Michael Piscal

About Michael Piscal

In ten short years, we have created from scratch to three new school districts enrolling students in grades K-12 in Plainfield, North Plainfield, Paterson, Asbury Park, and Neptune, NJ. This fall we will have 11 schools serving nearly 3,800 students, and nearly 500 employees. Our NJSLA 2022 test scores showed that we increased student achievement in reading at every grade level at every school. We also went up in math at every grade level at CAPS Asbury and CAPS Paterson. CAPS Asbury finished 3rd in the state of NJ for growth on the ELA portion of the test. We are always looking for talented teachers who want to change our students\' lives for the better. Our theory of change is that if we increase the number of college graduates in our communities in a significant way - for instance increasing the total percentage of college graduates in a town or city from 10% to 20%- this will begin a virtuous cycle of ever better schools, better jobs for our students and their families, and instead of gentrification from without, it will be the youth of the community finally being able to realize their dreams with all the opportunities a college degree will open for them and their families.

Experience

1. CEO & Founder

   College Achieve Public Schools (CAPS)

   Apr 2013 — Present · Plainfield, NJ, US

   College Achieve Public Schools (CAPS) was founded in 2013 and opened its first charter school in August of 2015 with 346 students in Plainfield NJ. College Achieve has since grown to serve nearly students in Plainfield, North Plainfield, Paterson, Asbury Park, and Neptune.

Education

• Wake Forest University

  B.A. 1988, History

  1984 — 1988

Skills

• Educational Technology
• Literacy
• Fundraising
• Educational Leadership
• Leadership Development
• Education Reform
• Instructional Design
• K-12
• Special Education
• Strategic Planning
• Program Development
• Community Outreach
• Teaching
• Classroom
• Nonprofits
• Public Speaking
• Tutoring
• Grant Writing
• Leadership
• Curriculum Development
• Teacher Training
• Staff Development
• Curriculum Design
• Elementary Education