Alicia Garcia has dedicated over 25 years to the field of education, beginning her career as a high school English teacher. After 16 years in the classroom, she transitioned to roles that further support student success, including high school English instructional coach, UIL academic coordinator, and district secondary ELAR curriculum coordinator. Currently, Alicia serves as a Texas Tutoring Content and Partnership Manager with the Texas Education Agency where she provides expert guidance on HB 1416, the HB 1416 Ratio Waiver List, high-impact tutoring, accelerated instruction, and supplemental content review.
Alicia holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Texas A&M University-Victoria and a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Texas A&M University-College Station. She and her husband, Jorge, are proud parents of two grown daughters, Laurynn and Lindsey.

Alyssa Piermarini is an ELA/Literacy Content Support Specialist at the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), where she supports statewide early literacy initiatives, with a particular focus on early literacy high-dosage tutoring. She contributes to the development of guidance, resources, and technical assistance to support districts in delivering effective, equitable tutoring models and ensuring high-quality literacy instruction across the Commonwealth. Prior to this role, Alyssa was an elementary school assistant principal, literacy coach, and teacher. She is passionate about equitable early literacy and ensuring all students learn how to read.

Amy Counts is the Director of Curriculum Projects at the Arkansas Department of Education, where she supports statewide initiatives focused on high-quality instructional materials and High-Impact Tutoring. With 22 years of experience in education across four states, she has supported students and educators at all grade levels. Her work centers on translating research into scalable, evidence-based practices that strengthen instructional quality and accelerate student learning statewide.

Andrew Shachat is a Senior Director at Watershed Advisors, an organization focused on scaling solutions that match the size and scale of the biggest challenges in American education. His team helps state governments and their partners to advance K-12 state education systems that clearly define what learners need, measure impact, and hold leaders accountable. His policy expertise spans state assessment and accountability systems, supporting school improvement at scale, high-impact tutoring for accelerated student learning, and fostering innovations in school choice.

At Watershed, Andrew has supported leaders across several states to develop new assessment and accountability systems. Before joining Watershed in 2021, Andrew served as the Director of Accountability Policy and Analytics at the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) where he oversaw the implementation and communication of the state’s K-12 accountability system. He also previously supported the strategy development and analytics behind the LDOE’s vision for school improvement in lower-performing schools as well as Louisiana’s state charter authorization program. Andrew is based in New Orleans, LA.

Anna is a senior program officer for the Education Program at the Walton Family Foundation where she manages strategy and grantmaking focused on state policy implementation and national advocacy.

Before joining the foundation, Anna was chief operating officer for ConnCAN where she worked with a coalition of advocacy organizations in Connecticut to execute legislative campaign plans. Prior to ConnCAN, she was the legislative director for American Federation for Children. Before joining AFC, Anna was the vice president of external affairs for The Center for Education Reform.
She received her B.A. in political science from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Arts in public policy from American University.

Breana Pitts is a strategic leader with extensive experience in project management, procurement, and driving organizational improvements. In her current role as Systems and Strategy Manager at District of Columbia Public Schools, she has successfully managed cross-functional teams to ensure the delivery of high-quality curricular resources for DCPS students and teachers.

A proud graduate of Howard University with a B.A. in Journalism, Breana is deeply committed to fostering equity and excellence in education, using her leadership to drive meaningful and sustainable change.

Breckan Duckworth serves as the Executive Director of Opportunity and Gap Closure for Hamilton County Schools in Chattanooga, TN. In her current role, Duckworth oversees the district’s tutoring, RTI, PreK, and summer learning programs. Her background is in teaching English, and has led district-wide reading initiatives for Hamilton County Schools and Dallas Independent School District. Duckworth earned a master’s in Educational Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Britta Tremblay is a Product Leader with nearly 15 years of experience driving innovation and growth within the edtech sector. Most recently, as Vice President of Product at Littera Education, Britta led the platform’s evolution from an idea to a comprehensive K-12 tutoring solution, scaling the business to support district and state organizations nationwide. She has helped transform the platform into a market leader in data management and analytics.

Previously, Britta held key leadership roles at PowerSchool and Schoology, where she was instrumental in navigating the rapid shift to remote learning during the pandemic. She directed the strategy for LMS consolidation following PowerSchool’s acquisition of Schoology and led the vision for critical development verticals, including mastery solutions and standards-based gradebooks.

Recognized for her industry leadership, Britta Co-Chaired the 1EdTech OneRoster committee to deliver the OneRoster 1.2 specification and Co-Founded the Accelerate DATAS Standard to bring data standardization to the world of tutoring. She specializes in data integration, interoperability, and building high-functioning, autonomous teams that deliver outstanding products.

Cameron White is a Senior Partner at NewSchools. He leads a team that invests in learning solutions designed to improve K-8 reading and math outcomes. These efforts aim to benefit millions of students who are furthest from educational opportunities, specifically targeting students of color, those experiencing poverty, and students with learning differences.

Cameron has over 10 years of experience at the intersection of racial and socioeconomic equity, student learning, and technology development. During this time, Cameron has supported more than 100 early stage education technology ventures, through philanthropic capital as well as strategic feedback and guidance related to equitable student impact, research-based product design, fundraising, and sustainable growth. Cameron was on the founding team at co.lab, an accelerator focused on game-based learning. He began his career at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School in Washington, DC, helping to align out-of-school time offerings with the school’s academic and social missions.

Cameron earned an M.A in Instructional Technology and Media from Teachers College at Columbia University, where he completed his master’s thesis on ed tech equity. He holds a B.A. in Architecture from Princeton University, with his undergraduate thesis focusing on environmental design and early childhood development. Cameron has co-authored several publications on topics such as leveraging research for product enhancement and impact measurement, and prioritizing equity in the development of educational products. He has been a speaker at SXSWedu, iNACOL, and SOCAP.

Outside of NewSchools, Cameron is a yoga teacher specializing in accessibility and trauma-sensitive yoga practices. He teaches in schools and juvenile detention facilities.

I’m an education and EdTech leader with over 15 years’ experience designing and scaling impactful learning experiences across diverse educational and cultural contexts. My work focuses on translating evidence-based pedagogy and learning science into engaging, scalable solutions that deliver meaningful outcomes for learners at scale.

I currently serve as Chief Learning Officer and Director of AI Learning Design at Third Space Learning, where I lead the strategic development of the company’s AI-powered maths tutor. In this role, I’ve driven a major organisational shift from live human tutoring to scalable, automated learning delivery. I define the pedagogical framework and learning architecture behind the AI tutor, ensuring it reflects strong academic principles, ethical AI practice, and a deep understanding of how students learn. I work closely with product, engineering, and
data teams to translate educational theory into practical AI behaviours, conversational models, and adaptive learning flows informed by cognitive, metacognitive, and affective science.

Previously, I led learning impact, academic standards, and quality assurance across Third Space Learning’s global tutoring programmes. This included scaling tutor quality systems, designing training and evaluation frameworks, and partnering with academic researchers, including UCL Knowledge Lab, to explore how one-to-one tutoring interactions can be analysed and supported through technology.
I began my career as an international educator and school leader, teaching and leading curriculum across the UK, USA, Africa, Europe, and Asia. I hold an MPhil in Psychology and Education from the University of Cambridge, and my work continues to sit at the intersection of pedagogy, cognitive science, and educational innovation.

Cat Peretti has tutored students for more than 20 years, and her experiences personalizing learning to improve outcomes have fueled her career in education policy. After earning her law degree, Cat was an analyst at the US Department of Education focused on grants management during the Obama administration. She then served as the Director of Policy and Accountability at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School.

In 2015, Cat became the Executive Director of My School DC, the common application and lottery for the District’s public school options. Under Cat’s leadership, the lottery program operated with precision as the number of participating families and schools steadily increased. Now, nearly all schools serving grades PreK-12 have opted in to use My School DC, and 75% of families with students in DCPS or DC public charter schools have used the lottery system for school access. In 2019, she and her team won the Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation award for innovation in the DC government.

Cat brings keen strategic judgment, strong operational skills, a commitment to educational equity and access, and a deep set of relationships with DC’s educational leaders to the role leading CitySchools Collaborative. She oversees strategy development and overall execution for CitySchools Collaborative.

