Maurice Jones is the CEO of FirstGenForward (FGF), formerly the Center for First-generation Student Success. Established in 2017 as an initiative of NASPA—Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education and The Suder Foundation, FGF drives transformational change for FirstGen students by partnering with a growing network of colleges and universities, working together to redesign systems, cultures, and actions to better serve the needs of FirstGen students.As the Founder & CEO of MJConnects, Maurice provides customer acquisition, fundraising, economic development, mobility and other professional and business services to government, nonprofit and for-profit customers. As the former Chief Executive Officer of OneTen, Maurice spearheaded the coalition’s mission to create 1 million family-sustaining jobs for Black talent in America. As OneTen’s first CEO, Maurice led the efforts to establish the coalition’s capabilities and elevate its reach and impact while reimagining how business leaders come together to effect positive social change and create a more equitable society. Maurice previously served as the President & CEO of Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), one of the country's largest organizations supporting projects to revitalize communities and catalyze economic opportunity for residents.Maurice served as the Secretary of Commerce for the Commonwealth of Virginia, where he managed 13 state agencies focused on the economic needs in his native state. He has served as Deputy Secretary for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and was Commissioner of Virginia’s Department of Social Services and Deputy Chief of Staff to former Virginia Governor Mark Warner.Trained as an attorney, Maurice worked under the Clinton Administration on legal, policy, and program issues at the Treasury Department. In the private sector, Maurice was the general manager of The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk and went on to become president and publisher of its parent company. He also worked for a Richmond law firm and a private philanthropy investing in community-based efforts to benefit children in Washington, D.C.Raised by his grandparents in a rural southern Virginia community where his family had a tobacco and corn farm, Jones was awarded a full merit scholarship to Hampden-Sydney College. In 1986, he graduated Phi Beta Kappa and was selected as a Rhodes scholar. At Oxford University, he earned a master’s degree in international relations. In 1992, he graduated from the University of Virginia Law School.