Oak Creek Charter Faculty & Staff
Administration
Charity Zawatski - Executive Director
Charity Zawatski is joining our school family from Upstate New York. Charity is relocating from Brownville, NY with her family and her Great Dane, Jazmine. She has worked in public education for the past 23 years. Charity attended Florida Southern College where she earned a B.S. in Biology with marine science. While traveling abroad for a semester and completing the Semester at Sea program, Ms. Zawatski was inspired to become a teacher and started the MST program at SUNY Potsdam to earn a Master's Degree in General Professional Education to become a teacher. Ms. Zawatski started her career as a French and Science Teacher for eight years before venturing into administration.
At that time, Charity attended SUNY Oswego to earn a Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Administration. She has served as a Reading Coach, Professional Development Specialist, and Teacher Trainer for schools in need of improvement. While in Syracuse, Charity worked in the field with superintendents and administrative teams on both strategic and corrective plans. She also spent much time directly in the classroom coaching and modeling best instructional practices with teachers and students. Ms. Zawatski then transitioned into a school principalship where she has spent the last thirteen years. She has experienced building closures, district restructuring, and much change over that time. She has rebuilt grade-level teams, led and supported inclusive and differentiated instruction. Charity is passionate about being a lifelong learner as she is currently a doctoral candidate through Nova Southeastern University completing her doctorate this fall. Charity has worked at all levels within the UPK-12 realm of education and brings diverse experience to the team and school.
Yesenia Gonzalez - Principal
ygonzalez@oakcreekcharter.org
Mrs. Gonzalez currently holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from the American College of Education (Indianapolis, IN. 2021) and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education (K-6) with an ESOL Endorsement from Barry University (Miami Shores, FL., 2000).
Mrs. Gonzalez started her career in 2000 in the city of Miami-Dade, where she was born and raised. During this time, she has served as a Team Facilitator, as the English Language (EL) Contact and as an elementary and middle school teacher. The 2022-23 school year will be her second year as an administrator and she is honored to be the Principal of Oak Creek Charter.
She is married to Mario Gonzalez, her high school sweetheart of 28 years. They have a twenty-year-old son and a four-year-old daughter. Her favorite activities include spending time with her family and going to the beach.
Mrs. Gonzalez is excited to lead the many talented teachers and students at Oak Creek Charter! Her vision is to establish trust and relationships with parents and all stakeholders in order to give the students what each and every one of them deserve—a top-quality, rigorous education that will prepare them well for success in college and life.
Ronald Renna– Executive Director of Grants and Fundraising
Ron has over forty years of professional experience in K-12 education and has been in the charter school business since its inception in the mid-1990s. He was a former board member of Gulf Coast Charter Academy and has written, opened, and operated over thirty charter schools in Florida.
Ron received a BA degree from the University of South Florida, a master’s degree in Bilingual/Multicultural Education, and an Educational Specialist degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Miami. He is bilingual in Spanish and English.
Ron began his career as a middle school and high school English and social studies teacher in 1977. He has been an elementary, middle, and high school principal for over 20 years. Ron has conducted workshops on finance, budgeting, governance, and start-up procedures. Ron has developed numerous materials to assist schools and has collaborated with schools in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Ohio, Tennessee, Washington D.C., and overseas. Before creating his own school consulting firm, Ron served as Director of Operations in Florida and Georgia for one of the nation’s largest education management companies. In that position, Ron negotiated contracts with various School Boards, opened new schools, and ensured regulatory compliance. Ron has a wealth of experience and knowledge, and we are excited to have him on our team!