Celena has 20 years of experience in education, which she leverages at Education First to guide district and state leaders in strengthening the teaching profession. Celena coaches a core team at the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education at the Arkansas Department of Education as part of the CCSSO-IMPD collaborative, guiding the state’s instructional materials strategy and designing models to support education preparation program quality and access to pathways in the state. She also spearheads the National Teacher Workforce Funder Community of Practice and recently led the Curriculum Literacy Learning series to support Teacher Transformation Centers in their work to integrate high-quality instructional materials into teacher preparation coursework and residency experiences. Previously, Celena was a Partner at TNTP, where she led a wide range of efforts to implement robust strategies for strengthening academics, talent management and school environments in Arkansas and Louisiana.

Courtney is the Vice President of Impact at the Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation. She has spent two decades as a non-profit executive and philanthropic advisor. Prior to the Foundation, Courtney was the Executive Director of Women Moving Millions (WMM), an international community of philanthropists representing over $500 million in grantmaking in support of gender equity. Previous to WMM, she helped establish the New York office of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, where she launched the Foundation’s women’s rights reporting site and initiated the first Trust Conference with the International Herald Tribune. Courtney holds an MSc in Gender, Development, and Globalisation from the London School of Economics and a BS in Anthropology and Government from Millersville University.

Dave Stevenson is the Founder and CEO of Reading Futures, which provides virtual adolescent literacy and dyslexia tutoring in public schools. Reading Futures’ certified teachers help profoundly struggling readers in grades 4–12. Grounded in a strong evidence base, compassion, mutual commitment, and collaborative school partnerships, the program builds functional literacy so students can access grade-level content and future opportunities.

Dave was an early employee at Wireless Generation, then a senior executive at Amplify, where he worked across product development, research partnerships, communications, corporate development, government relations, and sales management. He led multiple state-level K–3 reading screening initiatives serving more than one million students annually and, as Executive Vice President, helped establish Amplify as a leader in high-quality instructional materials.

Dave has served as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Whiteboard Advisors, on several corporate boards, and on the parent advisory board for his children’s DC Public School. He began his career as a Technology Director in schools in New York City and Paris and later worked in product and project management at Scholastic. He holds an A.B. from Brown University and an MBA from Quantic.

David Weinstein is the Founder and Executive Director of Joyful Readers. His parents will tell you that he entered kindergarten claiming he would never learn to read, but by 2nd grade he was voraciously consuming Goosebumps books faster than R.L. Stine could write them. David attended public schools his whole life, and is a graduate of the College of New Jersey, where he could often be found working in the college’s tutoring center. In 2007, he moved to Philadelphia to do a year of AmeriCorps service with City Year, spending a life-changing year working at Kensington High School. That 1-year program turned into a 15-year career, with David ultimately managing all of City Year’s school-based services. In 2021, David founded Joyful Readers to support Philadelphia students and make sure they could become confident, successful, and yes, joyful readers. Today, he oversees high-impact reading tutoring for 1,150 students across 22 Philadelphia elementary schools.

Amanda Neitzel, Ph.D., is an assistant research professor and deputy director of evidence research at the Center for Research and Reform in Education. She is also Director of Research of ProvenTutoring, a coalition of evidence-based tutoring providers. Her research interests include research synthesis, evidence-based education, and research use. She has expertise in experimental designs and quantitative data analysis. Dr. Neitzel has served as primary methodologist on several research syntheses examining interventions and approaches for primary and secondary literacy, as well as elementary mathematics. These reviews delve into tutoring in particular and explore under what conditions tutoring is most effective. She has coordinated research efforts on randomized trials of school-based interventions and served as Research Manager on an IES-funded evaluation of a computer-assisted tutoring intervention for elementary-aged children struggling to read. Prior to joining CRRE, Dr. Neitzel was an elementary teacher in Massachusetts and Japan, and was a Peace Corps volunteer in South Africa.

Antoinette S. Mitchell, Ph.D. is the State Superintendent of the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), which is the state education agency for the District of Columbia. Prior to serving in this role, Dr. Mitchell was the Assistant Superintendent of Postsecondary and Career Education. In that role, she oversaw college readiness and financial assistance, adult literacy and youth reengagement, and career and technical education.

Dr. Mitchell previously served as dean of the School of Education at Trinity Washington University. Prior to her work at Trinity, she was the vice president for unit accreditation with the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Dr. Mitchell has also served as a research associate in the Education Policy Center at the Urban Institute, a non-profit research group in Washington, DC. She began her career as a secondary social studies teacher at Hine Jr. High School in Washington, DC. She currently serves as a DC College Access Program board member, a member of the DC Workforce Investment Council and commissioner on the DC Serve Board. Dr. Mitchell holds a doctorate and master’s degree in education from the University of California, Berkeley. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Columbia College, Columbia University. She is a former Holmes Group Scholar and Institute for Educational Leadership Fellow.

Ashley A Grant, PhD, is a Senior Researcher in the Center for Research and Reform in Education (CRRE) at the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Education. She specializes in advanced quantitative methods, and her current research focuses on the evaluation of education programs from pre-K-12. She has also published research on teacher turnover, school climate, and Restorative Practices. Before beginning her doctoral study, Ashley taught 5th grade in urban Catholic schools in Philadelphia, PA through Alliance for Catholic Education at Saint Joseph’s (ACESJU) program.

Dr. Ayesha Hashim is a Senior Research Scientist at NWEA. She studies policies that shape educational opportunity and achievement, including the integration of technology with instruction, school choice and accountability, teacher professional development, and COVID recovery. Dr. Hashim draws on interdisciplinary frameworks and mixed methods to study policy impacts in school systems and to surface the organizational and implementation conditions that explain observed outcomes. She is deeply committed to developing reciprocal partnerships with researchers, policymakers, and education leaders. Her work has been published in Education Finance and Policy, Economics of Education Review, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, Computers and Education, and American Journal of Education.

Brittany Miller is the Chief Innovation Officer & Executive Director of the Center for Outcomes Based Contracting, where she leads efforts to transform educational partnerships through outcomes based contracting. Under her leadership, the Center has expanded from four pioneering districts to 87 agencies across 25 states, impacting over 44,888 students and establishing a model where at least 40% of provider payment depends on student outcomes. An early innovator who helped develop some of the nation’s first OBCs while at Denver Public Schools, Brittany brings both practitioner experience and strategic vision to scaling the Center’s impact. She holds a doctorate in curriculum studies and teaching from the University of Denver and enjoys SCUBA diving and snowboarding in her free time.

Chenglu is an Assistant Professor interested in learning analytics, artificial intelligence in education, and educational data mining. He has published a number of papers in journals such as Computers and Education, British Journal of Educational Technology, International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, IEEE Transactions in Learning Technology, Interactive Learning Environments, Distance Education, and Journal of Educational Computing Research. Chenglu also has industry experience as a full-stack engineer and has led several successful educational & commercial applications.

Dr. Christina Grant is the Executive Director of the Center for Education Policy at Harvard University. Prior to joining Harvard, Dr. Grant was the State Superintendent of Education for the Office of the State Superintendent of Education. Dr. Grant has extensive experience overseeing the operations and finances of school systems. Dr. Grant is a seasoned leader and manager with two decades of experience overseeing complex budgets, accountability systems, and policy and politics across several organizations. Dr. Grant’s leadership is grounded in the belief that diversity and inclusiveness is more than just a phrase but the cornerstone set of advancements needed to truly transform public education and our world. Dr. Grant served as the Chief of Charter Schools and Innovation for The School District of Philadelphia. In this capacity, Dr. Grant managed a complex organization, working closely with the Superintendent of Schools and the President of the Board of Education and the Mayor’s Chief Education Office. Dr. Grant’s career began as a public school teacher in Harlem; since then, she’s held numerous roles in education, including as Superintendent of the Great Oaks Foundation and Deputy Executive Director at the New York City Department of Education. Dr. Grant has a doctorate in education with a focus on organizational leadership from the University of Pennsylvania; two master’s degrees: one in organizational leadership from the Teachers College of Columbia University and one in teaching and adolescent reading from Fordham University; and a bachelor’s degree from Hofstra University.

