Board of Directors
Telra Institute, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization governed by a board of directors charged with establishing policy, overseeing all activities of the organization, and ensuring adherence to our mission. Learn more about our organization and the members of our board below. Our board meetings and documents are available to the public.
Meet Our Board of Directors
All Board members can be reached at [Firstname].[Lastname] @ telra.org
Dr. Michael Matthews
Chairperson
Michael is a father of three who has volunteered many hours in gifted services in CMS schools and has served on the board of Metrolina Regional Scholars Academy. Michael is Professor in the College of Education at UNC Charlotte, where he directs the university’s graduate programs in gifted education. He has written several books and numerous scholarly articles on gifted education topics, is co-editor of the journal Gifted Child Quarterly, and also provides professional development to teachers and parents on topics related to gifted education, advanced learners, and English Learners.
Dr. Erin FitzPatrick
Director
Erin FitzPatrick is an assistant professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Her research interests include evidence-based writing instruction and practice-based professional development . Her work has been featured in leading education journals such as Contemporary Educational Psychology, Reading and Writing, and Reading and Writing Quarterly. Previously, Erin served as a journalist for the Department of Defense news outlet at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and as a public school teacher for 11 years. She has been licensed as an elementary Reading Specialist. She serves on the editorial boards of Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, Teacher Education and Special Education, and Remedial and Special Education. She also served on the International Literacy Association’s Writing Task Force.
Dr. Tao Hong
Treasurer
Dr. Tao Hong is Duke Energy Distinguished Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering, NCAEC Faculty Fellow of Energy Analytics, and Director of Big Data Energy Analytics Laboratory (BigDEAL) at University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Hong is passionate about K-12 education. He is the leader of Team USA for International Mathematics Competitions, winning three grand championships and more than 30 gold medals. He is the founding head coach of Team Charlotte, a regional mathematics team competing at national math competitions. He is as a mentor of the MIT PRIMES program. He also coaches middle school math teams, while his teams has won championships at both Charlotte Chapter and NC State Finals.
Mr. Sean Strain
Secretary
Sean has more than 20 years of senior leadership in enterprise program and IT portfolio management, combined with 5 years of public school board service, I am deeply committed to advancing public school excellence through strategic oversight, operational transformation, and community-focused governance.
Previously, Sean served on the board of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, the 17th largest public school system in the United States. He served on the Policy Committee all 5 years of his tenure, focusing on budget stewardship, academic and operational program oversight and performance management, and partnering with educators and families to improve student outcomes. That role reinforced Sean's belief that strong governance and meeting the needs of each student as they cross the threshold into the school, are the foundational elements of high-performing schools – balancing innovation, accountability and personalized learning for each student,
Board Meetings
Meeting calendar: The Telra Institute Board of Directors meets roughly every month.
Meeting connection information
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Microsoft Teams (unless otherwise noted)
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Phone +1 980-213-0751,,354316758#
Meeting schedule
Dates/Times: 7/7/26 (4pm), 7/13/26 (1pm), 7/22/26 (4pm), 8/28/26 (7pm), 9/18/26 (5pm), 10/23/26 (7pm), 11/20/26 (5pm), 12/11/26 (7pm), 1/22/27 (5pm), 2/19/27 (7pm), 3/19/27 (5pm), 4/23/27 (7pm), 5/21/27 (5pm), 6/18/27 (5pm)
Public participation: A member of the public may join and listen to a Board meeting. Members of the public wishing to speak must pre-register by emailing us at frontdesk [@] telra.org at least 3 business days prior to the meeting to be added to the agenda. Please include your name, the topic of interest, and the phone number from which you will be dialing in. Each speaker will be allotted 3 minutes, but may be further limited for time, at the discretion of the Chair, if more than 5 speakers have registered. Speakers must address matters that are relevant to the business of the Telra Institute Board of Directors. Speakers diverging from these matters, those divulging personal or sensitive information, those engaging in slander or ad-hominem attacks, those engaging in obscene or vulgar speech or conduct, or speakers inciting violence or a breach of the peace may be warned and/or removed from the meeting
Mr. James Tietjen
Director
Jim is a father to two adult daughters and grandfather to five grandchildren. He is a seasoned Senior Executive, Big 4 Accounting Firm Partner and current Private Equity Partner, with a diverse set of leadership skills. Excellent communicator, relationship developer and innovator --passionate about the need to leverage talent and technology to drive value in an organization. Jim received his MBA in Business from the University of Toledo and is a graduate of the Wharton Executive Development Program.
At Capital One, he was responsible for leveraging "game changing" talent to deliver innovative and high-quality Audit and Security Services to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors. As a Partner with Deloitte focused on the financial services industry, he delivered audit and enterprise risk consulting services--and today serving Arrows Capital Group as a Private Equity Partner, with responsibility for legal and accounting/finance matters.
Throughout his career Jim served in organizations which benefitted children, including as a:
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Board Member and Finance Committee Chair of the Children's Center in Detroit, which focused on children with mental and behavioral health challenges,
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Board Member of the Heart of America Foundation in Washington DC, which sought to provide children with tools and materials to enhance literacy,
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Board Member with the United Way of Charlotte, and
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Tutor to elementary school children in Charlotte as part of the YMCA Y Readers Program and with A Better World, also in Charlotte.