About Us
About Us
Our Funders
Staff
Board of Directors
Advisory Board
Employment Opportunties
Board of Directors
Stacey Boyd, Chair
Stacey Boyd is the founder and CEO of The Savvy Source for Parents, which provides education and technology consulting services to non-profits, corporations and government entities, with clients that include the World Economic Forum, the US Department of State and US Agency for International Development. In the spring of 2003, Ms. Boyd concluded a four-year tenure as the President and CEO of Project Achieve, Inc., a company she founded to provide a comprehensive information management system to primary and secondary schools throughout the United States. Prior to launching Project Achieve, Ms. Boyd was the Founding Director and Principal of an inner-city charter school that has consistently been the top performing public middle school in the Boston area since its founding. Ms. Boyd earned both an MBA and Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University and her BA from Hamilton College.
Clara M. Lovett
Born in Trieste, Italy, Lovett came to the United States in 1962 and earned her master's and doctoral degrees in history at the University of Texas, Austin. Dr. Lovett taught at Baruch College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, where she made her mark as a teacher and scholar in the field of Modern European History. During her years in the Washington, D.C. area, Dr. Lovett held national leadership roles as chief of the European Division of the Library of Congress, dean of arts and sciences at The George Washington University, and provost at George Mason University. She lectured at the Foreign Service Institute of the Department of State, wrote for The Chronicle of Higher Education and Change magazine, and participated in national projects for higher education reform. In 1989, she was on Washingtonian magazine's list of most influential women in Washington; in 1992, the Virginia Federation of Business and Professional Women named her Educator of the Year. In October 1993, Dr. Lovett was named president of Northern Arizona University. Most recently, Dr. Lovett served as president of the American Association for Higher Education.
Chester E. Finn, Jr.
Chester E. Finn, Jr. is president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and Thomas B. Fordham Institute and senior editor of Education Next. Dr. Finn is also a Senior Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution and a Fellow of the International Academy of Education and an Adjunct Fellow at the Hudson Institute, where he worked from 1995 through 1998. In his distinguished career, Dr. Finn has also served as John M. Olin Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, founding partner and senior scholar with the Edison Project, Professor of Education and Public Policy at Vanderbilt University, and Assistant Secretary for Research and Improvement at the U.S. Department of Education.
Ira Fishman
Ira Fishman is the Managing Director of the NFL Players Association, and formerly a partner and Chief Operating Officer at Patton Boggs LLP. He previously served as special counsel and director of the Task Force on Education at the Federal Communications Commission and was named the founding CEO of the Schools and Libraries Corporation, a non-profit that provides $2.25 billion annually to K-12 schools and public libraries. In his distinguished career, Mr. Fishman has also served as deputy assistant to the president for legislative affairs at the White House during the Clinton Administration, vice president for congressional and external affairs at the Export-Import Bank of the United States, and founding CEO of HiFusion, an innovative education and consumer media company. Mr. Fishman is currently on the Board of Education Sector.
Marti Watson Garlett
Marti Watson Garlett serves as Vice President, Academic Programs & Professional Licensure at Laureate Education, Inc. Prior to coming to Laureate, Dr.Garlett served as the Founding Dean of the Teachers College at Western Governors University, where she established national programs in initial educator licensure that were approved by multiple states. She also was appointed as Kaplan University's first Academic Dean for its School of Education, as well as the first Dean of the School of Education at Chicago's Kendall College, which has a notable Early Childhood Education program. Dr. Garlett's career emphasis has been centered on inventing new paradigms in teacher preparation for non-traditional candidates wishing to become P-12 teachers, especially through distance learning and online alternatives. Dr. Garlett has written three books and numerous articles and is an in-demand speaker at national conferences. In addition, she has taught on five continents (Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America).
Henry L. Johnson
Henry L. Johnson served as U.S. assistant secretary of education for elementary and secondary education from 2005-2008. He is currently a senior advisor for B&D Consulting in Washington, D.C.

Before joining the U.S. Education Department, Mr. Johnson was state superintendent for education for the state of Mississippi. He also served as the associate state superintendent for the North Carolina Department of Public Instuction. Earlier, he was the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction for both the Johnston County Schools in North Carolina and the Pleasantville School System in New Jersey.

His experience also includes seven years as a science and math classroom teacher, three years as a principal and two years as the director of middle school programs for the Wake County School system in North Carolina. Johnson served for five years as the director of public policy development and research for the North Carolina School Boards Association.

Born in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Johnson was educated in the public schools of North Carolina. He earned his undergraduate degree in biology at Livingston College in Salisbury, North Carolina and a master's degree in science education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 1990 Johnson received a doctorate in school administration at North Carolina State University.

Jason Kamras
Mr. Kamras is the Director of the District of Columbia Public Schools Human Capital Strategy. He taught seventh and eighth grade mathematics at John Philip Sousa Middle School, a District of Columbia public school, and was named 2005 Teacher of the Year. He began teaching in 1996 as a member of Teach for America.

Mr. Kamras was recognized for helping his students make historic achievement gains in one of America's most disadvantaged communities. He was also recognized for co-founding and directing the EXPOSE digital photography program at his school, for which he previously received the Mayor's Art Award, the highest arts honor bestowed by the District of Columbia.