Dr. Claire Hagen Alvarado is the Director of Literacy First, a flagship program of the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin, which accelerates early reading development in English and Spanish through evidence-aligned high-impact tutoring. A strategic and systems-focused leader, Claire brings deep expertise in multilingual literacy, instructional design, and organizational development across traditional public and public charter schools, district leadership, nonprofits, and state-level policy settings. She earned her Doctorate in Education Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, completing her residency at the Texas Education Agency as the Statewide Early Childhood Fellow. Claire previously served as the EC–12 Language Arts Supervisor for the Austin Independent School District and holds a Master of Education in Language and Literacy Studies from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a proud educator and parent, raising two bilingual children in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Jorge.

Dr. Colby Self currently serves as a Director, Texas Tutoring Supports at the Texas Education Agency (TEA), a position he has held since June 2021. With more than twenty-four years of experience in education, Dr. Self previously led Caldwell Elementary School in Pflugerville ISD as principal from July 2012 to June 2021. His background includes serving as assistant principal, as well as beginning his career as an athletic trainer and educator.

Dr. Self earned a Ph.D. in School Improvement from Texas State University, a Master’s degree in Secondary Education, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Stephen F. Austin State University. Dr. Self is certified by the Texas State Board as an educator, holding teaching credentials at both the elementary and secondary levels, as well as principal and superintendent certifications.

“Dr. Daniel Hamlin serves as Oklahoma’s Secretary of Education, appointed by Governor Kevin Stitt in October 2025. In this role, Dr. Hamlin leads statewide efforts to strengthen educational opportunity, align workforce and education systems, and support innovation across PK-12 schools. A nationally recognized education policy scholar, Dr. Hamlin has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed studies, book chapters, and research reports. His research has appeared in the nation’s leading journals, including the American Educational Research Journal, Sociology of Education, Educational Policy, Urban Education, and the Journal of Criminal Justice. His work has also been featured in the Wall Street Journal, NPR, Forbes, and NBC.

Dr. Hamlin is also a Presidential Professor of Education Policy at the University of Oklahoma, Director of the Oklahoma Center for Education Policy, Editor-in-Chief of the Oklahoma Education Journal, and a Research Affiliate at the Program on Education Policy and Governance at Harvard University. At the University of Oklahoma, Dr. Hamlin has received multiple honors, awards, and grants, and earlier in his career was awarded for Excellence in Teaching at Harvard University. He holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Toronto.

Dr. Hamlin is committed to building an education system that serves as the great equalizer—one that unlocks individual potential, expands freedom, and ensures that every student has the opportunity to thrive.”

David has a background in educational psychology and a passion for helping students experience school success. At ServeMinnesota, he focuses on accelerating research into practice via high-impact service from AmeriCorps, including the Reading and Math Corps tutoring programs. He loves collaborating with researchers and practitioners around the country to improve educational experiences of students and teachers.

Elizabeth Ross serves as the Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning (TAL) at the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) where she is proud to lead OSSE’s work to ensure that all DC students have the opportunity to excel by setting high standards, providing robust supports for educators and holding schools and school systems accountable. Prior to joining OSSE, Elizabeth served as the Vice President and Managing Director of Teacher Policy at the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). Before her time at NCTQ, Elizabeth worked at the US Department of Education on myriad equity-focused teacher quality initiatives. Elizabeth began her career as a third-grade teacher at Simon Elementary School in Washington, DC. She holds a B.A. from Georgetown University, an M.A.T. from American University, a J.D. from Villanova University School of Law, where she was a public interest fellow, and an Ed.M. from Harvard University Graduate School of Education, where she was a Zuckerman Fellow. Elizabeth also teaches US Legal Research, Analysis, and Writing at Georgetown University Law Center and Education Law and Policy at American University.

My journey in early literacy began in 1998 as a paraprofessional in SFUSD and evolved into teaching Spanish bilingual Special Day Classes, where I discovered the transformative power of foundational literacy for students with learning differences. I used targeted, small-group instruction and experiential learning to build a literacy-rich classroom, recognized as a model by the Director of Special Education. Since joining OUSD in 2013, I’ve served as a teacher coach, TSA, Assistant Principal, Literacy Coordinator, and now Director of Early Literacy, leading curriculum implementation and supporting educators across the district. My work is grounded in a deep belief that literacy is a pathway to freedom and equity. As a parent of three, including a neurodivergent child, I am committed to ensuring that all students, especially those who need explicit, systematic instruction, can thrive as readers and writers, both professionally and personally. I advocate for high-quality, evidence-based literacy instruction that empowers every student to succeed.

Dr. Janice K. Jackson is a nationally recognized education leader and speaker, currently serving as Executive Director of the Education & Society Program at the Aspen Institute. She previously led Hope Chicago, providing debt-free college pathways for students and families, and served as CEO of Chicago Public Schools, where she managed a $7 billion budget and oversaw record-breaking gains in achievement and graduation. A proud South Side native and CPS alumna, Dr. Jackson holds advanced degrees from Chicago State University and theUniversity of Illinois at Chicago and continues to shape education through her leadership and board service.

Dr. Jason Godfrey is the Managing Director of Data & Information Systems at Accelerate, joining by way of appointment with Harvard University’s Strategic Data Project. As a researcher, he has consistently transformed intricate, disorderly data into actionable recommendations backed by clear metrics for assessing progress. His research takes a pioneering look at linguistic practices within education, leveraging NLP tools on custom-crafted datasets of student essays to discern which semantic and lexicogrammatical features are most rewarded by their host institutions. This research offers significant value for post-secondary policymakers, empowering them to recognize and adapt the linguistic functions indoctrinated by their institutions.

Dr. Jenna Chiasson serves as the Louisiana Department of Education as Deputy Superintendent of Teaching and Learning. During her tenure in this role over the last six years, Dr. Chiasson has led support for educators and families through the pandemic that minimized learning loss and led to student growth in NAEP in both reading and math for Louisiana’s approximately 800,000 students. She has collaborated with policy makers, industry partners, and education leaders to transform early literacy and math instruction across almost 200 school systems. Prior to joining the Department, Dr. Chiasson served as Executive Director of Teaching and Learning for Jefferson Parish Schools, the largest public school system in the state of Louisiana. Dr. Chiasson earned a Bachelor of Science in English Education from Nicholls State University, a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, Reading Specialist from Nicholls State University and a Doctorate in Education Administration from the University of New Orleans.

Jens Ludwig is the Edwin A. and Betty L. Bergman Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago, Pritzker director of the University of Chicago Crime Lab, and co-director of the University of Chicago Education Lab. He helped found the Crime Lab and Education Lab to work closely with the public sector to help solve major social problems, as a sort of “R&D partner” for government. His research has been published in leading peer-reviewed scientific journals and has been cited in national news outlets such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, NPR and PBS News Hour. He is a non-resident senior fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institute, an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, and author of “Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence” (UChicago Press, 2025) which was named one of the New Yorker’s best books of 2025.

Dr. Jimmy Leak is the Director for Accountability, Research, and Evaluation for Guilford County Schools in Greensboro, North Carolina. In his role at GCS, Jimmy serves as the leader of several research practice partnerships and grant funded evaluations with researchers and organizations across the country. Jimmy has led the buildout of data systems and worked with researchers doing tutoring evaluations of GCS’ tutoring program since 2021. Jimmy also currently serves as the President of the North Carolina Association for Research in Education (NCARE). He has a Ph.D. in Education Policy and Social Context from the University of California, Irvine and a B.A. in Political Science and Public Policy from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Go Tar Heels!

Joseph Reilly, EdD, is an assistant research scientist with the Center for Research and Reform in Education (CRRE) at Johns Hopkins University. His professional background and academic interests are focused on educational psychology, teacher development, special education, and program/curriculum evaluation. At CRRE, Reilly specializes in mixed methods evaluations of K-8th instructional interventions in reading and mathematics, and also leads the department’s Foundational Research Unit, which specializes in producing scholarly literature reviews, practitioner-facing best practices briefs, and ESSA Tier IV evidence portfolios for both curriculum developers and school districts. At SOE, he also serves as an Instructor and Adjunct Professor in the JHU Master of Science in Education Program in partnership with Teach for America and The New Teacher Project. Prior to joining CRRE, Reilly served as a middle school teacher in the Baltimore City Public School District.

