PROACT SEARCH, INC. serves its clients and conducts its business through its professional staff and many associates across the United States.  The success of our firm is due to the breadth and depth of our associates.  Our diverse team consists of more than 20 highly experienced professionals… leaders in the fields of executive and human resource management and education, with exemplary credentials and reputations.  From college professors to active or retired superintendents to utility executives to human resource directors.. our associates are the very best! 

Dr. Nancy R. Noeske serves as President and managing principal of the firm and brings over 35 years of experience in the private and not-for-profit sectors and in public school management.  She served as Vice President for a major electric utility company, an executive director of a large not-for-profit association and has over 20 years of urban education experience.  For the last five years, she has developed the firm’s specialties in school executive and not-for-profit association search.  Nancy is the author of A Guide to Executive Search – Discovering the Leaders of the Future, published by the Alliance for Children and Families to serve as a resource for its 350-member organizations with a combined staff and volunteer network of over 75,000 in more than 2000 communities across the nation.  She has a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, a M.Ed. from Ohio University and a B.S. degree from Marquette University.  

Patricia Erickson is an associate and founding member of PROACT SEARCH, INC. with over 20 years of experience in office management, recruiting and executive search work.  Prior to joining PROACT SEARCH, INC., she worked at Overton Consulting, a retained executive search firm where she assisted the partners in all aspects of the search process and at Dunhill Staffing Systems where she did recruiting.  She conducts research for the firm, assisting in marketing, sales and business development. Patricia serves as our national search coordinator. In addition, she has an expertise in identifying and screening potential candidates, in conducting surveys and survey analysis and in verifying credentials, references and background checks.  She received her college education in business and marketing at Lakeland College in Wisconsin.

Dr. Alex Martinez is a senior consultant of PROACT SEARCH, INC., and is currently the Superintendent of the Maine Consolidated K-12 School District in Flagstaff, AZ.  Prior to this position, Dr. Martinez served as a Professor of Educational Administration at the Center for Educational Excellence at Northern Arizona University.  With over 28 years of experience in education, he began his teaching career as a sixth grade elementary teacher in the Tucson (AZ) Unified School District (TUSD,) moving to the district’s Catalina High School as an ESL teacher and department chair.  For seven years, he served as the Coordinator of Bilingual Instruction and Special English Training Program for 103 sites within TUSD.  He served as the Principal of the Rio Vista K-7 School for 800 students; before moving to Chula Vista, CA, to become the principal of a K-6 school, serving 1100 students. He brings strong organizational and leadership skills, with expertise in the teaching-learning process and bilingual education, as well as in educational administration.  With PROACT SEARCH, INC., he is involved in all aspects of the search process, focusing on community engagement, recruiting and screening activities.  He earned a B.S. degree, a M.Ed. and Ed.D. from the University of Arizona and has done post-doctoral work at Yale University.

Claudyne Whitaker is a senior consultant with PROACT SEARCH, INC., and brings over 35 years experience in public school education, most recently as Assistant Executive Director for the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association, a position she held for 25 years.  Previously, Claudyne was an instructor in the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, as well as an elementary teacher and teacher corps supervisor with the Milwaukee Public Schools.  Claudyne brings strong organizational skills with an expertise in negotiations, group facilitation and conflict resolution.  She has conducted numerous workshops on staff development and teacher counseling.  With PROACT SEARCH, INC. she is involved in all aspects of the search process, focusing on recruiting and community engagement activities.  She received a B.A. in Education from Parsons College in Iowa and a M.Ed. in Elementary Education from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, with an emphasis on urban education.

