Maria Della Ragione

Cahn Fellow 2020

Principal, P.S. 230 Doris L. Cohen

Brooklyn, New York

Maria Della Ragione is the principal of P.S. 230 in the Kensington neighborhood of Brooklyn. A Chicago native, she joined the New York City Department of Education in 2006 after teaching in both Illinois and Arizona. A passion for second language learning and acquisition inspired her to pursue a second career in education after her Bachelor of Science degree in General Studies from Northern Arizona University.

She obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education/ESL from Arizona State University, a Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction from Concordia University, Chicago, and an Advanced Certificate in Administration from the College of Staten Island. She has been able to live her commitment to second language acquisition as the P.S. 230 encompasses over 23 languages and dialects.

Her background in Universal Design for Literacy has motivated her to inspire anyone that she has taught as a teacher, coach, and now administrator to think outside the box in the way that we teach, assess and access children’s learning.

Her instructional goal during the last 7 years as principal for all of her 125 teachers and paraprofessionals is to individualize instruction to meet children’s individual needs in order to support them not only academically, but socially and emotionally.

Lauren O’Neill

Cahn Ally 2020

Assistant Principal, PS 230

Brooklyn, New York

Lauren O’Neill has spent her entire teaching career in the New York City Department of Education. Born and raised in Brooklyn, she has been an educator for 21 years and has extensive experience working with elementary school students as a classroom teacher in a wide array of educational settings, including special education, general education, and gifted education.

Since 2015, Lauren has served as mathematics coach at PS 230 in Brooklyn. She is committed to providing all students access to high-quality, standards-based math education. As math coach, Lauren has worked to create and develop a community of learners that values flexible thinking, problem-solving and the communication of mathematical thinking.

She is a proud graduate of the University of Virginia, where she earned a master’s degree in Special Education.