flores

Administrative Assistant, Operational Support Team

Areas of Support: Charter Weekly Emails | Committee Supports | Council Meetings Logistics | Fee-for-Service (FFS) and Extended School Year (ESY) Deductions | Grants, Stipends, and Assistance Pools | Transfers and Deductions | Vendors I Resource Hub Job Board Updates | Surveys/Google Forms | Vendors

Dixon Deutsch

Director, Operational Support Team

Areas of Support: Budget and Financial Planning | Committees | COP Feedback | Council Meetings | Grants | Innovation and Strategic Planning | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) Coordination | LAUSD Board Supports | LAUSD Offices | Option 3 Membership | Option Memorandum of Understanding (MOUs) | Public Relations I Consult Support Team, Program Support Team, and Operational Support Team Supports

Eileen Lemus

Mental Health Consultant, Consult Support Team

Areas of Support: Assessment of Tiers 1-3 Interventions | Consultation on Social Emotional/Mental Health Needs of School System | Professional Development | Program Development

Erica Marlaine

Specialist, Program Support Team

Areas of Support: Compliance | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) | District Policy/Guidance | District Validation and Review (DVR) | Extended School Year (ESY) | Family/Guardian Supports | Fee-for-Service (FFS) | General Supports | Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development/Disagreements | Instructional Supports | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Paraprofessional Supports | Placements | Service Tracking | Technical Assistance | Transition Services | Welligent Supports

Grace Lopez

Specialist, Program Support Team

Areas of Support: Compliance | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) | District Policy/Guidance | District Validation and Review (DVR) | Extended School Year (ESY) | Family/Guardian Supports | Fee-for-Service (FFS) | General Supports | Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development/Disagreements | Instructional Supports | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Paraprofessional Supports | Placements | Service Tracking | Technical Assistance | Transition Services | Welligent Supports

Jennifer Stansbury

Specialist, Program Support Team

Areas of Support: Compliance | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) | District Policy/Guidance | District Validation and Review (DVR) | Extended School Year (ESY) | Family/Guardian Supports | Fee-for-Service (FFS) | General Supports | Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development/Disagreements | Instructional Supports | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Paraprofessional Supports | Placements | Service Tracking | Technical Assistance | Transition Services | Welligent Supports

Joasia Garza

Specialist, Program Support Team

Areas of Support: Compliance | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) | District Policy/Guidance | District Validation and Review (DVR) | Extended School Year (ESY) | Family/Guardian Supports | Fee-for-Service (FFS) | General Supports | Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development/Disagreements | Instructional Supports | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Paraprofessional Supports | Placements | Service Tracking | Technical Assistance | Transition Services | Welligent Supports

John Hong

Administrative Analyst, Operational Support Team

Areas of Support: CALPADS | CDE Data and Indicators | Compliance Reports | OneAccess | Personnel Data Report | School Data Requests | Self-Review Checklists | Welligent: Student Activations, Additions, Inactivations, Transfers and Staff Access

Joshua Griffiths

Program Specialist, Program Support Team

Areas of Support: Compliance | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) | District Policy/Guidance | District Validation and Review (DVR) | Extended School Year (ESY) | Family/Guardian Supports | Fee-for-Service (FFS) | General Supports | Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development/Disagreements | Instructional Supports | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Paraprofessional Supports | Placements | Service Tracking | Technical Assistance | Transition Services | Welligent Supports

Kristy Sato-Garcia

Behavior Specialist, Consult Support Team

Areas of Support: Behavior Emergency Reports | Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) | Behavior Support Plan (BSP) | Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) | Interim Placements | Manifestation Determinations | Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) | Student-Specific Supports | Suspension/Expulsion Support | Training

La Shun Washington-Ajayi

Coordinator, Consult Support Team

Areas of Support: Carlson Home Hospital | Consult Support Team | Conversion School Attendance Boundaries | District Staffing | Due Process| Educational Equity Compliance Office Supports | Informal Dispute Resolution (IDR) | Low Incidence Supports | Non-Public Schools | Private School Office | Residential Treatment Centers

Magdalena Ruiz-Garcia

Office Technician, Operational Support Team

Areas of Support: COP Email List Additions | Contact List Updates | COP Training Links/Materials | Events Registration | General Questions | LAUSD Forms/COP Documents | Lending Library | Resource Hub Job Board Updates

Michele Nguyen

Specialist, Program Support Team

Areas of Support: Compliance | Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) | District Policy/Guidance | District Validation and Review (DVR) | Extended School Year (ESY) | Family/Guardian Supports | Fee-for-Service (FFS) | General Supports | Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development/Disagreements | Instructional Supports | Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Supports | Paraprofessional Supports | Placements | Service Tracking | Technical Assistance | Transition Services | Welligent Supports

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