Joshua Marland is the Managing Director of the National Tutoring Observatory, a collaborative effort between Cornell University, MIT, and Carnegie Mellon University to build research infrastructure that is unlocking deeper insights into the science of tutoring and teaching nationwide. 

Josh has held a variety of data and research roles in his almost 20-year career in education. Prior to joining the NTO, Josh led the Data Funders Collaborative, a philanthropic effort to invest in modernizing the data and technology infrastructure in the social sector. He also led the business development and data strategy teams at Education Analytics for six years, and was a Fellow for Teacher and Leader Effectiveness at the Regents Research Fund with the New York State Education Department under Race to the Top. 

He has a Ph.D. in Research, Educational Measurement, and Psychometrics from UMass Amherst, a Master’s in Urban Education Policy from Brown University, and a Bachelor’s in Public Relations from the University of Florida. He’s an alum of the Strategic Data Project at the Center for Education Policy Research. He lives in central New York with his partner and their scruffy terrier Jack.

Dr. Matthew P. Steinberg serves as the Managing Director of Research and Evaluation at Accelerate. In this role, Matthew develops Accelerate’s research agenda, drives the design and evaluation of research projects funded via Accelerate’s annual Call to Effective Action and States Leading Recovery grant program, leads research partnerships with Accelerate’s institutional partners to drive a coordinated research agenda, and identifies and communicates key research findings internally and externally to the field. Prior to joining Accelerate, Matthew was an Associate Professor of Education and Public Policy (with tenure) and Director of EdPolicyForward at George Mason University. Matthew’s research has addressed issues of educational significance at the intersection of the economics of education and education policy, including educator evaluation and human capital; accountability and urban school reform; education finance; and school safety and student discipline. Matthew’s work aims to inform local and national policy discussions on the impact of educational policies and practices on teacher effectiveness and the educational outcomes of students, particularly the most disadvantaged among the population. Matthew’s research has appeared in leading education, public policy and economics journals. A recipient of the National Academy of Education/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship, Matthew received his PhD in public policy from the University of Chicago. During his tenure as a doctoral student, Matthew was an Institute of Education Sciences Pre-Doctoral Fellow with the University of Chicago Committee on Education, a researcher at the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research and a Mathematica Policy Research Summer Fellow. Prior to graduate school, Matthew was an investment banker and a New York City Teaching Fellow.

Dr. Melina Uncapher is the founder and CEO of SETA-ED, and a former university professor of educational neuroscience, most recently with labs at Stanford and UC San Francisco. She was a co-founder and Chief of R&D of AERDF, one of the premier education R&D nonprofits in the US. Uncapher has over two decades of experience in scientific research, technology development and engineering, data science, and data privacy and security. She brings together educators, researchers, and developers to co-create transformative solutions to problems of practice using rigorous science-of-learning insights and the wisdom of educators. Her academic publications have been cited over 4000 times, and are highlighted in outlets including the New York Times, PBS, and Frontline; her science outreach work includes a Script Supervisor role on PBS’s ‘The Brain’, and an award-winning short film about the brain. She founded a multi-university network funded by the National Science Foundation to study how executive function skills develop in real-world classrooms and co-founded a science-for-good nonprofit that equips educators and students with practical tools based on learning science. She was also funded by the National Institutes for Health to study how technology use is associated with developmental changes in student cognition. She earned her PhD in Neurobiology from the University of California, Irvine and completed postdoctoral fellowships at Stanford University.

Michael A. Cook, PhD, is the Data Analytics Manager at the Center for Research and Reform in Education (CRRE) at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Cook has been at CRRE for more than 6 years and has participated in more than 80 program evaluations. He oversees all quantitative program evaluation activities across the Center and specializes in quantitative research design, statistical methods, ESSA/WWC efficacy evidence criteria, and data management.

Michael Crouch is a Senior Program Officer with the Walton Personal Philanthropy Group where he works on K–12 education grantmaking and state-level education strategy in Arkansas. His work focuses on education policy, accountability, and the use of research and data to inform decision-making across public and philanthropic sectors.

Previously, Michael worked with the Walton Family Foundation’s national K–12 education team and with the Office for Education Policy at the University of Arkansas. He has served as a Visiting Fellow at the Clinton School of Public Service. Michael holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Harding University, a Master of Public Policy from Pepperdine University, and a PhD from Vanderbilt University. Michael is married to his wife of 15 years, Sarah Crouch, and they have three children.

Nancy J. Nelson, Ph.D., NCSP, is an Assistant Professor of Special Education at Boston University and Deputy Director of the National Center on Improving Literacy. Dr. Nelson is a former special education teacher and school psychologist. She has been a principal investigator on over a dozen federally funded projects to develop and test the efficacy of reading and math interventions for students with or at risk for learning disabilities. Dr. Nelson regularly works with state, regional, and local education agencies to provide technical assistance related to the effective implementation of assessment and instruction in multi-tiered systems of support.

Nancy Madden, PhD is a professor at the Center for Research and Reform in Education at the School of Education at Johns Hopkins University. She is also CEO of the Success for All Foundation which develops, researches, and disseminates educational programs to increase achievement, particularly for disadvantaged students.

Madden graduated from Reed College in 1973, and received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from American University in 1980. Since 1980, she has worked at the Center for Research and Reform in Education (CRRE) and earlier centers at Johns Hopkins University, where she has directed the development of the reading, writing, tutoring, language arts, and mathematics elements of Success for All, a comprehensive school reform program.

An expert in literacy and instruction, Madden is the author or co-author of many articles and books on cooperative learning, tutoring, prevention of need for special education, and education of disadvantaged students, including Effective Programs for Students at Risk (Allyn & Bacon, 1989) and Two Million Children: Success for All (Corwin, 2009). Current research interests include computer-assisted tutoring strategies, effects of vision services on achievement, and comprehensive school reform.

Nancy Waymack is the Director of Partnerships and Policy for the National Student Support Accelerator and SCALE at Stanford University. Most recently she has served as a senior program officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and an education policy consultant. Prior to joining the Gates Foundation, Nancy was the Managing Director of District Policy at the National Council on Teacher Quality. Nancy spent a decade at the San Francisco Unified School District, where she served as the Executive Director for Policy and Operations. Prior to moving to San Francisco, Nancy was the Assistant Budget Director at the District of Columbia Public Schools and an elementary school teacher in Houston.

Dr. Neal Finkelstein is Vice President, Economic Mobility and Postsecondary Systems at WestEd. Among Finkelstein’s responsibilities are developing research and evaluation designs that study the impact of program implementation in K–12 public schools, postsecondary education, and workforce development. For his entire career, he has worked with school districts, state education agencies and community partners to build research studies using combinations of existing data and primary data collection. He has always focused on efficiency in the research process and looked to increase options for valid and reliable measurement as reasonable cost.

To this end, Finkelstein has ensured that evaluation designs feature high standards of evidence and operationalize the implementation of randomized field trials when possible. His areas of expertise include K–12 school finance, academic preparation programs for high school youth, math education, school-to-work, and early childhood education.

Finkelstein served as Director of Educational Outreach Research and Evaluation for the University of California Office of the President. He implemented research and evaluation designs that studied the effectiveness of K–12 student and school academic programs initiated by the University of California on 10 campuses throughout the state. These programs emphasized the connections between K–12 education and postsecondary education opportunities for students.

In the late 1990’s, he served as Senior Program Officer for the National Research Council and, as such, supported the Committee on Education Finance in the investigation of equity, adequacy, and productivity considerations in the financing of American K–12 public education. Before that, Finkelstein was Assistant Director of Policy Analysis for California Education and Research Associate at the National Center for Research in Vocational Education

Finkelstein received a BA in economics and psychology from Swarthmore College and a MPP, MA, and PhD in education policy and management from the University of California, Berkeley.

