Leadership
Our Board of Directors
Dr. Frank Gettridge
Chairperson of the Board
Dr. Gettridge currently serves as Executive Director of the National Public Education Support Fund (NPESF) NPESF is a family of networks working together to improve public education. It is home to a growing number of funder learning communities and collaboratives. Even before he was named Executive Director, Frank played a significant role at the organization - actively participating in the Education Funder Strategy Group and co-chairing its Racial Equity Working Group, as well as deep engagement in the Partnership for the Future of Learning.
Dr. Gettridge has served as National Lead of Program Strategies at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation where he managed a team of officers and support staff to further the Foundation’s efforts to address issues of inequality, including creating the conditions that help vulnerable children to achieve. Frank elevated investments focusing on strengthening the teacher of color pipeline, transformative family engagement, and closing the 3rd grade achievement gap.
Earlier in his career, Dr. Gettridge was a dedicated elementary school principal in the Chicago Public Schools. During his tenure at Clara Barton Elementary School, academic achievement, parent engagement and school enrollment increased, while discipline, suspension, and expulsion rates significantly decreased. In 2013, when the City of Chicago attempted one of the largest school closing plans in this country’s history, it was Frank’s leadership and collaboration with the local community and organizations that lead to the successful removal of Clara Barton from the closure list.
Frank holds a doctorate of global education from the University of Southern California, during which time he studied public education systems across three different countries. He holds a master’s degree in child development from the Erikson Institute in Chicago, IL and a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Morris Brown College (an HBCU) in Atlanta, GA. Notably, Dr. Gettridge was also selected as a National Head Start Fellow, an Association of Black Philanthropic Executives Fellow, a Children’s Defense Fund Fellow, and served as a National Association for the Education of Young Children Governing Board member.
Allana Jackson
Board Member
Prior to joining Bridgespan, Allana was a manager at Bain & Company in its Consumer Goods & Retail Practice where she helped clients with a range of issues including organizational effectiveness, growth strategy, and mergers & acquisitions. Allana was also a member of Bain’s pro-bono Education practice where she worked with clients in K-12 education and led Bain’s relationship with Rowe Elementary School, a Bain-sponsored school in Chicago.
Allana graduated from Harvard University with her BA in Economics and Sociology. She also has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, where she was a Siebel Scholar. A native of Atlanta, Allana currently lives in western Massachusetts with her husband and son.
Jim Larimore
Vice Chairperson of the Board
Jim Larimore is Chief Officer for Equity in Learning for Riiid Labs, where he has led Riiid Lab's strategy, programs and partnerships to leverage Riiid's strengths in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and innovation to close gaps in educational equity, opportunity, achievement and student success since August 2020. Prior to joining Riiid, Mr. Larimore was Chief Officer for the Center for Equity in Learning at ACT, leading the company's strategy to engage students, families, educators and communities to promote equity in learning and workplace success. Mr. Larimore's team developed programs, research and partnerships to improve college and career readiness and success for all students.
Before joining ACT five years ago, Mr. Larimore's career in higher education focused on college access and student success. He served as deputy director for student success at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and as a student affairs leader at campuses including Stanford, Dartmouth, Swarthmore and NYU Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Jim’s postsecondary career began as assistant dean and director for the American Indian Program at Stanford.
Mr. Larimore serves on the Board of Directors for the Iowa City Community School District Foundation, and the Leadership Giving Advisory Board for United Way of Johnson and Washington Counties. He’s served on the Advisory Council that created the Gates Foundation's Millennium Scholars Program, and been the President of the International Student Affairs Advisory Board for the Universidad de Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico. He currently serves as an Advisor for Michelle Obama’s Reach Higher Campaign, the Aspen Institute’s Forum for Community Solutions, the United Negro College Fund's Career Pathways Initiative, the Center for Postsecondary Readiness and Success at American University.
Dr. John Luczak
Board Member
John began his career in education as a high school social studies teacher and became passionate about education policy after working in an urban public school district. Prior to joining Education First, John worked at the Chicago-based Joyce Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, and SRI International. He took a brief leave of absence from Joyce to work in the Illinois Governor’s office and helped develop the state’s performance evaluation reform act and alternative certification legislation that were passed in January 2010.
