Meet your Consultant

Lara’s Bio

Lara Quiroga, MEd is the President of Larksparre Consulting LLC with more than 25 years of experience working with nonprofits in the education, health, and social services sectors. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from Granite State College and her Master of Education degree from Southern NH University. Lara has received specialized training in Implementation Science (University of New Hampshire Institute on Disability), Community Health Advocate Management Program (UCLA Anderson School of Management), and the Situational Leadership Model (Blanchard). Lara is an approved trainer for New Hampshire Health & Equity Partnership Diversity & Cultural Competence training. Lara has extensive experience in strategic planning, program management, nonprofit board development, and grant writing. She has particular expertise in early childhood development and learning, family support, and adverse childhood experiences.

Lara is a results-oriented professional with an established record of cultivating strong cross-sector relationships, leading cross-disciplinary teams, and managing change efforts to promote organizational effectiveness and efficiency. With experience in leadership, project management, systems-building, and strategy development, Lara has provided strategic planning, grant writing, nonprofit board development, and needs assessment support to myriad organizations including those focused on out -of-school-time programming and camps, homelessness prevention and intervention, health and wellness, education, job readiness, immigration, early childhood development, higher education, and violence prevention.

Lara began her career as an early childhood teacher and administrator in Head Start, Early Head Start, and child care programs. She moved into higher education serving as adjunct faculty and the Community Outreach Coordinator at Southern NH University School of Education, then as Tufts University’s Office of Institutional Research & Evaluation’s Reaccreditation Coordinator and Office of the President’s Communications & Project Administrator. In 2013, Lara joined Amoskeag Health, a Federally Qualified Health Center and Center of Excellence for Culturally Effective Healthcare, transitioning her career to focus on child and family-serving system coordination and improvement efforts. As Director of Community-Integrated Health and Wellbeing, Lara led Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children’s Health) and its collaborative efforts to improve outcomes for young children. With partners from local law enforcement and domestic violence victim services, she developed the Adverse Childhood Experiences Response Team (ACERT), a program that has gained regional and national attention for its innovative approach to supporting children exposed to trauma and violence. Lara was also responsible for developing and overseeing initiatives to achieve the organization’s and broader community’s strategic goals such as Community Schools, Preschool Development Grant, child abuse and neglect prevention, developmental screening, school-based health and behavioral health, and adolescent sexual health education. She has also led efforts to improve NH’s early childhood system, educated policymakers on a variety of health and education topics, and shared her expertise at local, state, and national conferences.

Lara has more than 15 years of experience leading nonprofit boards. She served on the NH Children’s Trust Board of Directors for 9 years, including 3 years as Chair, the Manchester Community Resource Center’s Board for 5 years, including 3 years as Vice Chair, and the Board of NH Hunger Solutions for 2 years. Lara currently holds leadership roles as the President of the Concordia Lutheran Church Council and Secretary of the Board of Directors for Friends of Aine Center for Grieving Children and Families. Lara is also a member of the City of Manchester Office of Youth Services Advisory Board and the Greater Manchester Chamber’s Leadership Greater Manchester Alumni Steering Committee.