Dr. Robin Jacob is a Research Professor at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan and a faculty Co-Director of the Youth Policy Lab. She has over 20 years of experience conducting randomized trials and quasi-experimental evaluations of social interventions, in a variety of different contexts. Her evaluations have targeted a wide range of outcomes including literacy, math, and social-emotional competencies, executive functioning skills, and health related outcomes and have included evaluations of federal initiatives, programs developed by nonprofit organizations, as well as those developed by for-profit service providers. Her work has been funded by the Institute for Education Sciences, the National Science Foundation, and numerous private foundations. She received a PhD in public policy from the University of Chicago.

Shaunté Duggins, Ph.D., is a dynamic leader with experience leading and implementing initiatives at the intersection of research, policy, and practice. As Director for State Initiatives at the UF Lastinger Center for Learning, Shaunté provides leadership for the New Worlds Reading Initiative and the Florida Tutoring Advantage Program. She oversees the development and execution of research to improve learning outcomes and ensures operational excellence. In her previous role as Senior Manager of Literacy Initiatives, Dr. Duggins facilitated professional development for hundreds of early learning and Pre-K-12 educators in the areas of literacy and coaching. She excels in building and maintaining partnerships with stakeholders across policy, business, and philanthropy to advance program development and ensure positive impact for children, families, and educators. Shaunté completed her doctoral studies in Special Education with an emphasis on early literacy and teacher education. Her research includes early literacy, family literacy engagement, and professional development.

Steven M. Ross is Research Professor, Interim Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs, and Executive Director at the Center for Research and Reform in Education at Johns Hopkins University. He is currently the inaugural recipient of the Robert E. Slavin Endowed Professorship and serves as Interim Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs for the School of Education. Dr. Ross is the author of six textbooks and over 140 journal articles in the areas of educational technology, at-risk learners, educational reform, extended learning time programs, and research and evaluation. He is a noted lecturer on school programs and educational evaluation, Editor Emeritus of the research section of the Educational Technology Research and Development journal, and a member of the editorial board for four other professional journals. He was the first faculty recipient of The University of Memphis Eminent Faculty Award for teaching, research and service, and held the Lillian and Morrie Moss Chair of Excellence in Urban Education and a Faudree Professorship at The University of Memphis. In 2019, he was awarded the prestigious Michael Spector Career Achievement Award from the Association of Educational Communications and Technology. He has testified on school restructuring research before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Youth, and Families, has been a consultant to the National Science Foundation on project evaluation design, and is a technical advisor and researcher on current national initiatives regarding the evaluation of out-of-school learning, STEM instruction, technology integration, and social-emotional learning.

Dr. Yvonne Kao is a Senior Director of Learning Sciences and Technology at WestEd. She is experienced in using quantitative and qualitative methods to study the impact of programs in K-12 education, focusing on mathematics, computer science, and the design and implementation of educational technology. Her research uses a range of approaches from nationwide cluster-randomized trials to smaller behavioral studies. She also leads user experience research, program evaluation, and provides technical assistance on instructional design and student assessment. Dr. Kao has a PhD in Psychology from Carnegie Mellon University and a BS in Computer Science, Mathematics, and Psychology from the University of Wisconsin—Madison.

Greg Chojnacki (Master of Public Policy, M.A. Economics, University of Michigan), is a Senior Researcher at Mathematica. Over the past eight years, Mr. Chojnacki has contributed to more than 20 evaluations examining the impacts and implementation of tutoring and education technology interventions, including more than a dozen partnerships with Accelerate grantees. He has also authored three syntheses of emerging evidence on tutoring and other personalized learning innovations in math and literacy, two of them in partnership with Accelerate and one for the Gates Foundation. The most recent of these syntheses, developed in partnership with Accelerate, highlights insights from the 2024-25 Call to Effective Action grantee cohort.

Mr. Chojnacki is an expert in the design of rapid-cycle evaluations, with more than a decade of experience tailoring rigorous experimental and non-experimental evaluation methods to build high-quality evidence rapidly. More broadly, his evaluation experience includes 15 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and numerous quasi-experimental studies in education, workforce development and nutrition. He has provided thought partnership and evaluation expertise to numerous school districts as well as a range of philanthropic and government partners including the Gates Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, and the U.S. Department of Labor. He has pioneered the use of advanced techniques such as Bayesian impact analysis that can provide more accessible, actionable conclusions to inform decision making in service of students and families. He has also contributed to approaches to actively incorporate community members’ insights when building and interpreting new evidence on education innovations.

After a long career at McGraw-Hill Education that included roles in sales, marketing, education policy and general management, Jeff formed EdSolutions in 2015 as a vehicle for focusing education innovation, investment and philanthropy on underserved students, scaling proven innovations to reach the students who will benefit most from them. Today, EdSolutions help organizations to find impact through the markets for education goods and services primarily via: Ecosystem Maps, Target Product Profiles, Go-to Market Strategies and other customized consulting services.

The Center for Education Market Dynamics, currently in incubation with Cambiar Education with support from major philanthropic organizations, will be a trusted source of market intelligence for the education sector. Better Market Intelligence will lead to clearer market signals between customers, users and providers. This is expected to result in better targeting of innovation to areas of greatest potential impact.

Jeff holds a baccalaureate degree in Government from Harvard University. He has served as a director of the Association of Educational Publishers, the Association of American Publishers- Education Division, the Software and Information Industry Association, The Harlem Educational Activities Fund, UnBoundEd Learning, New Meridian, LaborX, Yenko and Allhere. Jeff currently lives in Atlanta with his wife, Sahily Artiles, a naturalized American citizen and certified Spanish/English court interpreter.

Jennifer Kumi Burkett is a visionary leader and educational strategist dedicated to advancing equitable and high-impact STEM learning for all students. As Senior Director of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics for the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), she guides district-wide initiatives to strengthen math and STEM instruction, promote teacher development, and expand opportunities that support student success across diverse communities.
With deep expertise in mathematics leadership and curriculum strategy, Jennifer has been at the forefront of designing and implementing systems that elevate teacher practice and student outcomes. She leads efforts to integrate data-informed approaches, equity-centered supports, and collaborative partnerships that drive measurable progress in student achievement. Jennifer also champions high-impact tutoring, professional learning for educators, and community engagement strategies that strengthen the collective impact of DCPS’s math and STEM work.
Her career reflects a commitment to educational excellence, inclusive leadership, and sustainable innovation in public education. Jennifer’s work not only shapes instructional practice within DCPS but also contributes to broader conversations about equitable STEM education and systemic change.

Jennifer Wise, Ed.S., serves as Assistant Director of the Florida Tutoring Advantage at the University of Florida Lastinger Center for Learning. An instructional leader with 27 years of school and district leadership experience, she is dedicated to strengthening teaching and learning to improve outcomes for all students. In her role, Wise oversees the design, implementation, and evaluation of the statewide tutoring program, cultivates partnerships with districts and vendors, and advances continuous improvement through data-informed planning and collaborative support to ensure the program’s success across Florida.

Jess Sobin is the High-Impact Tutoring Program Manager at the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), which is the DC state education agency. In this role, she leads OSSE’s three-year initiative to expand access to HIT for at least 10% of DC students, with a focus on those who are furthest from opportunity. Before joining DC government, Jess worked for global education organizations, and began her career as a middle school teacher in New York City.

Driven by the knowledge that every child can learn to read and that there is a proven way to teach them, Jessica co-founded Ignite Reading to deliver that instruction at scale. Early in her career, she served as assistant principal of Success Academy Charter Schools and a literacy specialist at The Urban Assembly. Jessica co-founded and was chief academic officer and chief product officer of LightSail Education, an adaptive literacy software company, and was CEO of
Open Up Resources, a national nonprofit focused on increasing equity in education. Her work has been featured in the documentary films The Lottery and The Right to Read, and she is the author of the children’s book Cancer Hates Kisses (Penguin, 2017). Jessica loves yoga, traveling, and reading with her daughter.

John Bailey is a cross-sector leader, investor, and operator helping organizations harness emerging technologies to expand opportunity and advance human flourishing. He currently serves as an Advisor to Fiore Ventures, a Fellow at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. Across these roles, his work spans healthcare, AI, science, education, and the future of work.

