Lauren LeBental has been relentless in her pursuit of creating a more equitable and inclusive society. Through her experiences in New York City (NYC) Public Schools, Lauren recognized the enormous influence and impact individual teachers and leaders have on a child's educational experience. As the Vice President of Strategy and Operations, Lauren leads the organization’s efforts to improve the training and development provided to teachers and leaders to ensure all students feel a sense of belonging in school.

Prior to joining SPED Strategies, Lauren served as the Assistant Dean of Special Education at Relay Graduate School of Education, NY. There, she led the strategy and development of all special education programs and faculty at the campus. This work aimed at improving the pre-service and in-service experience for special education teachers and ensured they developed the knowledge and skills needed to teach all students across NY.

Lauren began her career in education because of her younger brother. His high school diagnosis of ADHD impacted his belief in his ability to learn and she watched as that influenced every element of his life. Dedicated to creating different realities for kids, Lauren joined Teach For America (TFA) and worked as a special education teacher in NYC Public Schools. In pursuit of revitalizing teacher and leader preparation she subsequently played several key roles including a school-based instructional coach, Manager of Teacher Leadership Development at TFA, a Consultant, Strategy and Development in the office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality in the NYC Department of Education and the Director of Professional Learning at Zearn.