Our Team

Leadership Team

Andrew Roberts

Andrew Roberts

CEO & Chief Content Creator

Andrew Roberts is a lifelong educator—first as a teacher and then as a developer of instructional materials. Andrew began his professional career as an engineer but dreamed of being a teacher. He attended Johns Hopkins University on a scholarship where he earned a Master of Arts in Teaching.

Andrew has experience in teaching both children and adults—both in the inner city and in the Appalachian Mountains—in subjects as varied as reading, science, and mathematics. While teaching in a school for low-income Texas students, he participated in a three-year NSF-funded curriculum-writing project.

Andrew then joined a major publisher and rose to become the head of the Mathematics Department. In 2008, he formed an editorial services company to develop curriculum projects for major publishers. In 2012, Andrew started Sirius Education Solutions to help schools better align their curriculum with how the TEKS are tested in STAAR. Andrew is honored to serve the talented staff of Sirius and is inspired to support Texas teachers in making a lasting difference in students’ lives.

Leadership Team

Randy Merriman

Randy Merriman

President

As President of Sirius Education Solutions, Randy is focused on working with the Sirius team to deliver effective and engaging digital and blended learning products to Texas educators and students. He is dedicated to ensuring that Sirius’s products address the major needs and challenges faced by Texas teachers and administrators, including improving STAAR performance and closing gaps in curriculum and student achievement. 

Prior to joining Sirius, Randy served as the VP, New Media at K12 publisher Holt, Rinehart and Winston, and has held senior positions in eLearning for educational publishers and technology companies including, Macmillan/McGraw-Hill, Follett, and National Geographic Digital Media.

Leadership Team

Claudia Esquivel

Claudia Esquivel

CFO

Claudia Esquivel is the Chief Financial Officer of Sirius Education Solutions. As CFO, Claudia leads the financial direction and strategy for the operation and is responsible for all of the company’s financial functions, including accounting, treasury, and FP&A. Her career spans more than 25 years of experience in financial management, business leadership, and corporate strategy.

Prior to joining SES, Claudia led financial operations in the publishing, wealth management, automotive, and high-tech industries. Claudia holds a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Business Administration from McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. 

Leadership Team

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Charles Jack

Director of Operations & Sales Support

Charles leads the Operations team in pursuit of exceptional outcomes for our customers. Passionate about streamlining processes, enhancing efficiency, and analyzing data, he is dedicated to removing barriers for educators. He actively supports their endeavors to improve STAAR performance and reduce disparities in both curriculum and student accomplishments.

Before joining Sirius, Charles spent over twenty years leading operations, strategy, and professional learning projects at the College Board.

Management Team

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Jim Bruno

Director of Educator Success

Jim Bruno has worked in the field of education and educational technology for nearly 40 years. Originally a professor of World Languages, Jim has always been curious about the role that technology plays in learning, dating back to old analog magnetic tape and the Tandberg reel-to-reel programs that recorded end-users interacting with native speakers of a given language.

Even with 30 years of experience developing educational technology and interactive products beyond a decade of teaching in front of the class, Jim’s greatest passion is all about human beings using educational technology, and he has found the greatest satisfaction in helping teachers overcome their struggles with online learning and instruction.

Management Team

Aaron Sanderson

Aaron Sanderson

Director of Marketing

Before his promotion to Director of Marketing, Aaron Sanderson served as Product Manager at Sirius Education Solutions, leveraging his background in education and product development to craft products that directly served the needs of Texas administrators, educators, and students. Aaron applied his unique insight to transform educational complexities into intuitive, user-friendly solutions. Drawing from his own journey as a Texas teacher, he’s committed to creating products that enable educators to succeed, fostering a positive impact on student achievement.

Sales Team

Nancy Fowler

Nancy Fowler

Director of Sales

As Director of Sales at Sirius, Nancy leads our sales team as they represent Sirius Education Solutions’ digital and print products. Nancy guides the team as they introduce SES’ TEKS-based instructional solutions to prospective customers, as well as collaborating with our customer base to enhance and expand implementations. Nancy also serves on the Executive Team, giving input to the Product Development, Marketing, Customer Support, and Professional Development departments.

Prior to joining Sirius, Nancy served as a Regional Manager for Infinite Campus and has held senior positions in eLearning for educational publishers and technology companies including Houghton Mifflin-Harcourt, Educate Online, Generation Ready, and Apex Learning.

