Website link

Grijalva Consultancy 

NBC News 

Email

Erin’s Personal Email 

Work Email 

RISE Website 

LinkedIn profile link

LinkedIn

Instagram link

RISE High School

The Avenue of the Strongest 

Video

The RISE Story 

RISE-ing to the Challenge Podcast

RISE 2022

XQ SuperSchool

My Why

Shoutout LA

Voyage LA 

Medium

Link to Spotify

Learning Futures Podcast 

Collocation Partnerships 

Embedded Video

Curiosity Invited 

Donate Today! 

Dr. Erin Whalen, born and raised in Los Angeles, California, serves as Assistant Superintendent of Student Services. He is co-founder of Da Vinci RISE High School and previously served as Executive Director.

Born into a proud Black, Chicano and Indigenous family, Erin found himself enticed by education’s power to provide people with a sense of self that could be leveraged as a powerful force in the world. Erin began his career in education in Miami, Florida through Teach for America. After being nominated Teacher of the Year and serving 4 successful years in Miami, Erin transferred his career in education back home to Los Angeles where he worked at KIPP: Sol in East Los Angeles.

During Erin’s time in Miami, he met his now Son, Sicard, who was within his first English class. Sicard’s story of housing instability sparked Erin’s passion to create a school designed around the intricate needs of youth who are often written out of the education system, foster, probation and unhoused. Erin began putting these ideas on paper alongside Kari Croft to submit to the XQ SuperSchool Challenge. After about a year at KIPP Charter Network, Erin and Kari were announced as winners of the XQ challenge unlocking 10 million dollars to make this dream a reality.

Today, Da Vinci RISE is now a nationally recognized model for serving the most at-promise youth in Los Angeles. During the founding years, Erin served as Assistant Principal and humanities teacher, Principal and Executive Director. He also obtained his master’s in School Leadership from Loyola Marymount University and Doctorate in Social Studies from Grinnell College. Beginning July 1st, 2024, Erin will be serving as the Assistant Superintendent of Student Services of the Da Vinci Schools charter network.

Assistant Superintendent

Erin Whalen