Meet Lisa
Lisa began her career as an educator in a new middle school in Queens- and teaching middle school history is an experience that greatly influenced her approach to life and work. Humor, balancing consistency and flexibility, and thinking of initiatives like unit plans are all things she learned in Queens with the most amazing groups of 13- and 14-year-olds.
She founded the first Democracy Prep High school in the fall of 2009. As principal, she led the development of a robust and rigorous academic program that equipped scholars to excel on state tests; Regents pass rates were routinely over 90%. As an Assistant Superintendent, she launched the second high school in 2013. But her real passion was in talent.
She developed the internal leadership training program now known as Leader U, a rigorous program for emerging principals to lead rigorous, inclusive schools aimed at closing the opportunity gap. Under her leadership, applications for leadership roles increased by over 100%, a rigorous equitable hiring system was put in place, and a robust leadership curriculum was developed. In 2018, Lisa became Chief People Officer, leading both Talent Development and Recruitment. In 2020, she assumed leadership of the Human Resources team.
Under her leadership, she developed key aspects to the current Democracy Prep talent function. er accomplishments include:
Developed and executed several programs geared at mid-level managers to ensure high-performing teams and strong succession planning;
Launched the Teacher Residency program to build a stronger and more diverse internal pipeline;
Created the first CMO evaluations system and redesigned the teacher evaluation to align to DP’s commitment to rigor, responsive classrooms, community engagement and antiracism;
Developing a talent infrastructure for building strong and equitable job descriptions and interview practices.
During the pandemic, she also led her teams to reimagine virtual hiring and worked creatively to ensure HR policies related to COVID were humane, equitable, and mission aligned.
She launched Franca Consulting in 2022. Since then, she has worked with a wide range of schools, nonprofits, startups, agencies and small businesses. She has trained over 100 leaders, built performance management systems, audited recruitment processes for scaling organizations, led C-level searches, facilitated employee working groups and designed compensation philosophies.
She earned her BA in American Studies and Economics from Amherst College, and holds two M.Ed degrees—from Queens College in Social Studies Education and from Teachers College, Columbia University, in Education Leadership. She is a SHRM-SCP, a Certified Strengths and Co-Active Coach, and is certified in DiSC facilitation and health coaching through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.
An active member of her community, she currently serves on the boards of the Brooklyn Debate League and The Inspired Community Project. She is a TechStars mento. She was also the founding Board Chair of Forte Prep, where she helped lead its growth and fundraising strategy, and has advised a number of other mission-driven organizations. Her perspective has been featured in outlets including Business Insider, Forbes, and Best of HR.
She’s also a self-proclaimed nerd, a certified Mat Pilates instructor, and a very proud Auntie to Nate and Frankie.