Meet the Staff
Caroline O'Neal, Executive Director
Caroline O’Neal has more than 20 years of experience in educational leadership. She negotiates school contracts and is responsible for all aspects of Reading Assist’s organizational strategy and the implementation of the Reading Assist Intervention Program. Before joining Reading Assist, Caroline helped Uncommon Schools – one of the most successful charter school networks in the country – open its first middle school in Camden, New Jersey, as Camden Prep’s director of operations. Prior to her work with Uncommon Schools, Caroline spent 15 years in international education. She started in the classroom on a Fulbright teaching assistantship in Austria then spent 10 years working with EC English Language Centers, an international group of 25 English language schools across five countries. As part of EC’s executive team, she led the product development group, responsible for the group’s portfolio of digital and face-to-face programs for over 140,000 students annually. Her non-profit work includes serving as vice president of outreach and then president of EnglishUSA, the American Association of Intensive English programs, and as a board member on the Pennsylvania Branch of the International Dyslexia Association.
Debbie DeGrosky, Director of Instruction
Leigh Fairley, Director of Operations
Leigh Fairley, Reading Assist’s director of operations, is responsible for day-to-day operations and the AmeriCorps member experience. Leigh graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with degrees in political science and sociology and has extensive experience working in public service and education. Following graduation, Leigh served as the STEM Education Coordinator for Morehead Planetarium and Science Center. After working for Morehead Planetarium, Leigh first moved to Liberia to serve as an education volunteer with the U.S. Peace Corps, then moved to Botswana, where she served as a health educator for two years. She expanded her public education experience by working at a high-needs middle school in Camden, New Jersey, as part of the administration and compliance team. Leigh oversees all AmeriCorps compliance including background checks, references, service hours, and serves as Reading Assist’s partner school liaison.
Judith Graham Kane, Manager of Outreach and Communications
Jerisha Gordon, Director of Development
Lauren DeGrosky, Administrative Coordinator
Lauren DeGrosky is a Delaware native. She graduated from Ursuline Academy and obtained a bachelor’s degree in information technology from Curry College, graduating magna cum laude with distinction in the honors scholars program. In 2012, Lauren earned a master’s degree in science in information systems technologies from Wilmington University. She began working at Reading Assist in 2013. As the administrative coordinator, Lauren manages and coordinates documentation for the AmeriCorps and Reading Assist Fellows program.
Meet the Board
Virginia Biasotto, Founder
Pamela J. Scott, President
Israel Mercado, Treasurer
Israel Mercado is the Reading Assist board treasurer. He has been a member of the board since 2007 and has helped guide the organization on financial matters. A CPA, Israel works for the Santora CPA Group as an auditor. Israel is a graduate of the University of Delaware and has been involved with and volunteered time for various professional organizations and Delaware charities.
Kae Keister, Board Member
Kae Keister served for 33 years in public education as a preschool and middle-level math teacher in the Smyrna School District and the Cape Henlopen School District, as well as an elementary and middle level administrator in the Milford School District. As an educator, she attended Virginia Biasotto’s Reading Assist course in Georgetown at the Owens Del Tech Campus, and later worked with Reading Assist staff to gather empirical evidence for the effectiveness of the Reading Assist program. She is now an Associate Professor at Wilmington University in the College of Education, where she teaches in the undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs, and is a board member for Schools That Lead. She graduated from Pfeiffer College, Salisbury State University and Nova University, and is a native Delawarean.
Darren Mahoney, Board Member
Darren is one of the co-founders of CompassRed, a data analytics company with offices in Wilmington and Philadelphia. He is on a mission to grow their world class analytics team. In late 2020 he helped launch the Delaware Data Innovation Lab, a 501(c)(6) organization. His efforts included hiring a team of 22 professionals and directing their work on COVID-19 related problems.
Prior to CompassRed, Darren led the bank marketing operations team at Capital One, and the digital marketing team at ING DIRECT. He is married and has two children. His parents, both teachers, raised him and his brother in the suburbs north of New York City. Darren completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Virginia in 1997, and received an M.B.A. from the University of Delaware. In his down time, Darren enjoys coaching youth lacrosse, which he has done for the past 8 years with The Wilmington Wings, Greene Turtle Lacrosse Club, and 302 Lacrosse. He joined the Reading Assist board in 2013.
