
Ashley Waring
Ashley joins the team with 12+ years of experience in public education as a STEM educator, CS standards developer, and creator of professional learning.
In the elementary classroom, Ashley was able to witness STEM and CS integration act as an equalizer for K-5th graders. Students who did not experience success in the traditional subjects or environments of academia soared through computational thinking activities and programming projects. Seeing the positive impacts of creating an equitable classroom environment has led her to start researching and advocating for CS access in every classroom. As the District Technology Integration Specialist for Trussville City School District, she designed and implemented professional development for teachers in the district and beyond. Ashley was one of the first Google for Education Certified Coaches and draws on that training to be an effective instructional coach and leader across disciplines. As a member of the 2018 Alabama Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study (DLCS COS) Committee and Task Force, Ashley composed and delivered a presentation for the adoption of these standards to the Alabama State Board of Education. These standards were adopted in March 2018 and are being fully implemented state-wide, ensuring all students K-12 have opportunities to explore computer science. To meet the needs of teachers and provide ongoing resources for implementation, Ashley co-created a companion site for the DLCS COS that serves as a living resource for educators to find everything from professional development opportunities to classroom activities and tutorials. As a Code.org Computer Science Fundamentals Facilitator, Ashley’s had the opportunity to breach the topics of diversity and equity through the foundations of computational thinking with teachers across the state of Alabama and across the nation. She was selected to be an inaugural CS for All Teachers Community Ambassador. She organized, promoted, and facilitated international webinars on various computer science education topics ranging from access to technology to how to integrate CS in other content areas. At SAM Labs, she coordinated with district and state leaders to effectively implement solutions to meet the STEAM and coding goals of the stakeholders.
Ashley is passionate about connecting with and empowering educators to create a more engaging and equitable education journey for all students.
In the wild you can find Ashley advocating for intersectional environmentalism, sweating through a spin class or yoga session, getting messy with some abstract painting or cooking, or wrangling her cat and dog on excursions!
Our Team

Lien Diaz
Interim Executive Director, Board Vice Chair and Director of Educational Innovation and Leadership, Constellations Center for Equity in Computing at Georgia Tech

Abby Funabiki, MPA
Associate Executive Director

Kambria "Kami" Harris
Social Media Strategist/Content Creator

Suzanne B. Carlson, M. Ed.
District Coding Accelerator

Brenda Bass
PD Manager

Carlos Leon
Programs Manager

McKay Perkins, MS
Senior PD Facilitator

Laurie Green
Senior PD Facilitator

Heather Cunningham, EdD
Senior PD Facilitator

Melody Hagaman
Senior PD Facilitator

Ashley Waring
Senior PD Facilitator

Becky Hansen
PD Facilitator

Tenisha Harrington
PD Facilitator

Allison Knight
PD Facilitator

Natalie Varkey
PD Facilitator

Kelly Powers
PD Facilitator

Michael Hanahan
Marketing Consultant
Emilie Martinez
Web Developer

Stacie Mason, PhD
Research and Evaluation