Sales Team

Robert Westhoeffer

Robert Westhoefer

Sales Manager

Robert dreams of sailing the world and playing pickleball—but mostly he’s committed to his passion for helping educators. With over 20 years of experience in education as a teacher, principal, and STEM Director, Robert is dedicated to being a helpful and available resource to Sirius’s school partners. He is focused on fostering relationships that lead to increased student success.

Sales Team

Richard Baxter

Richard Baxter

Account Executive—Regions 7, 8, 9, & 11

As your account executive, Richard strives to build a partnership with your team and considers himself a stakeholder in your students’ success. When you choose Sirius Education Solutions, he feels it is both his privilege and duty to earn the trust placed in him to deliver the high-quality materials and training teachers need to prepare students for success on STAAR. Richard measures his success not in sales, but in the number of times he hears “Sirius Education helped my students feel confident about taking STAAR.”

Sales Team

Angelina Benavides

Angelina Benavides

Account Executive—Regions 1 & 2

Angelina Benavides is the Sirius Education Solutions Account Executive for Regions 1 and 2. She is a certified teacher with over 10 years of experience working in Texas public schools.  Her background includes working with students from Title 1, Economically Disadvantaged, Bilingual/LEP, 504, Special Education, Gifted and Talented, and Dyslexia programs.

Her background includes education, professional development, business, medical, and communications. She is a proud mother of 2 boys and enjoys the outdoors on her time off. She is passionate about promoting early literacy and active lifestyles with our youth as well as supporting charitable efforts within our local communities.

Sales Team

Yoliette (Yoli) Fournier

Yoliette (Yoli) Fournier

Senior Account Executive—Regions 16, 17, 18, & 19

As a Senior Account Executive with Sirius Education, Yoli uses her entrepreneurial experience and background in educational publishing to consult and partner with school districts, school administrators, and educators. As a seasoned sales professional, Yoli provides information about Sirius’s products that improve STAAR scores, move more students to mastery, and close educational gaps.

Sales Team

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Gregory Lerma

Account Executive—Regions 12 & 13

Gregory is passionate about the education of our youth. As an educator, he was continuously looking to challenge his students with innovative and authentic lessons and labs.  Working with Sirius allows him to help his customers meet the needs of their students to be successful on the STAAR Test. 

Sales Team

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Amy Levy

Account Executive Regions 14, 15, and 20

As your committed Account Executive, Amy brings a wealth of experience in Educational Technology to her partnerships with school districts in Regions 14, 15, and 20, supporting Texas students’ success. With a background in education and a native Texan, Amy intimately understands the needs of Texas students, teachers, and administrators. Her goal is to offer tailored solutions that effectively prepare students for success.

Sales Team

Matt Rymer

Matt Rymer

Sales Representative—Region 10

Matt has been in the Educational Publishing business for over 30 years as a Marketing Manager, Sales Manager, and Account Executive. He provides full service, including training and consulting, to the districts in Region 10. His background is in English as a Second Language, and he is fluent in Spanish.

Sales Team

MJ Shannon

MJ Shannon

Sales Representative—Region 4 (Select districts)

MJ represents Sirius Education Solutions to many of the districts in the Region 4 ESC. She strives to serve and help teachers and administrators that are looking for the right solutions to student growth and achievement. MJ majored in Education at Texas A&M University and graduated from Cal State University. She taught in California for 5 years in Bakersfield City Schools and studied to be a Reading Specialist at Cal State Bakersfield. MJ has worked for several different companies helping teachers implement Educational Technology in their classrooms for the last 15 years.  

Sales Team

Michael Rufus

Michael Rufus

Inside Sales Account Executive

Hi, I’m Michael Rufus an Inside Account Executive here at Sirius Education Solutions. I’m a native Texan born and raised in Dallas,TX. I have more than 20 years of EdTech experience. The reason I’ve enjoyed such a long career in this Industry is simple: “It’s all about the kids.” I have a passion for Ed Tech and the self gratification it gives me knowing the small contribution I’m making. I thank Sirius Education for giving me the opportunity to use my skills and talents. In my personal time I love spending time with my family, watching movies. And of course I’m a Dallas Cowboy fan.