# non-profit organization
About The Ed Ladder
The Ed Ladder (TEL) is a 501c3 non-profit organization formed by educators in 2013 to assist under-served learners, i.e., those students who proverbially “fall through the cracks”, through supplemental academic instruction and mentoring on study and life skills.
A ladder enables us to get to a place where we otherwise would be unable to reach. The Ed Ladder gets into those very cracks and reinforces students’ capabilities so they can climb out themselves.
We partner with various school districts, private and charter schools, and other non-profit organizations to work with students who need supplemental academic support due to their life circumstances. These could be: they are low income, English Language Learners, have special needs, are in foster care or are recently adopted, are experiencing homelessness, are victims of domestic violence, are involved in the juvenile justice system, or whose parents are experiencing addiction or are incarcerated.
The Ed Ladder presently contracts with the following school districts to provide Academic Coaching for students in either push in, pull out, or after school programs:
- Chula Vista Elementary School District
- San Diego Unified
- San Ysidro Elementary School District
- South Bay Union School District
- Sweetwater Union High School District
We also partner with:
- San Diego Youth Services
- Promises 2 Kids
- Altus Charter Schools
Michelle Luellen
She has a Masters in Nonprofit Management from University of San Diego and a Bachelor’s Cum Laude in Secondary Education with a concentration in History from Depaul University in Chicago. She is credentialed to teach Middle and High School History and Social Studies in both the states of California and Illinois and is a League Certified Bicycle Instructor. She has 22 years of experience in both the education and nonprofit sectors in San Diego and Chicago. In 2019, she was awarded Educator of the Year at the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition. She speaks English and Spanish and has worked in diverse low income communities her entire professional career. She loves live music and spending time with her family.
Sara Gonzalez-Quintero
She is a distinguished major scholar from San Diego State University who received a bachelor's degree in Sociology and Spanish with a minor in Latin American Studies. She has over six years of tutoring experience, four of those with The Ed Ladder. Through her academic trajectory she participated on projects such as the Mexican Migration Field Research Project and Training (MMFRP) and Transfronterizo Alliance Student Organization (TASO) that served to understand the effects of the border on youth in the San Diego -Tijuana area. She is bilingual and bicultural in English and Spanish.
Candice Rina
She has worked as both an Academic Coach since 2015 and an Administrative Staff Member since 2017 for The Ed Ladder. She has her Bachelors in Science in Chemistry from The University of the Philippines - Diliman in Quezon City. She is also a Certified Senior Pharmacy Technician and APhA Pharmacy-Based Immunizer at a pharmacy. She speaks Tagalog/Filipino and English, and is currently trying her best to learn Korean. She loves BTS, Korean BBQ, and Iced Americano. She enjoys taking naps, listening to diverse types of music, appreciating art, and making art from time to time.
Madison Ambrose
She has worked as an Academic Coach since 2019 and has joined our administrative staff in 2023. She has her Associate's in Behavioral Sciences and has enjoyed tutoring since high school. Prior to The Ed Ladder, she worked as a teacher’s assistant and teacher. Her heart is drawn to careers where she feels like she is making a difference in children’s lives and encouraging their academic success. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her husband and her two fur babies.
— June, 2023