Bonnie Lou Raagas Mallonga, PhD is the Chief Operating Officer and Education Director of the 1199SEIU Future of America Learning Center (FALC), a nationally accredited learning institution. She has served as FALC’s Education Director for more than two decades; supervising teaching and administrative staff and facilitating FALC’s diverse, research-driven professional development. She also created the eclectic “Plant-A-Dream” curriculum model that connects children to the real and natural world and cultivates curriculum content that is meaningful to young children, relevant to society, and anchored on the formation of values among all stakeholders.

Dr. Mallonga has held managerial positions at Montessori schools and directed workshops and seminar presentations at the Archdiocese of New York and Bank Street College. She has presented both in the U.S. and abroad on such topics as mentoring and peer coaching, curriculum and organizational development, and child advocacy. With prior experience in psychometrics and counseling psychology, Dr. Mallonga was trained at the Washington Montessori Institute and is a New York State-certified educator and administrator.

Active in the community, Dr. Mallonga is the Co-Chair of the Bronx Early Childhood Education Consortium (BECEC), which was formally established as part of Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz’ initiative to build an influential structure that better fosters and supports education in the Bronx, from “cradle to career.” She currently serves as Advisory Board Member of the DOE’s Transition to 3K and an Early Learning and Curriculum Development presenter to both public and private school teachers in New York City. Under her leadership, FALC and its Plant-A-Dream curriculum was selected as the Pre-K Showcase of New York City, the first and only community-based program chosen in 2014. Her numerous awards include the National Women’s Achievement Award, Leadership Award, Golden Heart and Service Award.

It has been Dr. Mallonga’s career commitment to ensure that those who teach and influence our children have the opportunity to achieve higher learning, develop their skills and perfect their craft through their participation in a system that fosters lifelong learning, continuous improvement and community collaboration.