Over the past two decades, John has worked across the public, private, and philanthropic sectors, serving as a White House domestic policy advisor, Deputy Policy Director at the U.S. Department of Commerce, and Director of Educational Technology at the U.S. Department of Education. He has shaped and executed investment strategies for major philanthropies and venture funds, supporting founders and innovations that deliver meaningful and measurable impact.

John advises technology companies and investors on their AI strategies and serves on advisory boards for Trustible.ai, the FPF Center for Artificial Intelligence, Jobs for the Future, the Tech Talent Project, and the XPRIZE Brain Trust. He also serves on the boards of Zearn Math, U.S. Digital Response, American Policy Ventures, the Just Trust, and the Federation of American Scientists. Recognized by Washingtonian magazine as one of Washington’s Most Influential People in Policy for four consecutive years, John has also served as an advisor to four presidential campaigns.

John Scianimanico is an Associate Partner on the Learning Solutions team, where he leads a portfolio designed to enhance math education through investments in generative artificial intelligence.

Prior to NewSchools, John served in the Connecticut State Department of Education and Governor’s Office, deploying over $50 million to accelerate student postsecondary success, mathematics achievement, and summer learning in the wake of the pandemic. During this time, he launched the Connecticut High-Dosage Tutoring Program in over 40 public school districts serving thousands of students. His prior professional experiences also include roles with Teach For America, Arnold Ventures, and the 2020 Pete For America presidential campaign.

John graduated from American University with a BA in Political Science and from the Harvard Kennedy School with an MPP.

John-Paul Smith is the founding Executive Director of Education Corps, a nonprofit established in 2020 to advance educational excellence through community engagement and high-impact tutoring. Since 2021, Education Corps has recruited, trained, and coached over 1,300 tutors who have served more than 24,000 K-5 students in-person, at school, during the school day across 240+ elementary schools in rural, suburban, and urban North Carolina.
Education Corps earned a National Student Support Accelerator Program Design Badge in 2024 and an Accelerate-funded, Youth Policy Lab-conducted randomized control trial found that students receiving Education Corps-supported high-impact tutoring gained an additional 1.8 months of literacy growth compared to peers receiving other intervention support during the 2024-2025 school year.
Smith has worked in nonprofit and public sector organizations focused on civic engagement and economic development throughout his career, including the United Way of the Greater Triangle, NC Institute for Emerging Issues, and NC Governor’s Office. In 2016, he served as an Aspen Institute Franklin Project Ambassador. He holds a B.A. in History from Elon University, an MBA from UNC-Chapel Hill, and an MPP from Duke, and he resides in Raleigh, NC with his wife and their golden retriever.

Jon Schnur is the Chief Executive Officer of America Achieves — a national nonprofit organization that partners with local communities to create Good Jobs Economies across the country. For more than a decade, America Achieves has incubated effective and promising initiatives in education, workforce development, and economic development, convened dozens of foundations and organizations, and advanced federal and state policy priorities designed to
impact economic mobility at scale.

Jon has extensive experience in nonprofit, government, and philanthropy. Jon co-founded New Leaders for New Schools, served as its CEO from 2000 until 2011, and now sits on its board. Since 2011, Jon has served as Bloomberg Philanthropies’ lead outside advisor on education and skills. During the Clinton administration, Jon served as President Clinton’s Associate Director for Educational Policy, as a Senior Policy Advisor on Education to Vice President Gore,
and as a Special Assistant to U.S. Secretary of Education Dick Riley. He also served as co-chair of education policy for Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign and as a senior advisor to the Obama transition team and the U.S. Secretary of Education. Jon has served on the Visiting Committee to the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the Aspen Institute’s Jury for their Prize for Community College Excellence, and as a member of the Markle Foundation’s Rework America Task Force. Jon is also a current board member for Accelerate. Jon is a proud Wisconsinite and currently resides in Montclair, New Jersey.

Jorge Elorza is Chief Executive Officer of Democrats for Education Reform. He served two terms as mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, where he undertook bold actions to reform city government. This included taking the unprecedented step to engage the state Department of Education to turn around the city’s chronically underperforming school system, creating the city’s Eat, Play, Learn Initiative to expand out-of-school enrichment, and launching a nationally recognized African American Ambassador Group to bring Black leaders into the center of policymaking. Notably, he invested $400 million into repairing school buildings, and supported the expansion of high- quality public charter schools.

Born and raised in Providence, Mayor Elorza is a graduate of Classical High school, the University of Rhode Island, and Harvard Law School. Prior to being elected Mayor, he was a Legal Aid attorney, he served as a Providence Housing Court Judge, and he co-founded the Latino Policy Institute while he served as a professor at Roger Williams University School of Law. Mayor Elorza lives with his wife, Stephanie, and his son, Omar, in Providence.

Kara Hamilton is the Director of Tutorial Programming for Guilford County Schools, where she leads the implementation of the district’s homegrown high-dosage tutoring program. In this role, she oversees program design and operations and collaborates on research partnerships that strengthen evidence-based practices and improve student outcomes. Prior to joining GCS, Kara worked in the education nonprofit sector, supporting statewide advocacy efforts, strategic communications, and professional learning for educational leaders across North Carolina.

Kevin Huffman is the founding CEO of Accelerate, a national initiative that seeks to embed high-impact tutoring and personalized learning in public schools. Prior to helping launch Accelerate, Kevin was a partner with City Fund, a philanthropic nonprofit, where he supported the efforts of local leaders in cities across the country working to create great public schools for all children. Kevin is the former Tennessee commissioner of education, where he managed the state department of education in its effort to advance the academic progress of nearly one million students. During his tenure, Tennessee had the largest state gains on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Kevin began his education career as a first- and second-grade bilingual teacher in the Houston Independent School District. After attending law school, Kevin represented school districts, state departments of education and universities, working on policy and litigation matters at the Washington D.C. law firm of Hogan & Hartson. He then joined the senior management of Teach For America in 2000, serving as the general counsel, the senior vice president of growth strategy and development, and the executive vice president of public affairs. Kevin has written opinion columns for a range of publications including as a regular contributor to the Washington Post. He won the Post’s national writing competition to find “America’s Next Great Pundit” in 2009. Kevin graduated from Swarthmore College with a B.A. in English Literature, and from the New York University School of Law.

Kirsten Baesler is the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education at the U.S. Department of Education. Guided by the wellbeing of children, she is committed to working with families and states to provide each child with what they need to reach their highest levels of success. Kirsten is a passionate advocate for developing young people as citizens who have respect, courage, compassion, integrity, a sense of responsibility, and appreciation of the unique nature of this great nation.
Previously, she served as the state school superintendent and the administrator of the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction. There, she oversaw the education of students in 168 school districts and 54 nonpublic schools across the state. Kirsten and her team led significant improvements in the graduation rates and academic success of the state’s Native American students, improved access to personalized learning choices for students and their families and led the nation in computer science and cybersecurity instruction in grades K-12.
Before taking office in January 2013, Superintendent Baesler had a 24-year career in the Bismarck public school system – the state’s largest school district – as a vice principal, districtwide technology integration specialist, library media specialist, elementary teacher, and instructional assistant. She has served on more than a dozen boards, including the Education Standards and Practices Board, the Career & Technical Education Board, the Teachers’ Fund for Retirement Board, and the Board of University and School Lands, which manages state land holdings and oversees a $7+ billion trust fund to benefit North Dakota’s public schools.
Baesler earned two associates’ degrees from Bismarck State College, a bachelor’s degree in education from Minot State University, and a master’s degree in library and information technology integration from Valley City State University and has completed a certificate program in Educational Leadership at Harvard University. She has earned the Valley City State University’s Distinguished Alumni Award and the Rising Star Award from Bismarck State College. Superintendent Baesler is a native of Flasher, N.D. She lives in Washington, D,C., and has three adult sons, a daughter-in-law, and three granddaughters.

Liz Cohen is the vice president of policy at 50CAN, a national nonprofit education advocacy organization. She previously served as assistant professor of the practice in the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. Cohen has worked at the district, state, and federal level in education and served as a consultant for nonprofit organizations, ed tech companies, and foundations in the education sector. A fierce believer in the promise of public education for all children, Liz spends her down time reading, playing Boggle or mah jongg, and baking challah. She lives in Montgomery County, Maryland with her husband and three children.

