About Us

Verdant Learning is a Brooklyn-based organization that empowers schools to deepen engagement inside and outside classrooms, and strengthen communication schoolwide.

Our programs help schools harness student motivation through cogenerative dialogues, improve attendance, and make any school-based program more effective. We help teams develop the relational and technical skills to achieve breakthrough impact and build the capacity to sustain growth.

Verdant Learning draws upon lessons learned through traditional school turnaround approaches which were expensive and ineffective, combined with enabling meaningful change in low- and high-tech environments across government, private and non-profit sectors, and in multiple countries.

Our Team

Featured

ASHA BANKER, FOUNDER

Asha balances systems thinking and execution, building programs, processes, and tools rooted in wide community involvement. Over the past 25 years, she has worked with schools, districts, and numerous other organizations undergoing major change.

In 2018, Asha designed and taught "Data for Good" at BEAM, a statistics class for rising 7th graders that explores race, class, and school outcomes using NYC school and other public data.

Prior to Verdant, Asha volunteered extensively in Math and ELA ICT classrooms at Brooklyn's PS/MS 282 and PS 133. From 2012 to 2013, she was the Executive Director of Data & Policy at Newark Public Schools in New Jersey. She developed Newark’s first publicly available school snapshots where she solicited and incorporated key parent feedback. Previously, Asha led the school improvement practice at Wireless Generation (now Amplify), designing and launching its Lead Partner turnaround model, and supporting schools in Indianapolis, Washington DC, and Detroit. She also led Strategy & Finance at Edvance Learning, a start-up school group in India.

Asha began her career at Goldman Sachs in investment banking in New York and then distressed debt in London. Later, she was a product manager at open-source software leader, Red Hat, and a Director at disruptive innovation pioneer, Innosight Ventures.

She has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA in Economics with Honors from the University of Chicago. She has lived and worked in the US, India, Europe, Singapore, and East Africa. For the past 13 years, Asha has lived in Brooklyn where she is an avid CrossFitter, Food Coop member, skier, and outdoors explorer.

ADRIANNE ROYAL, DATA ANALYST

Adrianne Royal is a current student at Hunter College on the Upper East Side of New York City. She is pursuing her bachelor’s degree and certification in Accounting. As a person of color who has lived, gone to school, and worked in different historically marginalized neighborhoods across New York City, Adrianne has witnessed the true impact that knowledge has on overcoming the disadvantages that some people face. Having always valued education, Adrianne is passionate about making learning accessible to students from all backgrounds.

ELLEN MOIR, ADVISOR

Ellen Moir is Founder and previously served as Chief Executive Officer of New Teacher Center (NTC), a national organization dedicated to improving student learning by accelerating the effectiveness of new teachers, experienced teachers and school leaders. She is recognized as a passionate advocate for our nation’s newest teachers and for the students they teach.

Ellen founded NTC in 1998 to scale high quality teacher induction services to a national audience. NTC strengthens school communities through proven mentoring and professional development programs, online learning environments, policy advocacy, and research. Today NTC has a staff of over 150 who work closely with educators and policymakers across the country. NTC seeks to work in high-poverty schools in underserved communities to ensure that the nation’s low-income, minority, and English language learners, those students most often taught by inexperienced teachers, have the opportunity to receive an excellent education.

COREY THOMAS, ADVISOR

Corey Thomas is the CEO of Rapid7, as well as the chairman of its board of directors. In 2021, Corey became a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and was appointed as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. In 2020, Corey joined the Massachusetts Competitive Partnership as a director. In 2018, he was elected to the Cyber Threat Alliance (CTA) board of directors and the Massachusetts Cybersecurity Strategy Council. He also serves on the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts board of directors, LPL Financial’s board of directors, and Vanderbilt University’s board of trust. He previously served on the U.S. Commerce Department's Digital Economy Board of Advisors. Corey has extensive experience leading technology companies to the next stage of growth and innovation.

Prior to joining Rapid7, Corey was VP of marketing at Parallels, Inc., a virtualization technology company; group project manager of the Microsoft Server and Tools division, steering product planning for Microsoft’s data platform; and a consultant at Deloitte Consulting. Corey received a B.E. in electrical engineering and computer science from Vanderbilt University and a MBA from Harvard Business School.