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Cassandra Barker-Carr

Cassandra Barker-Carr

ACT, Inc.

Career Roadmap

Cassandra's work combines: Education, Numbers, and Helping People

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Day In The Life

K-12 Principal Strategist

Use ACT data insights with K-12 organizations to develop initiatives that ultimately lead to improved student outcomes.

Skills & Education

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

    Lake Arthur High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    Psychology, General

    University of Louisiana-Monroe

  • Graduate Degree

    Counseling Psychology

    University of Louisiana-Monroe

  • Doctorate

    Educational Leadership and Administration, General

    Nova Southeastern University

Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be a Business Intelligence Analysts:

Graduate Degree: Counseling Psychology

Learn more about different paths to this career

Life & Career Milestones

I've taken a lot of twists and turns

  • 1.

    I grew up in a small town in Louisiana with limited exposure to careers outside of K-12 education and the oil field. Experiences in a program at Grambling State University gave me new possibilities.

  • 2.

    Being a part of the Women's Basketball team at University of Louisiana at Monroe gave me a support system similar to that of my family; a home away from home.

  • 3.

    Upon graduating with a BA in Psychology, I had a better understanding of people but was unsure how to translate that skill in to a career so I enrolled in graduate school.

  • 4.

    Becoming a teacher in the K-12 setting gave me a new purpose in life. The urban schools in which I chose to work helped me to see the incredible impact educators make on a day-to-day basis.

  • 5.

    Became a high school and then middle school principal by the time I was 30. Overcame issues with trust in my leadership by directly involving educators & remaining focused on outcomes for students.

  • 6.

    In each setting, my intent was to impact every student in the building with what I had learned along my career journey.

  • 7.

    My most defining moment was when I had my daughter, she is the oldest of my two kids. At that point, the work that I was doing as an educator became really real.

  • 8.

    In 2004, I began looking for an organization making a huge impact on the world with a mission that aligned with my own. Finding an organization like ACT has been a paramount moment in my career.

Defining Moments

How I responded to discouragement

  • THE NOISE

    Messages from Society in general:

    "Ni**er B***h". Athletes are dumb. "All lives matter" as a response to "Black lives matter" to diminish the emphasis on Black people and Black issues. You have advanced because of affirmative action - Black and a woman.

  • How I responded:

    I feel fortunate to have built a network of friends who have walked this same path or are walking the path at the same time with me. We encourage each other. It helps to silence the noise.

Experiences and challenges that shaped me

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