Lucy Brainard, Director, Portfolio Success & Operations, leads and manages the vision, goals, strategy, and execution of the Foundation’s Portfolio Success team, equipping grantees with the capacity-building supports they need to achieve cost-effective impact at scale through a tiered support model.

She previously worked at TripAdvisor as the Social Impact Program and Events Coordinator, where she provided coordination for employee giving and volunteer initiatives, including communicating with and developing new tools and resources for employees and nonprofit partners. Lucy also oversaw the planning and execution of Global Volunteer Month for 3,500 employees in 34 international offices, including the TripGives Ambassador program. In 2012, she founded Orkeeswa’s Angels, a social enterprise that employs 150 local Maasai women in Tanzania to make beaded angels, jewelry, and ornaments, with all proceeds covering school fees for students at Orkeeswa Secondary School.

Lucy received a B.A. in International Affairs from Northeastern University. In her free time, Lucy enjoys watching and playing sports, experiencing new food and places, and spending quality time with her close friends, family, and dog, Juno.

Margie Roberts is the Chief Academic & Services Officer at Chapter One, where she leads the organization’s instructional vision, curriculum design, research, and impact accountability for high-impact early literacy tutoring nationwide. With deep expertise in the science of reading, instructional coaching, and adult learning theory,
Margie guides the development and continuous improvement of Chapter One’s K–5 literacy model to ensure rigorous, equitable, and measurable outcomes for students. In her role, she oversees grant-funded research initiatives, instructional fidelity, data collection, and reporting—translating findings into practical refinements that strengthen tutoring practice and student outcomes.
Throughout her career, Margie has designed and scaled evidence-based curriculum frameworks, professional learning systems, and accountability models that strengthen instructional quality and drive student growth. Prior to joining Chapter One, Margie held senior leadership roles across NYC Public Schools and charter networks, where she led large-scale professional learning for educators, developed culturally responsive instructional systems, and supported district-wide literacy and teacher development initiatives. Her work has been featured at national conferences, including Learning Forward and ASCD.
Margie holds advanced degrees in Educational Administration and Elementary Education, is a New York State certified school and district leader, and is bilingual in Spanish. She is passionate about ensuring that early literacy instruction—especially tutoring—is both research-grounded and human-centered, unlocking reading as a fundamental civil right for all children.

Melanie is the Vice President of High-Impact Tutoring at ExpandED Schools. Before working at ExpandED Schools, Melanie worked at Achievement First as the Director of 5-8 Math Innovation, where she spent three years developing, implementing, and scaling a culturally responsive middle school math program across a network of schools. Prior to Achievement First, Melanie spent ten years at the NYC Department of Education, where she worked as a special education teacher; a central office leader who helped lead citywide implementation of the common core standards and engaged schools in collaborative action research and learning; and as a middle school assistant principal. For the past 4 years, Melanie has served as the Vice President of High-Impact Tutoring at ExpandED schools leading the NYC Public Schools pilot high-impact tutoring initiative in which they have served over 15,000 students across the city. Melanie holds a Master of Social Work degree from Boston University, a Master of Special Education from Brooklyn College, and a Master in Educational Leadership from Baruch College. Melanie has a passion to serve the needs of the whole child. Throughout her professional career she has found ways to utilize her skills as a social worker and educator to advance students academically and social emotionally.

Michael K. McKenna has spent the last 20 years working in education and currently serves as the Head of Program for Once. In this role, he supports districts and schools to ensure strong implementation of the organization’s early literacy curriculum.
In 2015, Mike founded Memphis Delta Prep, a tuition-free, open-enrollment K–5 public charter school serving students in South Memphis. His vision centered on equity and highly effective teacher development. Under his leadership, the school established robust student intervention systems and maintained zero suspensions or expulsions for five consecutive years, in contrast to statewide averages for similar schools.

Before launching MDP, Mike worked with Jounce Partners, a nonprofit dedicated to accelerating teacher development through high-frequency coaching. As the first Jounce School Leadership Fellow, he coached leaders and teachers across twelve urban schools in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., studied high-performing schools nationwide, and received extensive training as an instructional leader.

Mike began his career teaching 8th-grade math at the Soulsville Charter School in Memphis, where he also served as grade-level chair, athletic director and, math department chair. He later joined KIPP Philadelphia as an 8th-grade math teacher and assistant principal and completed the national Miles Family Fellowship for emerging KIPP school leaders.
A Philadelphia native, Mike graduated from Princeton University with a degree in sociology, earned his teaching license through Princeton’s teacher preparation program, and holds a Master of Education from Christian Brothers University.
Mike lives in Midtown Memphis with his wife, Elza, and their four children—Sage, Foster, Waverly, and Ronan. He is driven by a belief in people, a commitment to daily growth, and the joy of helping others find happiness.

Michael Thomas Duffy is the president of the GO Tutor Corps, which has a mission to provide students with access to a quality education through high dosage tutoring. Previously he worked at the NYC Department of Education under Chancellor Joel Klein, working for three years in the administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg to help expand the number of high-quality charter schools in New York City. Michael’s efforts in education grew out of his work in the civil rights movement, having served as the Chairman and Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ civil rights enforcement agency, a position he held for six years. During that time he testified before Congress several times and appeared at a White House conference on matters relating to the enforcement of civil rights laws. Michael has also held leadership positions in the non-profit sector: he served on the Board of Directors of the Human Rights Campaign, for several years as its co-chair; two terms on the Vestry of St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in Manhattan; and is currently chair of the board of the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts. Michael has a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he wrote his thesis on business support for child day care and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Trinity College in Connecticut with a degree in Economics. For the past 14 years Michael has been an adjunct professor at NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service where he teaches courses on leadership and management in the public and non-profit sector.

Mora Segal is a Managing Director at A-Street. She is also the co-founder and Senior Advisor of Leading Now, an organization that supports superintendents and system leaders to navigate political complexity and strengthen public trust as they advance their commitment to all students. Mora is a board member of Acelero Learning, Latinos for Education, America Achieves, Xello, and the Eli and Phyllis Segal Citizen Leadership Program.

Previously, Mora was the CEO of Achievement Network (ANet), a national organization dedicated to ensuring students in marginalized communities have access to high-quality instruction. Under her leadership, ANet supported thousands of K-12 schools nationwide with data-driven instruction, instructional leadership coaching, and the implementation of curriculum, assessment and professional learning systems.

Prior to ANet, Mora held leadership roles at College Summit (now PeerForward) and SchoolSports (which became ESPN-Rise). She resettled refugees as an AmeriCorps member, and served as a Coro Foundation Fellow and a Pahara-Aspen Fellow. Mora received her MBA from Harvard Business School and her BA from Yale University. She resides in Newton, MA with her husband and two daughters.

Narric Rome serves as Managing Director of Federal & State Policy at Accelerate. In this role he works to advance Accelerate’s federal and state policy agenda and build effective partnerships with education stakeholders.

Prior to joining Accelerate, Narric was the Vice President of Government Affairs at Americans for the Arts where he led education policy initiatives for the creative sector focused on strengthening equity in public school, and out-of-school settings, and managed over 20 major fly-in events on Capitol Hill. At the state level, while at Americans for the Arts, he led a multi-year, multi-state grant program helping to advance the policy goals for ten state advocacy organizations. Narric also served as a legislative aide to Secretary Richard Riley at the U.S. Department of Education where he received the Peer Recognition Award.

Over the course of two decades, Narric led advocacy efforts impacting the No Child Left Behind Act, the Every Student Succeeds Act, and pandemic-era assistance programs. In 2019, Narric and his team were recognized by the Public Affairs Council with their Lobbying Strategy Innovation award.

Narric holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Vermont and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from Columbia University. He and his family live in Annapolis, MD.

