Our Team
indispensable to one another
John F. Kennedy

Co-Founder + CEO

Co-Founder + CPO
Fernando DeLeón is the Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer of Innovare. His professional experience includes Product Development roles at Google, as a Management Consultant at Accenture, and now making an impact as a social entrepreneur. Fernando holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan. He is an alumnus of Education Pioneers, the StartEd & NYU Steinhardt EdTech Accelerator, 1871 and IHCC’s Latinx Tech Incubator, has been featured in Forbes for his journey as a product leader, and his experiences growing up in a border city in Mexico, immigrating to the US, and working in Brazil have shaped his eagerness to build bridges across cultures.

Co-Founder + CGO
A private sector transplant, former data strategist in Chicago Public Schools, Education Pioneers & Surge Institute alumnus, and graduate of University of Pennsylvania’s Program for Social Innovation Design, Nick is co-founder, President, sales, and social innovation leader. He is a self-proclaimed data geek, a great relationship-builder, and a proud Chicago native. He enjoys traveling and spending time with his family, friends, and dog Pomegranate.

Full Stack Engineer
Bob transitioned to software engineering after 10 years working in education. He has supported educators at the college/university level through a professional association and in student services where he also taught undergraduate courses in religious studies. Pursuing a goal to teach at the high school level, he taught 9th grade World Religions for 5 years and discovered a passion for education technology. Bob is excited to use that passion to help others and support the next generation of leaders.

Full Stack Engineer
Ian is a graduate of Fullstack Academy’s software engineering bootcamp. Prior to pursuing a more tech-focused path, he directed test preparation programs and coached students through the standardized testing process at schools on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. An avid musician, he also freelances as a composer for theater and film and performs with various musical groups around New York City. Ian is thrilled for the opportunity to exercise his tech skills at Innovare in the service of positive change in education.

Director of Finance

Product Designer
Pauly Ramirez is a seasoned entrepreneur with fundamental business management, pitching, operational planning, and revenue generation knowledge. Before joining Innovare, Pauly was the Chief Creative Officer at 7QUBES, a SaaS platform providing accessible software solutions for small businesses. She has been featured in a NationSwell/Kauffman Foundation documentary, “An Entrepreneurial Learning Curve,” and recognized as a speaker at the TEDxChicago Women 2018. Pauly looks forward to using her role as a Product Designer to build interfaces that bring the educator community together.

Customer Success Manager
Amanda is a champion for equity in education and has served as a teacher and school leader during her professional career. As a seventh and eighth-grade reading teacher, Amanda helped her students grow over 2 years on the NWEA in ELA and outscored the state in ELA on the PARCC exam. Amanda is an alumnus of the Relay Graduate School of Education Master's Program and the Relay Graduate School of Education National Principal Academy. Amanda is thrilled to bring her experience as a school-level strategist to Innovare to help foster trusting and productive relationships with our customers.

Growth Strategist
Tim is a Chicago native, graduating from Grand View University with a degree in Business Administration: Finance and Management, and a Collegiate Men’s Volleyball National Champion where he earned All-American honors twice throughout his career. He has prior experience in recruiting across Information Technology, Manufacturing, and Supply Chain Management. Tim is eager to apply his background and experience as a Growth Strategist at Innovare.

Director of Sales

Adrian (AJ) DeLeón

Fernando DeLeón

Nick Freeman

Bob Killion

Ian Milliken

Luis Miguel Alvarez

Pauly Ramirez
Product Designer

Amanda Szramiak

Tim Johnson
