Leadership

ARK Educate
Our team, a dynamic blend of educators, innovators, and thought leaders, is at the core of our mission to educate through the lens of technologically enabled innovation. Each member contributes their unique expertise, working in harmony to create impactful educational programs and initiatives.

Our Board

Catherine Wood
Founder

With over 40 years of experience in innovation investment, Cathie founded ARK Investment Management LLC in 2014, specializing in Disruptive Innovation. As Chief Investment Officer, she drives ARK's investment philosophy, focusing on advancements like DNA sequencing, robotics, AI, energy storage, and blockchain. Previously, Cathie managed over $5 billion at AllianceBernstein and co-founded Tupelo Capital, overseeing about $800 million. Her career began at The Capital Group, followed by 18 years in various roles at Jennison Associates.

Recognized for her influence in finance, Cathie was featured in Bloomberg's 50 list in 2018, Fortune's Experts' Best Investing Advice in 2019, and received the 2016 "Women in Finance – Outstanding Contribution Award." She's been a speaker at global forums, including the World Economic Forum and Singularity University.

2018, Cathie launched the Duddy Innovation Institute at Notre Dame Academy, her alma mater. This institute provides a progressive educational experience, encouraging young women to explore knowledge beyond traditional boundaries.

Kellen Carter
Board Member

Kellen joined ARK in April 2016. As ARK’s Corporate Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, Kellen provides a full range of regulatory, compliance, and legal advice to ARK on all business matters.

Kellen began his career at the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) as a Securities Compliance Examiner at the Office of Compliance, Inspections, and Examinations (“OCIE”) in the SEC’s New York regional office. After OCIE, Kellen was an Attorney-Adviser in the SEC’s Division of Investment Management’s Risk and Examinations Office. Subsequently, Kellen was a Management Consultant at Ernst & Young, LLP in the Wealth and Asset Management group. Kellen received his Bachelor of Science in Human and Organizational Development with a concentration in International Development from Vanderbilt University and his Juris Doctorate from Howard University School of Law. Kellen is licensed to practice law in New York and Georgia.

Lisa Dodd
Board Member

As Chief Marketing Officer, Lisa is responsible for implementing ARK’s global marketing strategy across all channels and partners, ensuring a cohesive brand and customer experience at every touchpoint. Lisa joined ARK in 2015 and has held key roles within ARK’s marketing team, overseeing global brand, communications, and public relations.

Before ARK, Lisa worked for five years at the Pioneer Companies, a national commercial real estate organization headquartered in Syracuse, New York. Lisa collaborated with all departments to design and implement marketing strategies across platforms that built brand recognition and fostered business development. Lisa received a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Anthropology from Colgate University and was a Division I Women’s Varsity Ice Hockey program member. She also received a Master of Science in New Media Management from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications.

Paul Wilson
Board Member

As ARK Investment Management's CFO and CSO, Paul oversees the company's financial and strategic operations. His duties as CFO include managing reporting, treasury, accounting, tax, and financial controls. As CSO, he aligns financial strategies with the firm's growth, involving initiatives, potential acquisitions, and new products. He examines adjacent asset classes to extend ARK's brand and financial strategy, ensuring the firm's financial health and strategic adaptability. Paul joined ARK in 2021.

Previously, Paul was the CFO of ORIX USA, managing assets worth about $80 billion. His roles at ORIX spanned M&A advisory, real estate, and equities. A CPA with extensive experience in M&A, tax, and corporate development, Paul began his career at Ernst and Young, LLP. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Accounting and a Master's in Tax from Baylor University.

Besides his professional role, Paul contributes to the community. He serves on the board of Healing Hand Ministries, supports the Retina Foundation of the Southwest, and advises Family Gateway, aiding homeless families.

David Bodde
Board Member

Dr. David Bodde, Professor Emeritus at Clemson University, specializes in teaching students how to leverage technology for innovation and entrepreneurship. His focus areas include managing risks in new ventures, open architecture innovation, and new venture investment.

