Meet Caroline.

1Houston and Nashville · Teaching

Lessons from the classroom

My career began in the classroom. I taught with Teach For America at YES Prep Public Schools in Houston, and later helped found KIPP Nashville Collegiate High School.

I had the good fortune of starting my career alongside excellent educators and coaches who modeled what great teaching and learning look like. They gave me a vision for excellence, and showed me what is possible when the right systems and structures are in place and adults hold deep belief in the potential of both teachers and students.

My students inspired me daily. Their resilience and growth convinced me that every student is capable of rigorous learning, and that schools have a responsibility to create the conditions where that potential can flourish.

2Kenya and Nicaragua · Graduate study

Broadening the lens

Eager to understand the education ecosystem beyond my own classroom, I pursued graduate study in international education policy and management at Vanderbilt, designing and conducting research in Kenya and Nicaragua, where I built my foundation in rigorous qualitative and quantitative methods.

The deeper lesson was about whose voices shape the work. I learned how much context matters, and that the best research is designed with the people closest to the problem. Their perspectives should guide the work from the first question to the final recommendation.

3State government · Research

Bridging research, policy, and practice

I brought that perspective to my next role as a research analyst in state government. There, I studied students’ paths to college and career, using both quantitative methods, including randomized controlled trials, and qualitative research to understand what was working and for whom.

I also learned that states have real power to shape behavior across the entire system. But the effectiveness of their policy, guidance, and support is only as strong as their understanding of what schools and educators actually face on the ground.

4NIET and Tennessee SCORE · Leadership

Nonprofit leadership and systems change

That lesson followed me into nonprofit leadership. As Director of Strategic Projects at the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) and Senior Director of Impact at Tennessee SCORE, I helped mission-driven organizations grow their impact. In both roles, I strengthened impact measurement systems and helped teams use data to guide growth.

At NIET, I led school, district, and state partnerships focused on systems that support instructional excellence, including Louisiana’s redesign of its teacher and leader evaluation system. I also designed and piloted new services for teacher and leader development.

At SCORE, I aligned the organization’s strategic priorities and investments with its mission, and worked with partners across Tennessee on initiatives to advance student success. I learned how systems change happens, the role intermediaries play in it, and the power of proof points and data to enact policy change.

5University of Birmingham · Designing for whole-child development

In pursuit of student flourishing

Along the way, I grew fascinated by the science of how young people grow: how belonging, agency, relationships, and character develop during adolescence, and how closely they are tied to academic achievement. I designed and launched a program with school leaders focused on whole-child development, and earned a master’s degree in character education at the University of Birmingham in the UK, studying the philosophy and research behind virtue formation and durable skills.

That work started to change my thinking. In 2024, as AI began to reshape what students could do on their own and what they would need to thrive, I found myself questioning the goals I had spent years working toward: raising test scores, getting more students into college, helping them land high-paying jobs. Those goals still matter. But I began asking a bigger question: what if education were designed for the greater aim of student flourishing?