Erica Chapman, Founder
Erica is the Founder of the DKDK Project.
Erica served as the Special Assistant to the President of Sarah Lawrence College, where she facilitated new educational initiatives for President Cristle Collins Judd. She is the former Dean of Faculty at The Masters School, where she spearheaded the implementation of a mission-aligned teacher development and evaluation system. Prior to becoming the Dean of Faculty, Erica was the Director of CITYterm at The Masters School, an experience-based semester program for juniors and seniors in high school. As the Director, Erica oversaw all aspects of the interdisciplinary, project-based semester school, including the development of an innovative, place-based curriculum and the overall administration of the program.
For fifteen years she was the co-facilitator, along with David Dunbar, of the Teaching for Experience workshop (a week-long intensive that introduced teachers to the principles of experience-based, deep learning). Erica and David are honored and excited to have been recognized as collaborators of The Best Teachers Institute, a research and education organization committed to deep learning led by Ken Bain and James Lang. Erica’s work at CITYterm is featured in Ken Bain's Super Courses: The Future of Teaching and Learning.
Erica has leadership experience in the public, private, charter and non-profit domains. She has held positions at Achievement First Charter Schools, New Leaders for New Schools and at the New York City Department of Education. In each role, Erica’s aim has been to improve student-learning outcomes by enhancing the capacity of teachers and school leaders and by supporting innovative school models.
Erica holds a B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College and a M.S. from the University of Pennsylvania.
Randal Vegter
Randal Vegter is a veteran executive of education and business, with two decades of experience. He brings a unique blend of project management and talent-focused experience to the DKDK Project team.
The highlight of Randal’s educational career is his work for LePort Schools. He was a leader for the national expansion of this California-based network of Montessori Schools, resulting in twenty schools and 500 employees. Randal has also been an Human Resources Executive for education technology companies, including Codecademy and Skillsoft. Outside of work, Randal raises two elementary school children in NYC alongside his brilliant wife and their adorable dog.
Randal holds a B.A. from Columbia and a M.A. from Columbia's Teacher's College in Educational Psychology.
Eder J. Williams McKnight
Eder J. Williams-McKnight is an educator and poet who elevates deep and transformational learning. Eder has been on the faculty of Albuquerque Academy, The Westminster Schools, CITYterm and Holland Hall. She is currently the Creative-in-Residence at the Klingenstein Center at Teachers College, Columbia University.
Eder’s work in education for the past twenty years has included leading change in schools, competency based learning, experience and place-based learning, diversity and inclusion initiatives, and civic engagement. Eder co-founded and directed a micro-school, Tulsa Term, a public-private partnership between Holland Hall and Tulsa Public Schools. Much of her vision for Tulsa Term was informed by her work at CITYterm, another micro-school focused on skills-based and place-based learning. Further, as a teacher and educational leader, Eder has designed and developed curriculum, led teaching teams, led DEIBJ initiatives, and mentored students and faculty.
Eder’s sense of wonder, imagination, and hope motivates her perennial questions: “What could be?” and “How might we get there?” To that end, Eder is a continual learner, listener, and strong collaborator. She believes that every person deserves a high quality education that cultivates their greatness. She gets excited by engendering that possibility through data informed, creative, human centered, innovative, and adaptive leadership.
Eder earned her A.B. from Brown University. She also holds an Ed M in Educational Leadership from Teachers College, Columbia University, M.A. from Breadloaf School of English, Middlebury College, and M.F.A. in Poetry from Southcoast, University of Southern Maine.
David Dunbar
Following over two decades of teaching at Deerfield Academy, Milton Academy and Albuquerque Academy, David Dunbar moved to New York, in 1996, to start CITYterm at The Masters School. David was the Academic Dean and a member of the interdisciplinary Urban Core teaching team for twenty-one years. While at The Masters School, David also served as the Coordinator for Teaching and Learning Initiatives and held the Joan Smith Hamill ‘34 Chair for Innovative Teaching. For fifteen summers, David and Erica led the Teaching for Experience Workshop, a week-long gathering for teachers interested in exploring and sharing how they can use the principles of experience-based learning to transform their own practice and their schools.
David has consulted with the public schools in New York, Atlanta and Chicago as well as with various independent and international schools around the world. He is the author, with Kenneth T. Jackson of Columbia University, of the award-winning Empire City: New York Through the Centuries (Columbia University Press). Erica and David are honored and excited to have been recognized as collaborators of The Best Teachers Institute, a research and education organization committed to deep learning led by Ken Bain and James Lang. David’s work at CITYterm is featured in Ken Bain's Super Courses: The Future of Teaching and Learning.
David earned his B.A. from Amherst College, his M.A.R. from Yale University and has been the recipient of Woodrow Wilson, Klingenstein and Fulbright Fellowships.
Madisen Gummer, Impact Coordinator
Madisen Gummer is the DKDK Project’s Impact Coordinator. She supports organizational development, manages social media, and communicates with clients and partners to ensure smooth logistics.
Madisen is a poet from Texas currently living in New York. She recently directed Sarah Lawrence College’s 20th Annual Poetry Festival, and served as a teaching artist at The Writing Institute. She previously ran social media accounts for Lumina Journal and Ashlie Ryann Coaching, and did creative consulting at Chatty Monks Brewing. Her poetry has been published in Space City Underground, Beyond Words, and Persona.
Madisen holds a B.A. in English from Texas State University and a M.F.A. in Writing from Sarah Lawrence College.