Dr. Peter Alvino is a senior consultant with PROACT SEARCH, INC. and brings over 30 years experience in public school education (K-12.)  He is currently the Superintendent of Schools at the Northpointe Leadership Academy, a private non-profit K-6 school in Fresno, CA.  He was the Superintendent of the Zion-Benton Township High School District in Illinois; previously serving as Superintendent of the Whitnall Public Schools in suburban Milwaukee (WI.)  He began his teaching career as a math instructor and counselor in West Chicago (IL) High School, then gaining large urban school experience as a specialist in the Milwaukee (WI) Public Schools, as an associate high school principal in Wauwatosa (WI,) as a directing principal at Washington Park High in Racine (WI) before becoming Associate Superintendent in the Waukegan (IL) School District.  He taught graduate level courses at National-Louis University. He brings strong leadership and planning skills, with expertise in bilingual education, as well as in assessments, accountability, collaboration-building and parental involvement. With PROACT SEARCH, INC. he is involved in marketing and business development and in all aspects of the search process, focusing on stakeholder engagement, recruiting and screening activities. He earned his Ed.D. in District Administration and a M.S. in Counseling Psychology from Northern Illinois University and a B.A. from Wheaton College.

Jermitt Krage is a senior consultant with PROACT SEARCH, INC., and has dedicated his career in education to building learning organizations, “working with those who want to change the culture of schools and who are willing to make schools better for children and to improve the quality of learning.”  His focus is on designing and providing training and facilitation for collaborative leadership, conflict mediation and interest-based consensus building.  Through a School and Community Visions program, he conducts Future Search Conferences for all public schools stakeholders to develop a shared vision for children.  For over 30 years, Jermitt was with the Wisconsin Education Association Council serving as an organizational development specialist and a training specialist, among other positions; after a successful teaching career in Milwaukee, WI, Sioux City, IA and Hartington, NE.  For the past 10 years, as a facilitator, trainer and consultant, he has worked with 100 school districts across the country conducting more than 1000 sessions with school personnel, parents and community members, including train the trainer sessions. With PROACT SEARCH, INC., Jermitt assists with stakeholder engagement activities, building consensus around a position profile and the search process.  In addition, he participates in business development, recruiting, screening and qualifying potential candidates. Jermitt received his B.S. degree in education from Northern State College in Aberdeen, SD, and a M.A. degree from the University of South Dakota. His post graduate studies were in psychology and organizational/professional development at the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. 

Dr. Donna Elam is a Consultant with PROACT SEARCH, INC. and is currently the Founder and CEO of T.E.A.M. (Training, Evaluation, Assessment and Management) Consulting, an organization based on her belief that all students are entitled to the quality of education necessary to maximize academic achievement.  She has an outstanding and impressive record of work in diversity, dis-proportionality of minority students in special education referrals and placement, leadership, team building, standards-based instruction and parent education.  She is also a renowned expert in the fields of education and civil rights activism.  Previously, Dr. Elam served as Associate Director for the Southeastern Equity Center, which serves eight southeastern states and as Director of New York University’s Equity Assistance Center for New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. She is the author of Metropolitan Teaching and Learning’s new non-fiction book, Why They Marched: The Struggle for the Right to Vote, and is a contributing author to several other publications, recently releasing  “From the Schoolhouse to the Jailhouse: Can We Stop It?”  She is conducting research, design and implementation of professional development on effective instructional strategies for school systems in academic crisis, as well as training and facilitating educational task forces on minority achievement and poverty impact issues. Her recent workshop series were entitled, “Teaching Literacy Through Culturally-Responsive Materials” and “Diversity In Practice.”  Dr. Elam is currently serving her second term on the Florida Commission on Human Relations, appointed by Florida Governor Jeb Bush.  She has received several recognitions and awards at the state, national and international levels, including the Gandhi, King, and Ikeda International Award by Morehouse College for her work in civil rights; the FBI Director’s  Award for her work on hate crimes; and recognition from the U.S. Department of Education for her work in youth development.  She has a B.S. degree from York College (CUNY) and earned both her M.A. and Ed.D. in the fields of Special Education and Education Policy from New York University. 

