Dr. John B. King, Jr. to Serve as President of the EdTrust – National
David V. Britt, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the EdTrust, announced today that John B. King, Jr., who served as Secretary of Education under President Barack Obama, has been unanimously selected by the Board of Directors to assume the role of President. “Over its 25 year history, the EdTrust has been a leader in the work to bring attention and action to closing long-standing opportunity and achievement gaps that separate too many low income students and students of color from their peers, pre-kindergarten through college. This history provides a strong foundation on which to build new partnerships, new work, and new learning—indeed a new movement—and we think John is exactly the right leader for this next stage of the organization’s work.”
King started his career in education as a high school social studies teacher in San Juan, Puerto Rico and Boston, Massachusetts. From 2011 to 2015, King served as the first African-American and first Puerto Rican Commissioner of Education in New York State, then was tapped by President Obama in 2015 for leadership at the U.S. Department of Education—first performing the duties of Deputy Secretary, and then as the 10th U.S. Secretary of Education.
Today, King told the EdTrust staff, “The EdTrust’s mission is my life’s mission. I lost my parents at a very young age. But in my New York City public schools, I was fortunate to have great teachers who made school engaging, challenging, and nurturing. Amazing teachers at P.S. 276 in Canarsie and Mark Twain Junior High School in Coney Island gave me a sense of hope and possibility. If I had not had those teachers, I wouldn’t be alive today. They literally saved my life. At the EdTrust, I want to help more kids like me—kids for whom schools make all the difference—get the education they need and deserve.”
King wants to build on that momentum by increasing the EdTrust’s support for state advocacy, but also by seeking new partnerships with equity-minded education and civic leaders around the country. After a brief transition period, EdTrust CEO Kati Haycock will step down from the organization she founded in the early 1990’s.
“As the EdTrust –West continues its equity-driven research, policy and advocacy work alongside civil rights groups, educators, parents, students and community-based organizations from across California, I am thrilled that Dr. King will be The EdTrust’s new national president,” says Ryan J. Smith, executive director of the EdTrust –West. “I want to express deep gratitude to EdTrust’s founder, Kati Haycock, for her decades-long commitment to fighting on behalf of low-income students, students of color, students with disabilities and English learners.”
King and his wife Melissa live in Takoma Park, Maryland, where their two daughters attend Montgomery County Public Schools. He will start his new role on March 6, 2017.
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The EdTrust –West is the West Coast arm of The EdTrust. It was founded in 2001 as a California-based research, policy and advocacy organization focused on closing opportunity and achievement gaps.
