Meet Our Board

John Pallasch | Chair

Email: jopallasch@carolusonlineacademy.org

John Pallasch serves as chair of the charter school board. Mr. Pallasch has extensive business leadership experience with more than 20 years in the public and nonprofit sectors. He was presidentially appointed as an assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Labor from 2019–2021. During his time there, he created and implemented the One Workforce initiative; he was instrumental in drafting three significant pieces of the CARES Act and created multiple innovative pilots and new programs in the $1.7 billion Job Corps program. Mr. Pallasch is currently the founder and CEO of One Workforce Solutions in Aiken, whose mission is to facilitate, create, or advance results-driven partnerships across education, the workforce, human services, and economic development.Before his initiatives in the federal government, he was the executive director of the Office of Employment and Training for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Mr. Pallasch earned a Juris Doctor from Pepperdine University School of Law and a BA in sociology from The Ohio State University. He is a current member of the California State Bar and District of Columbia Bar. Mr. Pallasch states, “We need to create multiple pathways and enhanced choice for students and parents to receive the highest education regardless of zip code.”

Dan Martin | Vice Chair

Email: dmartin@carolusonlineacademy.org

Dan Martin serves as the vice chair of the charter school board. Mr. Martin owns Dan Martin Allstate Insurance Agency in Charleston and is the president/CEO of D.H. Martin & Associates, Inc., a personnel staffing and consulting firm. Mr. Martin is the founder and executive director of the YouthQuest Foundation of Mt. Pleasant, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote self-sufficiency and educational success for low-income, at-risk children. Mr. Martin was the town administrator for Awendaw and serves as vice chairman of the Board of Elections and Voters Registration of Charleston County, where he served 14 years as board chairman. He is also a managing partner of Pathway Real Estate Group, LLC. Mr. Martin served in the United States Army for more than 20 years, holding leadership positions in research & development before retiring in 1997 with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Mr. Martin received a BS from Voorhees College in Denmark, South Carolina, and MBAs from Wharton and Chadwick University. He also holds two MAs in military science from Army War College and Command & General Staff College and is a graduate of the executive management course at Harvard.

Kristen Bell | Secretary

Email: kbell@carolusonlineacademy.org

Kristen Bell serves as secretary of the charter school board. Ms. Bell brings nearly 20 years of experience in government affairs and community leadership in legislative, political, communications, and project management to the charter committee. She is currently a K–4 preschool teacher for the Fountain Inn Homeschool Co-op in Fountain Inn. Before this, Ms. Bell served in a variety of political roles, including campaign manager for Grey Mills for lieutenant governor; legislative coordinator and manager, projects and communications for Stateside Associates, Inc.; special projects and field manager for the Republican National Committee; campaign manager for Boylan for North Carolina House; and field director for Patrick McHenry for U.S. Congress. Ms. Bell earned a BA in political science, cum laude, from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and studied Italian language and culture at the Istituto Italiano in Florence, Italy. Ms. Bell says, “As a strong advocate of school choice, I joined the founding board of COA to bring more quality, individualized education options to the families of South Carolina.”

Dr. Bassanya Bryant-Spann

Email: bspann@carolusonlineacademy.org

Dr. Bassanya Bryant-Spann serves as a member of the charter school board. Dr. Bryant-Spann has extensive experience in the field of education. Dr. Bryant-Spann is a certified educator who is currently certified in three states. Dr. Bryant-Spann has the following South Carolina endorsements: Read to Succeed Literacy Coach, Online Teaching, and Read to Succeed Literacy Teacher. Dr. Bryant-Spann is also a National Board-Certified Exceptional Needs Specialist. Additionally, Dr. Bryant-Spann is a certified teacher mentor and evaluator in the state of South Carolina. Dr. Bryant-Spann earned a Baccalaureate degree in Child Development from Claflin University, Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Lesley University, Master’s degree in Special Education from Grand Canyon University, Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Grand Canyon University and Ph.D. in Psychology from Capella University. Dr. Bryant-Spann currently serves as an adjunct professor at Grand Canyon University. This position allows Dr. Bryant-Spann to support future educators as well as mentor novice collegiate professors. Dr. Bryant-Spann’s professional affiliations include SCASA and Council for Exceptional Children.

Dr. Eric Mack | Treasurer

Email: emack@carolusonlineacademy.org

Dr. Eric Mack serves as treasurer of the charter school board. Dr. Mack has more than 20 years of experience in healthcare systems, with expertise in education, budget management, community outreach, leadership, and nonprofit operations. Currently, Dr. Mack is a pastor for the Bethany Baptist Church in Charleston and the enterprise imaging coordinator for the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Mack recently served as the board of trustees chair for the Charleston County School Board, where he led cultural competency efforts and facilitated many cultural competency trainings. Dr. Mack earned a Doctor of Divinity degree from International Seminary in Plymouth, Florida, and his master’s, bachelor’s, and associate’s degrees in Christian education from Andersonville Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Mack’s professional affiliations include the National School Board Association and the South Carolina School Board Association.

Gretchen Dobbs

Email: gdobbs@carolusonlineacademy.org

Gretchen Dobbs serves on the Carolus school board. Ms. Dobbs brings nearly 20 years of experience in education and community leadership through community involvement, leadership, education and development. She currently remains a director for Classical Conversations Greenville where she has educated her own five children for the last 17 years. Ms. Dobbs is passionate about educational opportunities of all levels for all students. She believes in the provision of individualized educational options to all families of South Carolina. Ms. Dobbs has BA from the College of Charleston and remains very active in local education in the Upstate of South Carolina. Ms. Dobbs’ five children have all benefited from being educated at home. The college aged children attend SC universities and are bearing fruit of their home education. 

Crystal Cumbee

Email: ccumbee@carolusonlineacademy.org

Dr. Crystal Cumbee serves as a member of the charter school board. Dr. Cumbee is a military spouse to an active-duty member and has a vast set of experiences with child development and early childhood education, specializing in literacy development for young children. Dr. Cumbee began her career in St. Stephen, SC, teaching Prek, 1st and 2nd grade students before moving into a Reading Interventionist role. Upon completing her doctorate degree, Dr. Cumbee took a position as a technology instructional coach for several years in Berkeley County School District, before moving to Georgia. She spent two years working in the GA public school system before

accepting a position as an Assistant Professor of Child Development at Fort Valley State University, an HBCU in middle Georgia. Dr. Cumbee holds current certifications in SC and GA, and holds literacy endorsements in both states. Additionally, she is a certified mentor and evaluator in the state of SC. Dr. Cumbee’s credentials include a BA in Early Childhood and Elementary Education and an M.Ed. in Divergent Learning, both earned from Columbia College in Columbia, SC. She earned her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Northcentral University in Arizona. Dr. Cumbee’s dissertation research focused on educational technology in rural schools, and she continues working with virtual learning as a full-time eLearning Instructional Designer for a community college in NC and a virtual reading tutor. Dr. Cumbee hopes to gain more insight into the running and administration of virtual schools as she continues to advocate for school choice options for the residents of SC.