William Hawkins is the Founder and President of THE HAWKINS COMPANY, one of the largest African American-owned retained executive search firms in the Western United States; headquartered in Los Angeles, CA.  Established in 1984, the company works with major public, private and nonprofit organizations to recruit senior level executives.  Bill joins PROACT SEARCH, INC. in cooperative ventures across the country. Bill has over 25 years of senior level executive recruiting experience.  Prior to establishing The Hawkins Company, he spent 9 years as a senior member of the world’s largest executive search firm, Korn Ferry International.  He joined them in 1976 and conducted, managed and participated in over 300 executive searches nationally.  Bill has been quoted by The Wall Street Journal on diversity recruiting and has been listed in Black Enterprise magazine as one of the top African American owned search firms in the country.  Bill is a graduate of Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Lawrence Marazza is a senior consultant with PROACT SEARCH, INC., and brings over 36 years experience in public school education, including twenty six (26) years as a School Superintendent in both Ohio and Florida.  Most recently, he was Superintendent of the Alachua County Schools in Gainesville, Florida; a district serving over 30,000 students.  Prior to that position, he served twelve years as a Superintendent of the South Euclid-Lyndhurst Public Schools in suburban Cleveland and another twelve years as Superintendent of the Galion City Schools in Central Ohio.  For ten years, he was the administrative representative on University Evaluation Teams across the country for the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).  Currently he is the Executive Director of the Lighthouse Management Group, specializing in Transformational Leadership.  He is a contributing author to The Power of Public Engagement, a Beacon of Hope for America’s Schools.  His latest book, The 5 Essentials of Organizational Excellence: Maximizing Schoolwide Student Achievement and Performance was published by Corwin Press.  Larry was a faculty member at Mount Union College and Kent State University and served as an adjunct faculty member at John Carroll University, University of Florida and Ashland University.  He received his B.S. degree from Mount Union College, and his M.Ed. and Ph.D. degrees from Kent State University.  In 1985, he was named as Distinguished Graduate by Mount Union College. 

Dr. Art Stellar is a senior consultant of PROACT SEARCH, INC. with 30 years working in education and both nonprofit and for profit organizations. He has served in top leadership positions in suburban communities like Shaker Heights, Ohio and Montgomery County, Maryland, as well as rural Appalachian settings in Southeastern Ohio and West Virginia. Dr. Stellar also served as superintendent in urban areas such as Oklahoma City and Boston. His 17 years as a superintendent extends across five states.  He has worked for Guidelines, Inc. a search and consulting firm in New York and is on the Advisory Board for the Teachers Support Network, an online teacher recruiting agency based in New Jersey.  Renaissance Learning, Inc. - most known for "Accelerated Reader" - employed Dr. Stellar as Chief Learning Officer, a vice-president post. He was the President/CEO for High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, a recognized leader in preschool and early childhood education. He has also taught elementary, middle school and graduate classes; been a coach and principal and was even a school bus driver.  Dr. Stellar served as president of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the North American Chapter of the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction and the Horace Mann League. He currently is Chairman of the Board for the National Dropout Prevention Center/Network out of Clemson University. He has served on numerous civic and professional boards, as well as the for profit boards for Plato Learning and Docufide, Inc.  Widely published, he has also been a Fulbright Scholar and international consultant and speaker. Among his many honors is the American Association of School Administrators'  "Leadership for Learning" award and the Ohio University's "Distinguished Alumnus."  He received a Ph.D. in Education Administration, a M.A. in Elementary School Administration and a B.S. in Elementary Education from Ohio University.

Richard L. Acton is a consultant with PROACT SEARCH, INC., and brings 17 years of executive and operational experience in non-profit, community-based family services and behavioral health, focusing on healthy families and healthy communities. Currently, he is the Director of the Lexington County Community Mental Health Center in Lexington, South Carolina.  Prior to this position, he was the President and Chief Executive Officer at TriStar Community Counseling, Inc., a non-profit, multi-county, comprehensive health/substance abuse and family service agency in Lima, OH; previously serving as the executive of another family counseling agency, a supervisor of residential therapists for a youth services organization and a contract therapist and social worker, among other positions.  Rick brings expertise in strategic planning, staff development and empowerment, revenue diversification, mergers and acquisitions, program development and evaluation; streamlining programs and services for maximum efficiencies and for the highest standards of performance.  He has served in a consultant capacity to state legislators and their staffs on public policy crafting and statutory initiatives.  He has participated on numerous state-wide task forces regarding family service and behavioral healthcare issues and has hands-on experience and knowledge of national accreditations, state licensure and certification issues.  Rick has served on the Board of Directors of the Family Service Council of Ohio for 12 years and for 3 years as the Board Chair, gaining state and national recognition for his work.  He received his M.S.W. from The Ohio State University and a B.A. in Psychology from Wittenberg University.       

