Staff

Sarah Hemminger, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Founder

Sarah Hemminger co-founded the Incentive Mentoring Program with her husband Ryan Hemminger in 2004. She has eight years of experience in nonprofit management and expertise in the development, expansion, and replication of innovative, paradigm-shifting models of mentoring. Sarah has a deep understanding of the challenges that face students in successfully completing high school and accessing higher education, as well as the potential for students and volunteers to change not only their own lives but also create a positive and lasting impact on those around them. Sarah was awarded fellowships from the Echoing Green Foundation, Open Society Institute, and Albert Schweitzer Fellows Program, which support social entrepreneurs with innovative ideas. In 2010, Sarah received her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University for her work on the role of the cerebellum and the primary motor cortex on the time scales of consolidation of motor memory. She received the prestigious Siebel Scholars Award for outstanding work in the field of technology and engineering. Her research was published in the Journal of Neuroscience, Journal of Neurophysiology, and Cerebral Cortex and she has lectured internationally on her work. She received her undergraduate degree from the Johns Hopkins University in 2002 and prior to pursuing her PhD, she worked as an engineer for Medtronic XOMED. Sarah enjoys ice skating and teaching aerobics.

Tong Zhang, Ph.D., Chief Operating Officer

Tong Zhang’s role in IMP has evolved over the years from Family member in House Porodica to the founding Director of the Technology Service to member of the Board of Directors. In 2011, Tong joined IMP as staff. As the Chief Innovations Officer, Tong recruited, trained and supported Directors to provide programs, services, and infrastructure development for the organization. As the leader of this “IMP think tank”, Tong developed innovative resources that have not only benefited IMP, but have also created a positive ripple effect in the Baltimore community. In her role as the Chief Operating Officer, Tong is working to codify the IMP model to enable further scaling and replication of the program at future sites. In recognition of her work, Tong received the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award, Johns Hopkins University Diversity Recognition Awards and was invited to speak at Ignite for a Better Baltimore. She received her Ph.D. in Immunology from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine for her work in creating novel vaccines against gynecologic cancers with recent research being published in the scientific journal Vaccine. She is also a contributing writer to the Association of Women in Science Magazine. Tong’s teaching experience extends to English immersion classes for adults and biology for high school students. She received her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry from the University of Washington. Tong enjoys swimming, hiking, and rock-climbing.

Lea Ferguson, Site Director of ACCE-JHU Homewood IMP Site

Lea Ferguson has a background in education and public policy, with particular interest in educational equity and associated social justice issues. Prior to joining IMP, Lea served as Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff for Baltimore City Public Schools. In that role, she assisted in the development and implementation of a wide variety of district reform priorities, including turnaround proposals for the district’s lowest performing schools, expansion of school choice, & increasing district office performance and efficiency. She has previously worked for the Open Society Institute-Baltimore supporting Education & Youth Development programs as well as Criminal & Juvenile Justice programs. Lea began her career in education as a high school social studies teacher and Teach for America corps member in Baltimore City. Lea holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy and an MA in Teaching, both from Johns Hopkins University. As an undergraduate at the University of Southern California, she earned a BA in political science with a French minor.

Marquett Burton, Site Director of Dunbar-JHU East Baltimore IMP Site

Marquett Burton became very interested in the way young African American males view education and formal economy employment after working in Juvenile Services in an Oakland, CA courthouse. While earning his bachelors in Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley, Marquett became a George A Miller scholar to undertake research on the historical development of African American attitudes toward public education. Additionally, he ventured into the field of linguistics, using a Critical Discourse Analysis methodology to analyze the attitude of mainstream hip hop music toward formal/informal economy work and work identities. Marquett was a 2009 Teach For America Baltimore Corp. member and taught 6th grade social studies at Booker T. Washington Middle School. He has also played a critical role in establishing a mentoring partnership with Union Baptist Church to provide his students with technological training and resources, college readiness field-trips, mentoring and tutoring. Marquett holds a Masters in the Arts of Teaching from the Johns Hopkins School of Education and has served as a Mayoral Fellow in the office of the CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools. Most recently, Marquett founded HobbyBuddy.org to bring people together to do the things they love.

Kathleen Lee, Program Director

During the past five years, Kathleen Lee's contributions as a volunteer have been critical in IMP's evolution from a student group to a thriving non-profit. As a Family member in House Aile, GrandParent of House Rodzina, co-founding Director of the Academic Affairs and SAT Preparation Programs, founding Director of the Health Service, and creator of two annual reports she has exemplified IMP’s core values. Following completion of her medical degree (expected in May 2012) from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Kathleen will pursue a career in social innovation with a focus in education. Kathleen has received the Princeton University Joseph Clifton Elgin Prize, the Albert Schweitzer fellowship and the Johns Hopkins SOURCE Award for her service to the community. Her work in purification of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase and patient safety has also been published in the American Journal of Transplantation and Protein Science. Kathleen holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering with minors in Material Science Engineering and Engineering Biology from Princeton University. Prior to joining IMP, Kathleen served as the Coordinator of the Princeton University - GetSET Program, an after-school program for elementary school students in Trenton, NJ. She enjoys badminton, camping, and playing the electric base.