Dr. Bodde's extensive professional background includes roles as Vice President of the Midwest Research Institute, Assistant Director of the U.S. Congressional Budget Office, and Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Department of Energy. He also contributes his expertise to various public and private company boards.

He holds a Doctor of Business Administration from Harvard University (1976), Master of Science degrees in nuclear engineering (1972) and management (1973) from MIT, and a Bachelor of Science from West Point (1965). A veteran, Dr. Bodde served in the United States Army in Vietnam.

Engaged with inner-city Christian missions, creating job opportunities for low-income individuals, his work centers on fostering a sense of responsibility and community among these individuals and their families.

Caitlin Wood
Board Member

As Managing Director, Caitlin oversees daily operations, strategic partnership opportunities, corporate governance, and grant and gift issuance. Caitlin also serves as the Chairman-designate of the ARK Education Initiative.

Caitlin has experience in education as a former teacher, holds a Masters in Clinical Psychology, and is currently working towards her licensure as a psychologist specializing in Child & Adolescent Development. Caitlin has prior experience serving local and national nonprofit organizations, including Junior Achievement, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Prevent Child Abuse America.

Our Team

Ramani DeAlwis
Head of Education – Middle School
As Head of Education, Ramani is responsible for all middle school initiatives and oversees the development of curricula and teacher training. Before ARK Educate, Ramani served as the Executive Director for Alpha to Omega in Singapore, an institute for students with learning differences. Before working internationally, Ramani was a teacher and Head of School for an Independent private school in New York City for two decades and a co-founding Head of the Montessori Middle School in Connecticut. During that time, Ramani represented Montessori at the United Nations as an NGO and spearheaded adolescent student initiatives in Argentina, Nepal, Hong Kong, and Uganda. She has consulted schools in Tanzania, Sri Lanka, and New York City. Ramani believes, as Einstein once said, “The formulation of the problem is often more essential than the solution.”
Kevin Eager
Education Lead

As Education Lead, Kevin brings 35 years of
classroom science teaching to the ARK Educate team.
His greatest professional blessing is the training and
time that his mentors, colleagues, friends and
students have poured into him along
the way. These experiences shaped his view of
science education that he holds today.

Kevin spent his first 30 years of education in NewYork State teaching Physical Science, Earth Science and Physics. He served as Department Chair for a dynamic science team of seventeen amazing teachers. Kevin then moved to Florida where he taught as a middle school teacher in the Pinellas County School District with his last year and a half serving as an Instructional Staff Developer for the district.

These experiences have produced and refined his foundational belief in learning based on problem solving and critical thinking. He believes these processes create lifelong learners through productive struggle and necessary failure. The result being students who are driven and resilient. Students who ultimately focus on opportunities and not obstacles. These are the skills and experiences that grow our students for a lifetime.

Cara Johnson, Ph.D.
Education Lead

Cara began her career conducting field research on the origins of modern Homo sapiens. As a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Connecticut, she discovered a passion for teaching and mentoring. She played an instrumental role in expanding the Paleoanthropology Program and created hands-on laboratory classes for both graduate and undergraduate students. Following her postgraduate work, Cara served as a science educator, advisor, and outdoor expedition leader at a Montessori middle school, which sparked her interest in Montessori education.

Cara then became the Head of School at Litchfield Montessori School, where she served for seven years. During her tenure, she stewarded the school’s commitment to providing a premier Montessori education and built an Outdoor Education program that encouraged leadership and instilled a love for the outdoors and environmental stewardship in students. As Director of Experiential Learning at the Cobb School, Cara developed an experiential learning program focused on outdoor education for elementary students.

Cara holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology from the University of Connecticut, with a concentration in Archaeology, Sedimentology, and Human Evolution. She is thrilled to join the ARK Educate team and continues to explore the great outdoors at every opportunity.

Caitlin Wood
Managing Director

As Managing Director, Caitlin oversees daily operations, strategic partnership opportunities, corporate governance, and grant and gift issuance. Caitlin also serves as the Chairman-designate of the ARK Education Initiative.