John is a founding board member of Teach Plus and in 2012 he was selected as an Aspen Institute-NewSchools Entrepreneurial Leaders for Public Education Fellow. He has a Ph.D. and M.A. from Stanford University in education administration and policy analysis and a B.A. from Brown University. John enjoys volunteering in his children’s classrooms in Evanston, IL, and coaching baseball. He remains a diehard fan of the Chicago Cubs.
Dr. Curtis Martin
Board Member
Having earned the Ph.D. from The Ohio State University, his interest and energies have been devoted to equity in education and closing the gaps in achievement between the different ethnic groups. The focus of these efforts has been the accreditation of teacher preparation programs through activities which were based on standards-based curriculum and program delivery and enhancement of programs through evidence supported decision making. This work led to the development and funding of the Charter Teacher Education Program at Fort Valley State University where candidates advanced to the next level through the achievement of standards rather than through the earning of letter grades.
He has served in several leadership positions beyond his campus including as a member of the executive committee of AACTE and as a representative to NCATE. He has written grants, obtaining more than five million dollars, all geared toward improving the quality of education of minority learners. He has devoted years to serving on accreditation review teams and continues to do so, while consulting with institutions of higher education on going beyond accreditation to becoming leaders in preparing teachers and advocating for and championing the cause for quality education for all learners.
Dr. Vicki Phillips
Board Member
Phillips’s career in education spans more than three decades, driven by a fierce determination to help all students realize their dreams. She has tirelessly championed students’ rights to a high-quality education through her many leadership roles, including as a teacher, state-level policymaker, nonprofit leader, superintendent of schools, chief state school officer, and K-12 education director.
Prior to joining the National Geographic Society, Phillips served as an education strategist in the United States and internationally; as CEO in residence for Educurious; and, for nearly a decade, as the director of education, College Ready, at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Phillips holds an Ed.D. in international leadership and management from the University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom, and an M.A. in school psychology and B.S. in elementary education and special education, K-8, K-12, from Western Kentucky University.
Kathryn Schotthoefer
Board Member
Original Media Ventures (OMV) Chief Executive Officer and Founder Kathryn Schotthoefer brings experience on both the agency and client side developing strategic, creative and effective programs for global leaders in the entertainment, technology, and nonprofit sectors, Ms. Schotthoefer’s firm is focused on scaling diversity of creative voices in entertainment, media, and advertising by building new pipelines and creating opportunities for success through education, mentorship, and investment. OMV clients and partners include National Geographic, Nike, and Twentieth Century Fox. Ms. Schotthoefer serves as senior advisor to Plus1.org, which empowers performing artists to raise funds and awareness for nonprofits working to promote equity and access for all. Previously of film studios such as Warner Bros, Twentieth Century Fox, and New Line Cinema, and former President of M&C Saatchi’s boutique creative agency Heavenspot, which partnered with major entertainment and lifestyle brand clients on integrated digital strategy, product launch strategy, social media strategy, social media marketing, social media management, product development, research and fan analysis, and enterprise-level social strategy consulting. Ms. Schotthoefer has worked with clients to include Netflix, Disney, NBC/Universal, Goldenvoice (Coachella), Hulu, Amazon and Warner Bros. Ms. Schotthoefer earned her bachelor’s degree (Magna Cum Laude) from the University of Colorado Denver.
Peter Shulman
Board Member
Peter Shulman is chief executive officer of Urban Teachers, a nationally recognized teacher development program that prepares, supports, certifies and places aspiring career educators through a rigorous 4-year model, grounded in an initial yearlong teaching residency.
Mr. Shulman came to Urban Teachers after more than a decade in K-12 leadership roles at the district and state levels. Most recently, he was Deputy Commissioner for the New Jersey Department of Education where he helped steer the organization’s strategic vision while leading transformational redesigns of human capital, school accountability, performance management and student assessment policies. Prior to serving as Deputy, Mr. Shulman served as Chief Talent Officer for the Department, where he led the design and implementation of new educator evaluation and teacher preparation requirements.
Prior to his tenure in New Jersey, Mr. Shulman held state and district leadership positions at the Delaware Department of Education and Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Before entering public education, Mr. Shulman co-founded Cityfeet.com, a successful commercial real estate technology company, and worked as an analyst for Rockwood Realty Advisors, a boutique commercial real estate investment bank in Manhattan.
Mr. Shulman holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Michigan and a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also a graduate of the Broad Residency in Urban Education, a national two-year management development program that recruits and trains emerging leaders in public education.