• CALENDAR
  • NEWS
  • JOIN OUR TEAM
LCCS
Support Us
Link School logo

Enroll Now for the 2025-2026 School Year

Spaces still available for the 2024-2025 School Year.

Enroll Now
  • CALENDAR
  • NEWS
  • JOIN OUR TEAM
  • ABOUT
    • MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL
    • MISSION, VISION, & SCHOOL CULTURE
    • STAFF
    • HISTORY TIMELINE
    • VIDEO: A LOOK AT LINK
    • VIDEO: A MATTER OF JUSTICE
    • LCCS ADMISSIONS POLICY
    • HARASSMENT, INTIMIDATION, & BULLYING (HIB)
    • SCHOOL REPORTS
    • COVID INFORMATION
    • SCHOOL FINANCES
    • REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS
    • CONTACT US
  • ACADEMICS
    • EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY
    • ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (Grades K–4)
    • MIDDLE SCHOOL (Grades 5-8)
    • SPECIAL SERVICES
    • INTERVENTION AND REFERRAL SERVICES
    • GIFTED AND TALENTED
    • TITLE I
    • ADVISORY
    • HIGH SCHOOL PLACEMENT
    • LINK SUMMER ACADEMY
  • STUDENT LIFE
    • ATHLETICS
    • PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMS
    • COMMUNITY SERVICE
    • SUMMER CAMPS AND PROGRAMS
  • LINK’S IMPACT
  • SCHOOL BOARD
    • BOARD OF TRUSTEES
    • BOARD MEETING CALENDAR
    • BOARD MEETING MINUTES
    • BOARD POLICIES
  • ENROLL
    • HOW TO ENROLL
    • WHY CHOOSE LINK?
    • VISIT US
You are here: Home / Link’s Influence on Education

Link’s Influence on Education

teacher in classroom

Changing the educational landscape

Link has supported the growth of educational leaders and innovators who have used their Link experience in founding, expanding or leading educational institutions across the country

In 1969, the Dominican Sisters planted a seed for social justice and educational equity. It flourished; providing not only a strong academic setting for Newark youth that would change the trajectory of their lives but also a place where educators and leaders were nurtured and developed. The very fabric of Link was passion and the mission breathed life into the adults who shared their time at the school. All adults are changed as a result of their Link experience and all adults leave their mark in Link. As a result, Link has continued to fight for educational equity through both its own academic program and the impact it has had through the teachers, staff and leaders it has touched. Many have gone on to found schools and lead organizations, all impacting the educational landscape throughout the country. Here is a list of some of those amazing individuals:

Jamey Verrilli (former Link Jesuit Volunteer, history teacher and principal) and Norman Atkins (former Link trustee) who co-founded NorthStar Academy in the first year of charter school approvals in NJ and later expanded to Uncommon Schools, and most recently Relay Graduate School of Education.

Bill Kurtz (former Link principal) who helped the Gates Foundation launch the Denver School of Science and Technology as the founding school leader, later expanding to add more schools and serve more students.

Fiona Thomas (former Link Director of Curriculum and High School Placement), RoseMary Dumenigo, Jodi Cenac, Amanda Hayes and other former Link teachers who launched Pride Charter Academy in East Orange, NJ.

Misha Simmonds (former Link history teacher) who wrote the original charter for Schools that Can, a national network of cross-sector high performing schools and has helped turnaround schools in Newark in leadership positions, as well as support the charter sector through the Newark Charter School Fund.

Morgan Dixon (former Link teacher and student life director), who has worked as school leader and leader of teacher development with the Achievement First network in NYC and CT, and Hope and the Urban Assembly in NYC, before starting her own life changing organization, GirlTrek.

Brian Sims (former Link social studies teacher), who has had a huge impact in Chicago, one of the largest public school systems in America where he supported educational equity and school improvement through various leadership positions in nonprofit organizations, directly supporting teachers and classrooms throughout the Chicago Public Schools and charter sector.

Marnie G. McKoy (former Link head of school) who served as CEO of Community Charter School of Paterson and is currently the Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources at New Brunswick Public Schools.

We know there are others, so we hope this short list stirs conversation and that we’ll learn of others from Link pursuing the important work of social justice. Email us at link@linkschool.org to share your stories and shout out those in our Link circle.

Footer

tagline
Link Community Charter School
23 Pennsylvania Avenue
Newark, NJ 07114
(973) 642-0529
link@linkschool.org
Facebook icon
Twitter icon
LinkedIn icon
Instagram icon
Important Pages

  • HIB
  • TITLE I
  • New Jersey School Performance Report
  • Breakfast and Lunch Menus
  • Link to Home, weekly parent newsletter
  • Staff Directory
  • PowerSchool Log In
  • LCCS ADMISSIONS POLICY
  • REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS
  • SCHOOL FINANCES
NOTICE OF NON-DISCRIMINATORY POLICY AS TO STUDENTS

Link Community Charter School admits students of any race, color, and national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

HARASSMENT, INTIMIDATION & BULLYING

Antibullying Coordinator 
Suzanne Dandie-Lashley, M.S.W.
973.642.0529       sdandie@linkschool.org

Antibullying Specialist 
Yris Acevedo, M.S.W.
973.642.0529       yacevedo@linkschool.org

NJ State School Climate Coordinator
HIB@doe.nj.gov

LCCS Policy and HIB Grade

© 2025 Link Community Charter School. All Rights Reserved.

Powered by SchoolPresser / Part of the Presser Network / WordPress for Everything

presser-logo-p