Caitlin has experience in education as a former teacher, holds a Masters in Clinical Psychology, and is currently working towards her licensure as a psychologist specializing in Child & Adolescent Development. Caitlin has prior experience serving local and national nonprofit organizations, including Junior Achievement, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Prevent Child Abuse America.

Caroline Wood
Marketing & Brand Associate

As Marketing & Brand Associate, Caroline leads design and creative development work, ensuring the creation of multimedia assets to uphold and reinforce ARK Educate's brand identity across all channels and global partnerships. In addition, Caroline collaborates with cross-functional teams to oversee marketing initiatives, aligning the team's creative vision with ARK's objectives. Caroline joined ARK Educate in March 2026.

Prior to joining ARK Educate, Caroline spent eight years at ARK Invest as Marketing Manager. She then dedicate two years to thru-hiking and traveling.

Caroline graduated from Gettysburg College with a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors in Art History.


Mary Zeman
Head of Education - Early Childhood & Teacher Training

As Head of Education, Mary is responsible for all early childhood initiatives and oversees the development of curricula and teacher training models. As an anthropologist and an educator, Mary began her career in northern Kenya, teaching in a multilingual primary school through junior secondary school. Returning from Africa to the States, she worked in the Midwest as a 5th and 6th-grade teacher and program coordinator in a Title IV school. The Superintendent named her to establish the District's Title IX Initiative and co-found their Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion program for teachers and administrators. She was Head of School at an AMI Montessori School in southern Connecticut for thirty years and co-founded their Middle School. In partnership with the University of Hartford, Mary is co-founder of The Montessori Training Center of New England. Before joining ARK Educate, she served schools as an interim administrator, diversity consultant, and community leader in New York, the Midwest, Colorado, and Montana. She has worked internationally as a motivational speaker and in curriculum and professional development.

Mission

ARK Educate's mission is to educate through the lens of technologically enabled innovation, preparing and inspiring students, teachers, and families to be on the right side of change.

ARK Educate supports education by introducing high-quality problem-solving and critical thinking curricula aligned to educational standards and engaging technologically-enabled disruptive innovation. The pillars of our organization – education, mentorship, partnership, and funding span four core areas — curriculum development, teacher training, teacher and administrator support, and community and business partnerships. Our curriculum empowers students to lead their own learning using problem-first thinking to solve problems in the context of disruptive innovation in a rapidly changing world. 

We situate lessons in scientific methods and principles within a series of innovation challenges that inspire collaboration, hypothesizing, and gathering data through experimenting. With a curriculum grounded in real-world relevance, students no longer ask, “What does this have to do with me?” We provide educational materials to schools and districts interested in teaching subject area content through teaching strategies that promote an innovation mindset and higher-order thinking skills. We believe all students must become lifelong learners empowered by knowledge and the ability to think critically at higher levels. We unite community leaders into common causes, helping focus educational efforts. 

With the global economy undergoing the most extensive technological transformation in history, young people are in a critical position to become drivers of our changing world. This vision begins with transforming education to support an understanding of the technologically enabled disruptive innovations shaping our world. Witnessing the transformational power of innovation and offering a comprehensive approach to education from early childhood through adulthood is the most effective way of preparing for our rapidly changing world. 

Vision

To build a global educational community that creates, shares, and supports curricula to prepare teachers and students to be lifelong learners and leaders of our changing world.

To aid teachers with curricula developed using a thematic approach aligned with students’ stage of development with the ultimate goal of complete integration of an innovation mindset. To support educational administrators to address and exceed student achievement standards. Our work helps anyone interested in developing teachers and students capable of thinking, innovating, and solving problems in a relentless, technologically-driven world.
Core Values
  • Creative and consistent application of knowledge with confidence, curiosity, and tools for collaboration. 
  • Elevating all students’ potential as courageous learners and productive risk-takers with the courage to advocate, imagine, and invent.