Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors plays a critical role in developing Teach For America’s strategic plan and ensuring that we are able to meet the ambitious goals we set for ourselves.
Co-Founder & Chair
Burton Family Foundation
Christine (Christy) Burton is co-founder and chair of The Burton Family Foundation, an Arizona-based philanthropy and supporting organization of the Arizona Community Foundation. The Burton Family Foundation invests primarily in education and human services organizations across Arizona that advance individual achievement and recognize the dignity of all people. Christine also serves on Teach For America's Phoenix regional board.
Co-Founder/Chief Product Officer
Clever
Region: Colorado, '09
Dan Carroll is the chief product officer and co-founder of Clever, the platform that powers digital learning for over 95,000 schools. Dan was a member of the 2009 TFA Colorado corps, teaching middle school science.
Co-Founder/Board Member, Interdisciplinary Designer
Nugget
Region: Miami-Dade, '14
Hannah Cocca is a first-generation entrepreneur and designer whose expertise in creative innovation, consumer trends, and viral growth-hacking grew the Nugget furniture brand from a three-person team to a 100-employee company—generating more than $250 million in sales since 2017 and earning the title of America’s Fastest-Growing Manufacturing Company (Inc. Magazine, 2020, 2021).
Head of Civil Rights
Region: D.C. & Virginia, '99
Chanelle Hardy taught 5th graders in her home city as a member of the Washington, DC Teach For America corps. Her passion for students and their families led her to a career in law and policy.
Executive Chairman
Nielsen
David Kenny is the executive chairman at Nielsen and previously assumed the roles of chief executive officer and chief diversity officer. Kenny has spent his career in data science and artificial intelligence, especially focused on the retail, marketing, and media industries.
President and Chief Executive Officer
UNCF
Since 2004, Dr. Michael L. Lomax has served as president and CEO of UNCF, the nation’s largest private provider of scholarships and other educational support to African American students and a leading advocate of college readiness: students’ need for an education from pre-school through high school, that prepares them for college success. Under his leadership, UNCF has raised more than $3 billion and helped more than 110,000 students earn college degrees and launch careers.
Founder, Managing Director
Lone Pine Capital LLC
Steve Mandel is the founder of Lone Pine Capital, a public equity asset management firm that he started in 1997.
Executive Director
Campaign Zero
Region: New York, '07
DeRay Mckesson is the executive director of Campaign Zero, a social justice organization leading nationwide structural change to create equity and justice in our criminal legal system. Beginning as a youth organizer in Baltimore as a teenager, he has been an advocate and activist on a range of issues impacting people of color for much of his life.
Partner, Global Head of Public Affairs & Co-Head of KKR Global Impact ǀ KKR
Ken Mehlman is a social entrepreneur, with experience driving change via business, public policy, politics & the social sector. He is a Partner & Co-Head of Global Impact at KKR. Since joining KKR in 2008, Ken has architected KKR’s responsible investment efforts that seek to create shared value for KKR investors and other stakeholders. He has also worked to identify investment opportunities by leveraging geopolitical, public policy & sustainability trends.
President & CEO
The Aspen Institute
Since 2018, Daniel R. Porterfield, Ph.D. has served as President and CEO of the Aspen Institute—a global nonprofit organization founded in 1949 to ignite human potential to build understanding and create new possibilities for a better world. He has been recognized as a visionary strategist, leader, and advocate for young people and purpose-driven leadership. A lifelong educator and former college president, he is the author of the 2024 book, Mindset Matters: The Power of College to Activate Lifelong Growth.