Lara is the associate director of the Penn Literacy Network University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, where she has also served as an instructor in the Teaching, Learning, and Leadership Division of Penn GSE. With a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Penn GSE, Lara’s work focuses on hybrid instructional models and their impact on teachers’ self-efficacy through a critical literacy lens.

In her work, she develops and leads professional learning focused on innovation, teacher and leadership development, and collaborative inquiry and creativity, and supports businesses and nonprofits in developing and aligning their pedagogy to meet the needs of schools and educators across the world. Lara is the author of several whitepapers and reports that support companies in their work with educators.

Lara earned her master’s degree and teaching certification at Penn GSE and taught high school social studies for several years. Lara is also the author and co-author of numerous books, including The Plainer Truths of Teaching, Learning, and Literacy (2016) with Dr. Morton Botel and various children’s books. Lara also holds a bachelor’s degree in government from Franklin and Marshall College.