At the Systems Impact Exchange, the signature initiative of the Growth Philanthropy Network, I am supporting cross-sector collaborations with philanthropy, government, business, and communities to fund systems change that has population-level impact. We are doing this in partnership with members of the Education and Youth Thriving Affinity Group, a growing group of education and youth thriving funders and partners committed to advancing racial and economic equity through philanthropic priorities aligned to root causes.

I built and led national cross-sector coalitions among 50+ partners to advance conditions for young people so more youth, particularly historically marginalized youth, grow and learn in environments that support their social and emotional development and they graduate ready for post-secondary life. I built cross-functional teams to support and collaborate with each coalition. Created and led the Anti-Racist Alliance, a group of 14 national youth-supporting organizations pursuing inquiry and action to shift our internal organizational practice and the ways in which we co-create with BIPOC youth and their communities. In the reimagined America’s Promise Alliance, over 200 leaders from more than 40 community and national youth-supporting non-profit organizations are coming together to develop relational trust across the sector and collaboratively build capacity across functions. In support of our 2022-2026 strategic plan, I began development of a model for coalition work that reflects the experience and policy goals of our alliance members based on their work with youth and in communities.

Developed federal policy guidance and provided individualized support to eight state education agencies on a range of federal funding programs including the transition from NCLB to ESSA, Title I, Title II, and Title III and related civil rights laws.

Served as lead program officer to five states implementing over $800 million in comprehensive education reform funding, including innovations in teacher evaluation systems, standards and assessments, school improvement, STEM, support for schools serving historically marginalized communities, and building state capacity to support districts.

Conducted research and wrote case studies on high-performance work environments and labor-management collaboration in the private sector and public school districts.

Supported attorneys in composing letter drafts, supported investigations in allegations of Section 504, race discrimination, and disability discrimination violations.

Taught fourth grade reading, writing, math, science, and social studies to 35 students aged 8-10 years from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds and academic abilities in rural Arkansas. Developed instructional materials and executed lessons to 35 students and achieved 1.33 year’s growth in reading skills and 1.6 years of math skills growth in one year. Co-founded after-school enrichment program to build youth leadership and civic engagement skills