Andy is an Educational Program Specialist on the Title II, Part A team for the Teachers, Leaders, and Special Populations program in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. Before joining the Department of Education, he worked in Michigan’s Southgate Community and Van Buren Public Schools as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and assistant superintendent. In 1997, Andy received the Sallie Mae First Year Teacher Award for Michigan. In 2002, he was named Michigan’s Middle School Social Studies Teacher of the Year, and his class was featured on NPR in a segment on the teaching of the Bill of Rights. Recognized as NAESP’s National Outstanding Assistant Principal in 2019, Andy holds master’s degrees in Educational Leadership and Curriculum and Instruction. He is married with four grown children and enjoys reading about leadership, history, and passionately cheering for the Detroit Lions.

Patrick Rooney is the Director of School Support and Accountability. He oversees several key components of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), including 21st Century Community Learning Centers; Title I, Part A; Title I, Part D; Title II; Title III; State Assessment Grants; Competitive Grants for State Assessments; McKinney-Vento Homeless Education; Well-Rounded Education through Student-Centered Funding; and 21st Century Community Learning Centers Out of School Time Career Pathway programs. Together, these programs award more than $20 billion annually to states and districts.

Prior to this, Patrick was the Deputy Director in the Office of State Support from 2014 to 2018, where he oversaw many of these same programs. Patrick previously helped lead the work of the Reform Support Network, providing technical assistance to states implementing comprehensive Race to the Top reforms, and the Race to the Top Assessment program, which provided grants to groups of states to develop new assessments aligned to state’s college and career ready standards. Patrick also worked in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education supporting states implement their accountability and assessment systems.

Patrick previously worked in the DC Office of State Superintendent of Education, where he was a senior policy advisor and worked on a variety of K-12 issues in the District of Columbia. He started his career as a statistician in the National Center for Education Statistics, analyzing education trends for a variety of topics in the Congressionally mandated annual report, The Condition of Education.

Danielle Smith serves as Director for the Office of Program and Grantee Support Services in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) at the U.S. Department of Education. Ms. Smith oversees technical assistance programs serving all States and U.S. territories including the Comprehensive Centers Program, the Equity Assistance Centers, and the Student Engagement and Attendance Center. Ms. Smith leads coordination of OESE technical assistance including planning, implementing, and evaluating key technical assistance initiatives. Ms. Smith previously led national technical assistance initiatives in the Office of State Support including the State Support Network, the Equitable Access Support Network and the Reform Support Network for Elementary and Secondary Education Act programs including Title I, Part A; Title II, Part A; Title III, Part A; ESEA flexibility; School Improvement Grants; Equitable Access; and Race to the Top.