Dr. Laura Groth, Senior Partner - Lumen Impact Group

Dr. Laura Groth, Senior Partner

laura@lumenimpactgroup.com

Laura is the resident research enthusiast, bringing evidence and data to help education leaders and teams solve real problems of practice.

She has 10+ years of experience working in K-12 and higher education research, technical assistance, and project management. Recently, Laura led the publications work of a USDOE-funded resource center. Laura managed and wrote reports and toolkits to identify evidence-based and promising practices related to school improvement, school quality, family engagement, charter school facilities, and grants-management topics.

Previously, while at the National Center on Education and the Economy’s National Institute for School Leadership, Laura provided technical assistance to school leaders, LEA leadership teams, and private foundations across the country, including coaching and facilitation around data use for systems change in public schools. She also managed the application processes for two successful federal grant awards: a 2014 i3 Validation award of $12 million and a 2015 SEED award of $11 million.

In her academic research, Laura supported the work of a five-year qualitative study on CMOs operating turnaround schools in Tennessee’s Achievement School District. Laura frequently publishes in peer-reviewed journals and presents at national conferences, including a piece on CMOs and interorganizational learning in the Journal of Educational Administration in 2019, and a 2018 AERA presentation on a case study of social capital as a lever for turnaround in independent charter schools.

Laura received her doctorate from The George Washington University and holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Valparaiso University in Indiana. She lives in Washington DC and has recently been learning to roller skate, teaching her cats basic circus tricks, and baking bread (despite the tragic loss of her sourdough starter in April 2020, RIP).

Testimonials

"As a family-owned and operated company, we needed to preserve our culture and define our mission, vision and values better as we grew. Lumen Impact Group helped capture a variety of diverse perspectives and hopes for the future in a way that connected everyone involved. Lumen Impact Group helped us create a clear strategic focus and for our future stabilized our culture. Lisa also coached our leadership team in supporting implementation."

Mark Smith
President, Krapohl Ford & Lincoln

"Lisa did a fantastic job with our entire strategic planning team. Her process was beyond organized. As a new administrator, I was able to lean on Lisa for her expertise and knowledge of strategic planning. She did everything from meeting organization and to facilitating subgroups, focus groups and staff culture surveys. Her work with the school board and administrative team was respectful, while also filled with appropriate advice and constructive feedback. I could not imagine going through this process without Lisa. She will continue to be a trusted resource for years to come."

Jamie DeWitt
School Leader, NexTech High School

"I have worked with Lumen Impact Group at both the individual and organizational level. As a coach, Lisa has a natural ability to get to the heart of the matter quickly and to ask questions that help her clients translate insight into action. Each team member who has worked with Lisa in a coaching capacity has demonstrated visible growth that has positively impacted individual and team performance. As an organization, we are trying to be purposeful about the culture we are creating, as a means of best fulfilling our mission. Lumen Impact Group has been a tremendous thought partner along the way and has facilitated critical steps in a collaborative yet efficient and fun way. Our team was in awe at how much we accomplished collectively in a short period of time. We are moving toward our ideal culture much more quickly than I thought possible, and I have no doubt it is because of Lumen Impact Group’s guidance. "

Kasey Miller
Chief of Staff, National Association of Charter School Authorizers

"Lumen Impact Group has been critical in supporting Bluum’s efforts in Idaho to manage our $17.1 million federal Charter School Program grant. As one of the country’s first non-profit organizations to receive federal CSP funding, the stakes for our work are very high, and our efforts to help open, expand and replicate public charter schools face scrutiny. I sleep better knowing Lumen Impact Group has worked closely with us to build our processes, procedures and playbook for managing the responsibility of directing and overseeing a significant federal grant. I highly recommend them to others. They are true pros."

Terry Ryan
CEO, Bluum

"Lisa Diaz and Lumen Impact provided invaluable support to Colorado Charter Facility Solutions during our start-up phase. I was the new non-profit organization’s executive director (and only employee at the time), and Lisa knew answers to questions that I did not even know to ask. She made sure the board of directors was set up correctly and that the organizational documents were in place. Lisa helped me establish the organization’s goals and ways to track progress. Lisa is organized, patient and kind, and worked quickly, thoroughly and collaboratively. She is a good listener and even acted as an executive coach/therapist at times. When necessary, Lisa can be direct, yet she is always focused on the goals of the organization and its success. I highly recommend Lisa Diaz and Lumen Impact Group. "

Jane Ellis
Executive Director, Colorado Charter Facility Solutions