Mr. Kamras graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University in 1995, earning his bachelor's degree in public policy. In 2000, Mr. Kamras earned his master's degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Donald N. Langenberg
Donald N. Langenberg was educated at Iowa State University (B.S.), the University of California, Los Angeles (M.S.), and the University of California, Berkeley (Ph.D.). All his earned degrees are in physics. He also holds honorary degrees from the University of Pennsylvania (M.A. and D.Sc.) and from the State University of New York (D.Sc.). After a postdoctoral year at Oxford University, Dr. Langenberg joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania in 1960, as Assistant Professor of Physics. He held the rank of Professor of Physics from 1967 to 1983, and had a secondary appointment as Professor of Electrical Engineering and Science from 1976 to 1983. In February 1983, Dr. Langenberg became Chancellor of the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), where he also held the rank of Professor of Physics. He is currently Chairman of the Board of Directors of The Education Trust, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Council for Science and the Environment, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of the District of Columbia. Dr. Langenberg is a nationally recognized leader in education issues, particularly K-16 education partnerships and information technology as a revolutionary change agent in higher education. He was appointed chairman of the National Reading Panel (NRP) in 1998 by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The Panel was charged by Congress to study the effectiveness of various approaches to teaching children how to read and to report on the best ways of applying its findings in the classroom and the home. He currently serves as a member of the National Research Council's Committee on the Study of Teacher Preparation Programs in the United States and its Committee on the Enhancement of the Master's Degree in the Natural Sciences.
Barbara O'Brien
Lt. Governor Barbara O'Brien is a long-time advocate for young children and teens and has a history of innovative policy initiatives.

Prior to becoming Lt. Governor of Colorado, O'Brien spent 16 years as president of the Colorado Children's Campaign, a statewide public policy and advocacy nonprofit organization. Her leadership has produced major statewide policy initiatives that increased funding for schools, created charter schools, expanded early childhood education, increased access to health care for uninsured children, reduced teen smoking and expanded after-school programs.

As lieutenant governor, O'Brien has an ambitious agenda for education, health and wellness, and aerospace issues.

Carol G. Peck
Carol G. Peck is currently the President and CEO of the Rodel Charitable Foundation of Arizona. She is working diligently to improve Arizona's education system so that it is widely recognized as one of the best in the country by 2020. As the former Alhambra School District Superintendent for 16 years, Dr. Peck created, developed, and implemented a variety of winning programs that significantly raised student achievement in a large urban district. Her business partnership program brought in $1.3 million each year for programs to help ensure the success of Alhambra students. As a business leader, Dr. Peck collaborates with key government, business, and education officials to encourage, support, and facilitate systemic educational changes statewide. As a noted co-author, she stresses the importance of "high, yet realistic goals" in her book, The Best Kept Secret to Achieving Successful School Management. Additionally, Dr. Peck has authored many journal articles and presented on "Raising Student Achievement by Raising Expectations" throughout the United States, China, Australia, and South Africa. She also writes a regular column for the Arizona Republic, highlighting successful education programs throughout the state.
Danielle Wilcox
Danielle Wilcox is a consultant in Charlottesville, Virginia. Previously Ms. Wilcox was the acting head of the National Council on Teacher Quality. Ms. Wilcox has co-authored several articles on teacher quality including, "Teachers Should Be Graded on How Well Their Students Are Learning" (The Los Angeles Times with Chester E. Finn, Jr.), and "The National Board of Professional Teaching Standards: Can It Live Up to Its Promise?" in Better Teachers, Better Schools (Thomas B. Fordham Foundation).
John L. Winn
An educator for 35 years, he began his career as an elementary and middle school teacher. He joined the Florida Department of Education in 1984 and was appointed to Commissioner of Education in August 2004. During his tenure as Commissioner student achievement in Reading and Mathematics reached an all time high. In February 2007 he retired from Commissioner of Education. He has joined the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) in March 2007 as the Chief Program Officer of Advanced Placement Training and Incentive Program and the UTeach program. NMSI is a nonprofit corporation founded to advance math and science education in the United States by expanding programs with proven results on a national scale in order to have a positive impact on America's 50 million student public school system. Throughout his career, has built a solid reputation as an authority in statewide implementation of innovative education improvements and on policy issues facing public education at every level and demonstrated commitment and compassion in improving education quality for all students.
Kate Walsh
President
Kate Walsh has served as the president of the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) since 2002. Before coming to NCTQ, she worked for the Core Knowledge Foundation, the Baltimore City Public Schools and The Abell Foundation in Baltimore, Maryland. Her work has tackled a broad spectrum of children's educational needs--from founding the successful Ingenuity Project for gifted Baltimore City students to starting a unique boarding school located in Kenya for the purpose of educating at-risk boys. Ms. Walsh also started the first alternative certification program for teachers in Maryland, a project which led to her strong interest in teacher quality. She has authored a number of papers on the subject of teacher quality. A long-time resident of Baltimore, Ms. Walsh also serves on the Maryland State Board of Education.
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