Andrew J. Lane is currently a Partner with Peoplenext, Inc., a national recruiting firm and is based in Milwaukee, WI.  He has entered into a joint venture partnership with PROACT SEARCH, INC.  Prior to this partnership, Andy was the Principal of Human Capital Strategy Partners, an executive search and management consulting firm.  He brings 13 years of knowledge and experience in executive recruiting assignments that span diverse industries and functions, including consumer products, plastics and chemicals, engineering consulting, construction, manufacturing, legal and real estate, finance, technology and supply chain management. Through his successful search assignments, he has developed expertise in customizing search specific strategies and in conducting accurate market research, resulting in targeted, qualified candidates on a very timely and cost-effective basis.  His acumen in sales and marketing has allowed him to accurately present the job opportunity, solicit interest at a high level and qualify the best potential contributors to a client’s business interests.  Recent clients include:  Metro Technologies, Generac Power Systems, Right Management Consultants, Arthur Andersen, Godfrey and Kahn Law, Miller Brewing Company and S.C. Johnson Company.  Andy received undergraduate degrees in Economics and Psychology from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.

Dr. David L. Snead is currently Superintendent of the Waterbury (CT) Public Schools; having previously served as Headmaster at the Madison Technical High School within the Boston Public Schools for several years.  Dr. Snead was also the General Superintendent of the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) for four years, advancing the district’s reform agenda, increasing student enrollment and achieving unprecedented increases in student test scores.  His career in the DPS spanned twenty-nine years.  He received both his Ph.D. degree in Educational Administration and a M.A. degree in Urban Education from the University of Michigan.  His B.S. degree is from Tuskegee University.

Dr. Merrill Grant currently is an educational consultant residing in Sacramento, CA.  He is the recently-retired Superintendent of the Toledo Public Schools.  His other superintendencies included, Watsonville, CA, Tucson Unified School District and Green Bay (WI) Public Schools.  Dr. Grant received his Ed.D. and M.Ed. degrees from Toledo University and a B.S. degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Dr. David A. Bennett is a senior consultant of Proact Search Inc. with over 30 years experience in public education.  He served seven years as Superintendent of the Saint Paul Public Schools in Minnesota, during which time the district’s standardized test scores improved each year. Thirty-eight new magnet schools were opened during Dr. Bennett’s tenure, including the Saturn School of Tomorrow, the school chosen by President George H. Bush as the exemplary site for his Goals 2000 break-the-mold schools initiative. Prior to his St. Paul tenure, Dr. Bennett worked as an administrator in the Milwaukee Public Schools for 14 years, nine of them as Deputy Superintendent.  In that role he had day-to-day responsibility for operating 150 schools serving 133,000 students.  To meet the federal school desegregation order in Milwaukee, he designed and implemented a successful plan which relied on the extensive use of magnet schools and allowed students the choice to go to either city or suburban schools.  This plan became a predominant model for voluntary school desegregation throughout the United States.

Dr. Bennett has worked as a consultant with many school districts and state departments of education, addressing the challenges of school finance, special education, redistricting, student transportation, and improving student achievement.  As part of this work, he has helped develop over 400 innovative magnet schools throughout the United States, including the nation’s first public school Montessori program.  He has testified as an expert witness in eight school desegregation cases.  Executive Educator magazine designated him as one of the nation’s outstanding educators.  In addition to his work in the public schools, Dr. Bennett was president of a large, private sector company.  He has published extensively as a contributor to both books and periodicals; his writings cover a broad range of topics related to school reform and improvement.  Most recently, he served as Superintendent of Schools in Sarasota County, Florida, and assists with the Educational Administrative Licensure Program at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota.  He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Iowa, with a B.A. in English.  He received his M.A. and Ph.D. in Educational Administration at the University of Iowa.

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