With a background in data analytics, business intelligence, and higher education, Nico serves as the Data and Reporting Manager for the Florida Tutoring Advantage, administered by the UF Lastinger Center for Learning. He has led workshops and panels to demonstrate the benefits of data and reporting tools for student assessment, curriculum development, and marketing strategies. In his current role, Nico manages relationships between the Florida Department of Education, districts, and tutoring partners to maintain the Florida Tutoring Advantage data architecture and report the outcomes of high-impact tutoring. His passion is to see systems improve for the greatest benefit of all stakeholders. Holding a master’s degree in business analytics, Nico’s research with Accenture and the USDA developed a model to predict communities with low-income and low-access to viable, healthy food options. Most weekends, you will find him at a farmers’ market, baking bread, or making Neapolitan pizzas for friends and family.

Nicole Carmichael, MPA, has worked in a range of policy areas from education to housing, all with the goal of creating data-driven, equity-centered change. She started her public service career by delivering direct service to housing-insecure people in Washington State. Since then, she has done public impact consulting, program evaluation, worked for the Delaware Governor, and completed the Harvard Strategic Data Project Fellowship. She currently leads strategy and operations for one of the nation’s first statewide integrated data system, which will integrate all data the state of Delaware collects into one secure data warehouse for analytics and policy strategy.

Prior to Arrow Impact, Nora co-led Maslow Development Inc., a non-profit real estate development company that focuses on building holistic community ecosystems anchored by high-quality schools in overlooked communities. Before her time at Maslow, she served as a Coro Northern California Fellow in Public Affairs. Earlier in her career, she was a Teach for America corps member, teaching 7th-grade math in one of San Francisco’s largest public middle schools. Nora holds a BA in International Relations from Stanford University, where she also minored in Economics. She has an MBA from the Wharton School of Business and an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School, with a focus on the intersection between community development and social entrepreneurship. In her free time, Nora loves triathlon training and yoga, hosting game nights, and reading a good book with a cup of black coffee.

Paul Kihn accepted an appointment by Mayor Bowser to serve as the Deputy Mayor for education on October 1, 2018. Mr. Kihn previously served for three years as the Deputy Superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia. As the Superintendent’s second-in-command, he helped lead the system through a significant transformation, including improvements in teacher and principal hiring and development, a transition to common core standards, the promotion of evidence-based innovations in schools and classrooms, a wholesale revision of charter authorizing policies and procedures, and smarter allocation of diminishing resources.

Prior to his work in Philadelphia, Paul supported district and charter turnaround efforts as a partner and a leader of the U.S. K12 Education Practice for the global consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Mr. Kihn is a former New York City public school English teacher and has also taught middle and high school English in Ireland and South Africa. In addition, Mr. Kihn has worked with adjudicated and out-of-school youth.

A Ward 2 resident, Mr. Kihn received a Master’s in Educational Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University, and an M.B.A. from Columbia University. He also holds degrees from Yale College and The University of Cape Town.

Sarah Glover is an executive leader with 30+ years experience in K-12 public education innovation and improvement. 

She most recently served as an in-country executive coach for Rising Academies Liberia, where she provided executive and leadership support to a team of 22. She is co-founder and architect of Outcomes Based Contracting (OBC), which Sarah evolved from a relatively unknown concept in education into a national network serving millions of students. 

Prior to this, Sarah served as a founding executive leadership team member and Vice President of Client Success at Panorama Education. During her tenure, Panorama’s client base and revenue expanded nearly 8 times, and her team achieved over 90% client renewal rates.

Sarah is the founding Executive Director of the Strategic Data Project (SDP) at the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University and was the founding Director of Programs at the Center for Reform of School Systems, where she led in the development of the Texas Institute for School Boards and The Broad Institute for School Boards. 

Sarah is certified in leadership coaching by the International Coach Federation and Brown University. She earned a Master’s in Public Affairs and an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, along with a BA in Political Science from Tufts University. She currently serves on the board of Littera Education and previously served on the Bozeman Public Schools Board of Education. She lives in Bozeman, Montana where she hikes, gardens, skis, and generally loves being in the mountains. She hosts Sunday dinners at her house where everyone is welcome; come by if you are in town.

Sawyer is a product designer, educator, and founder. He has taught storytelling, math, CS and restorative justice to 1,000 students in 13 countries, most recently at a public school in New York City. He was also the founding designer of X1, acquired by Robinhood. Sawyer is now CEO of Goblins, the math teacher cloning device.

Shrutika Sabarwal leads research and evaluation investments at Arnold Ventures, where she works to ensure that policy and program decisions are informed by credible evidence. Her work focuses on supporting rigorous causal research that helps identify what works, informs better policymaking, and strengthens outcomes for families and communities.

She collaborates closely with researchers and policy partners to design studies that are transparent, policy-relevant, and positioned to inform real-world decisions, with an emphasis on expanding the use of high-quality evidence in public investment and practice.

Steve Gornstein is the Strategic Initiatives Specialist in the Content & Curriculum Division at District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). He supports planning, project management, and communications for the district’s High‑Impact Tutoring program, which will serve 4,000 students across more than 50 schools in SY25–26. Steve began his career as a high‑impact tutor with MATCH Charter School in Boston before returning as Match Corps Director, leading AmeriCorps tutors and overseeing instructional coaching and professional development. He later served as a Senior Curriculum Writer at Saga Education, developing math tutoring materials used by Saga Fellows nationwide. A Teach For America DC Region 2011 alum, Steve taught sixth‑grade math at SEED Public Charter School and DC International School. He holds an Ed.M. in Education Policy and Management from Harvard University and a BA in History and Political Science from the University of Michigan. Steve is committed to expanding access to research‑backed academic supports for students furthest from opportunity.

As Senior Director of Program Strategy at CityTutor DC, Susannah Tsien spearheads strategic staffing initiatives and teacher pipeline development while continuing to support DC’s high-impact tutoring initiative. As a DC native with over 14 years of experience in local schools, Susannah is deeply committed to closing the opportunity gap in the nation’s capital.

She began her career as a first-grade teacher at KIPP DC: Promise Academy, where she nurtured her passion for teaching, following her first cohort of students through third grade. Across her nine years as an elementary school teacher, she inspired hundreds of students to love reading and math while mentoring dozens of first-year teachers.

After transitioning out of the classroom, Susannah served as a Regional Math Coach at KIPP DC, where she developed curricula and supported school teams with implementation. As an inaugural fellow on KIPP DC’s DEI Coalition, she collaborated with leaders across the network to drive equity-focused conversations and set agendas that advanced anti-racism efforts.

Susannah holds a BA in anthropology and political science from Bucknell University.

Tim is the former CEO of EdNavigator, a non-profit organization that partners with pediatric healthcare providers to deliver personalized education support to low-income families. Prior to founding EdNavigator, he served for eight years as President of TNTP, where his work focused on recruiting, training, and retaining outstanding teachers. Tim began his career teaching middle school in Baltimore. He holds a masters in teaching from Johns Hopkins University and a BA in American Studies from Northwestern University. He writes The Education Daly newsletter.

Varun Gulati is a co-founder and the CEO of LitLab.ai. LitLab is an evidence-based AI foundational reading platform serving hundreds of thousands of students nationwide. The entire platform is precisely aligned to leading phonics programs including UFLI, Fundations, and CKLA. Students receive joyful, curriculum-aligned oral reading practice with authentic decodables, while educators get precise fluency data. LitLab also provides real-time, curriculum-grounded insights that help teachers adjust their reteach and small-group plans with fidelity to their Tier 1 program. Varun started his career as a public school educator at a charter school in New Orleans, Louisiana. Shortly after leaving the classroom, he co-founded UClass, a “Dropbox for K-12” that grew to thousands of schools nationwide before joining the Renaissance Learning umbrella in 2015. Most recently, Varun was the Head of Product at Mystery Science, helping to grow it into the nation’s most loved and most widely used K-5 science program. He also incubated the Mystery Writing program, based on the pedagogy of The Writing Revolution.

Victoria Hales is a dedicated advocate for educational access in Hamilton County Schools in Chattanooga, TN. She is actively involved in initiatives such as the Impact Fellowship and Literacy First, which focus on high-dosage tutoring to enhance student performance.

With a background in school-based therapy and community non-profits, Victoria has provided therapeutic services in schools and coordinated support for families in crisis. She is committed to addressing academic challenges and improving educational outcomes in her community. Victoria lives in Tennessee with her two sons.