Mary D’Anella

Head of School

Mary D’Anella (she/her), was born and raised in South Philadelphia and was an early proponent of the charter school movement. Mary lead the turn-around team for The Philadelphia Charter School for the Arts and Sciences and later served as its CEO, spearheading a successful school-wide reading improvement program that included intervention, remediation, and enrichment. Previously, she was a founding board member of the city's largest charter, The Philadelphia Performing Arts Charter School, and served as Director of Communications for its management company, String Theory Schools. Mary has been an advocate for Montessori preschool education since her own children benefited from the Montessori methods. In her life before becoming a mother of four, Mary was a photojournalist in Philadelphia. Her work appeared in both local and national publications. She was also an adjunct professor of Photojournalism at Temple University. The sweetest moments at school happen for Mary slowly over the years. “For some children this is their first time in a childcare setting other than home. It is an important step in the child’s life. We see them enter on the first day sometimes tentative, and by the time the children leave us after kindergarten, they are standing tall having come into their own as citizens of the world.