Becky Jones

School Director

Becky Jones is the Elementary School Director at Empower College Prep Elementary School (Grades K-8). She started at Empower in 2016 and hopes to remain with Empower for many years to come. She is part of the team that moved our Elementary School from a D to a B on the Arizona accountability report card. She is originally from Texas and graduated with a BA from Texas Lutheran University. She moved to Phoenix in 2006 and obtained her MA in Teaching from Grand Canyon University. She is currently working on her doctoral degree. Becky was the Teacher of the Year at Imagine Camelback where she taught 2nd grade in 2010-11. She has taught all grades K-6th except 4th and has coached cheerleading, volleyball, and baseball. She has also taught in Massachusetts and Ohio. She loves Arizona the best! Becky is a proven leader and manager and she looks forward to taking the elementary school to the next level.

Kimberly Ward

Assistant Principal of Scholar Development

Kimberly Ward attended Arizona State University where she studied Elementary Education. She received her Bachelors of Arts in Education. Kimberly has worked in education for 18 years in Phoenix, Arizona.  Her classroom experience consist of  Middle School Math instruction (7th, 8th and Honors Algebra),  Elementary instruction (2nd, 3rd, 5th and 7th ELA), and an Instructional Coach. As the Director of Curriculum and Instruction,  she aims to serve the scholars of Empower College Prep and their families by establishing and overseeing instruction that yields a strong environment  of educational excellence.

Myrtle De Lara-Rojas

Dean of Curriculum and Instruction

Myrtle De Lara-Rojas grew up in New Jersey and graduated with a B.S. in Accounting and International Business.  Prior to teaching, she has worked as a tax accountant, auditor, and missionary with religious organizations in Ecuador and Tanzania where she discovered her passion for teaching.  Myrtle joined Teach for America in Phoenix where she obtained her certificate and Masters in Education for Curriculum & Instruction from ASU. During her 19 years in education, she has worked in Title 1 schools teaching all content to student grades 2-8 as a general teacher, gifted teacher, and dual-language teacher. She was honored as Rodel Exemplary Teacher Finalist in 2010 and Semi-Finalist in 2014.   She serves as Dean of Curriculum and Instruction at the Elementary and Middle School where her main responsibilities are to select with a team the curriculum/materials used for instruction, and coach teachers to help them reach the goals they have for all scholars.  Myrtle is honored and inspired to work alongside teachers who are passionate about making sure that all students receive an excellent education!

Minette Klenner

Instructional Coach

Minette Klenner joins us for her first year at Empower College Prep!  She is a native Arizonan born and raised right here in Phoenix.  Minette holds her B.A. degree in History, M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction, and her M.A. in Educational Administration.  She is a K-12 certified teacher as well as a certified principal for the state of Arizona.
Minette has over 17 years of experience as a teacher in grades 3, 5, and 6-12, her expertise is in Social Studies, American History, Geography, and Government.
Minette has served on the Arizona Social Studies Council and was a member of the Arizona Department of Education’s board to develop the new Arizona Social Studies Standards. One of the greatest experiences during Minette’s career was to be known as the “travel” teacher at all of her schools and has the opportunity to take her students all over the world from Washington D.C. to Costa Rica to Europe.
Minette has been an instructional coach for the past five years and has had the opportunity to work with teachers in grades K-12.  She looks forward to working with the amazing teachers at Empower College Prep and empowering them to be the best they can be!