The Stuart Foundation’s Board of Directors recently appointed Jonathan P. Raymond as the new president of the Foundation. Raymond, a graduate of Tuft’s University and George Mason Law School, brings substantial education policy and child welfare experience to the California-based Stuart Foundation. He most recently served as superintendent of the Sacramento Unified School District where he helped found the California Office to Reform Education (CORE), was an early proponent of the adoption of the Common Core Standards, and led successful efforts to reduce class and race-based achievement gaps. Earlier in his career Raymond was the chief accountability officer for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina as well as the president of Commonwealth Corp. in Boston which focused on education and workforce development. The Board Chair, Dwight L. Stuart, Jr. conveyed his support of the appointment by saying “Jonathan brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the important strategic and programmatic work of the Foundation.” Jonathan P. Raymond assumes the office effective mid-July, replacing outgoing president Christy Pichel.
Steven Maze Rothstein has been unanimously selected by Citizen Schools’ national board as the non-profit’s next CEO. The appointment comes after his resignation from the position of president of The Perkins School for the Blind where he has served for 11 years. Previously, he co-founded and served as general manager of Citizens Energy Corporation, the world’s first non-profit social mission oil company which provides free home heating oil to half a million individuals and families. Rothstein also served as assistant commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Retardation for three years. He begins work as CEO on August 1, succeeding co-founder and CEO Eric Schwarz, who has led Citizen Schools for almost 20 years. “Steven Rothstein is an innovative, experienced, and compassionate leader,” said Schwarz. “I look forward to supporting him and our excellent team during this transition.
Samuel Halperin, longtime national education policy leader and author, passed away at the age of 83 in his home in Washington on May 6. Originally a political scientist who graduated from Washington University in 1952 and received his doctorate in political science in 1956, Halperin joined the old U.S. Office of Education in 1961 and soon became a top liaison with Congress on education legislation. Before long, he was appointed as deputy assistant secretary for legislation in the old U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. As architect of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and the driving force behind the 1965 Higher Education Act, Halperin quickly became a prominent figure in education policy. He went on to lead George Washington University’s Institute for Educational Leadership throughout the 70’s and early 80’s and then became the study director of the William T. Grant Foundation’s Commission on Work, Family and Citizenship where he authored several important scholarly education reports and articles from 1986 to 1993. In 1993, he founded and served as senior fellow at the nonprofit American Youth Policy Forum in Washington. Samuel Halperin dedicated his life to expanding and improving education opportunities in the U.S. and furthering efforts to help the nation’s youth successfully transition into adulthood. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, two children and five grandchildren. He will be sorely missed by all.
The Senate unanimously confirmed Ted Mitchell as the new under secretary of education, the third-highest ranking official at the U.S. Department of Education. Mitchell, nominated by President Obama last October, previously served as the California State Board of Education’s president from 2008 to 2010 and as president of Occidental College from 1999 to 2005. In addition, he was the vice chancellor and dean of the School of Education and Information Studies at the UCLA, and professor and chair of the Department of Education at Dartmouth College. After Occidental Mitchell served as CEO of NewSchools Venture Fund where he was responsible for a steady and dramatic expansion of the organization over a period of nearly a decade. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan expressed confidence in Mitchell by stating, “His experience as a college president and administrator, as well as his unwavering commitment to equity for every student, makes him uniquely suited for this role.” The previous under secretary, Martha Kanter, resigned her post with the goal of returning to academia.
United Way, the world’s largest privately funded nonprofit, appointed John C. Lechleiter as chair of its Worldwide Board of Trustees. Lechleiter comes to United Way after serving for over five years as president and CEO of Eli Lilly and Company, an American global pharmaceutical company. He originally Joined Lilly in 1979 as an organic chemist where he quickly became head of the department and subsequently, director of pharmaceutical product development. Lechleiter is a member of the American Chemical Society, Business Roundtable, and the board of Pharmaceutical Research Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). He also serves as president of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA), chairman of the U.S.-Japan Business Council, and on the boards of Life Sciences Foundation, Nike, and Ford Motor Company. According to Brian A. Gallagher, president and CEO of United Way Worldwide, this comprehensive background makes him distinctively suited to his new leadership role at United Way. “John brings extensive leadership and expertise leading one of the world’s most successful companies as well as a personal commitment to improving people’s lives,” stated Gallagher. John C. Lechleiter was elected May 14 to a two-year term as chair.
NewSchools Venture Fund has announced the appointment of Stacey Childress as its new CEO. Childress joins the organization after four years at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation working on philanthropic efforts in education technology and innovative learning practices. Previously, Childress taught classes and undertook research on education entrepreneurship at the Harvard Business School as well as serving as an advisor for several school districts. As a founding member of an enterprise software company and with years of experience in management at ADT Security Services, she also has extensive familiarity in entrepreneurship and the private sector herself. Beginning in late July, Stacey Childress has large shoes to fill as she succeeds outgoing CEO, Ted Mitchell, who has already been confirmed as the new Undersecretary of Education of the U.S. Dept. of Education.
