• Barry Salzberg,
  Board Chair, Chief Executive Officer, Deloitte & Touche USA LLP
• Andrea Black,
  Alumna Board Member First Grade Teacher, W.J. Scott Elementary School
• John Deazy,
  Deputy Director of Education , the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Dean Furbush,
  President, College Summit
• Chuck Harris,
  Executive Partner, SeaChange Capital Partners, Inc
• Jaime R. Harrison, Esq.,
  Principal and Democratic Strategist at the Podesta Group
• Vanessa Kirsch,
  President and Founder, New Profit Inc.
• James J. McGonigle,
  Chairman, Corporate Executive Board
• Julie Mork,
  Managing Director, ECA Foundation
• Stephen Sacks,
  Principal, McKinsey & Company (London Office)
• Arthur J. Samberg,
  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Pequot Capital Management
• Laura Samberg,
  Co-Director, Samberg Family Foundation
• J.B. Schramm,
  Founder and Chief Executive Officer, College Summit
• Steve Seleznow,
  Program Director, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Education Initiatives

Founding Spokesman

• Don Cheadle,
  Award-winning actor

 

Biographies

Barry Salzberg
Board Chair, Chief Executive Officer, Deloitte & Touche USA LLP

Barry Salzberg is Chief Executive Officer of Deloitte & Touche USA LLP, one of the nation's leading professional services organizations, providing audit, tax, consulting and financial advisory services through nearly 40,000 people in more than 90 cities. He also is a member of the Deloitte U.S. Firms’ Board of Directors, and the Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Global Management Committee.

Mr. Salzberg joined the Deloitte U.S. Firms as a tax specialist in 1977, was admitted to the U.S. partnership in 1985, and was appointed to a variety of leadership and client service roles. Mr. Salzberg most recently served U.S. Managing Partner from 2003-2007 and oversaw the management of the organization’s four businesses and operating infrastructure, including human resources and shared services. He is an acknowledged authority in the areas of personal tax and partnership tax matters, and is becoming known in the marketplace for his commitment to building opportunities for tomorrow’s leaders and fostering diversity within the workplace.

Mr. Salzberg is a member of the New York State Bar Association, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the New York County Lawyers Association. In addition, he is the Chairman of the Board of the YMCA of Greater New York, Chair of Diversity Best Practices’ CEO Roundtable Initiatives, and a board member of College Summit, Vanderbilt University Owen School, the Jackie Robinson Foundation, and the Johnetta B. Cole Global Diversity & Inclusion Institute at Bennett College for Women.

Mr. Salzberg received his undergraduate degree in Accounting from Brooklyn College, his J.D. from Brooklyn Law School, and his LLM in Taxation from the New York University School of Law.

Andrea Black
Alumna Board Member First Grade Teacher, W.J. Scott Elementary School

Andrea Black, a 2005 Teach for America Corps member, is a first grade teacher at W.J. Scott Elementary in Atlanta, Georgia. She is one of many recent college graduates who committed two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become life-long leaders in pursuit of expanding educational opportunity. She has continued classroom instruction beyond her two year commitment and remains devoted to applying differentiation instruction and developing alternative methods of teaching state curriculum to students of all levels of proficiency. Andrea is a College Summit Alumna and completed the University of Chicago Workshop in 2000 as a junior attending Morgan Park High School in Chicago, IL. For seven years, she has volunteered at College Summit Workshops in various roles, including Alumni Leader, Writing Coach, Writing Coach Coordinator, and Workshop Director. In 2006, she facilitated at College Summit’s Educators’ Institute in St. Louis. She received a B.A. in Political Science from Fisk University.

John Deazy
Deputy Director of Education , the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

John Deasy, Deputy Director of Education for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, leads the programmatic work on effective teaching. Prior to joining the foundation, he served as superintendent of the Prince George’s County, Maryland, Public Schools, where he earned a national reputation for his leadership in significantly narrowing the achievement gap between low-income and minority students and their peers. During his time in Prince George’s, John also launched a pay-for-performance plan that was approved by the Board of Education and developed jointly with labor, making the district a leader nationally in efforts to reward  teachers for gains in student achievement. Previously, he served as superintendent of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District in California and of the Coventry Public Schools in Rhode Island. In all three districts, he championed rigorous and ambitious learning opportunities for youth, fair teacher and administrator evaluations, pay-for-performance, staff development and training, and data-based decision-making.  John brings nearly three decades of extensive successful experience in education to the foundation. He has been a Broad Fellow, an Annenberg Fellow, a State Superintendent of the Year, a presenter at numerous state and national conferences, and a consultant to school districts undertaking high school reform and district-wide improvement strategies. He has spoken and written extensively on education and serves on numerous boards.

Dean Furbush
President, College Summit

See Executive Team

Chuck Harris
Executive Partner, SeaChange Capital Partners, Inc

Chuck Harris is Executive Partner of SeaChange Capital Partners, Inc., a newly-formed non-profit financial intermediary designed to enhance the flows of growth capital to outstanding social change organizations. He is a former partner and managing director of Goldman, Sachs & Co. Chuck is president of the trustees of Phillips Exeter Academy, where he is also chair of the Exeter Initiatives, the school’s $305 million comprehensive capital campaign. He is board chair of College Summit, where he also worked as interim VP of Business Development from April through September 2004. He is a co-chair of the New York City Advisory Board of Teach for America and a leader of the NYC sponsor group. Chuck serves on the board of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, Inc., which administers the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. He is a director of IPValue Management, Inc., Critical Power Services, Inc. and SeaCloth, LLC. Chuck lives in Darien, CT and Jackson, WY with his wife, Susan, an artist and fabric designer. Their twin sons are college juniors.

Jaime R. Harrison, Esq.
Principal and Democratic Strategist at the Podesta Group

Jaime currently serves as a Principal and Democratic Strategist at the Podesta Group, a full service Government and Public Relations firm in Washington DC. Prior to joining the Podesta Group, Jaime served as the Director of Floor Operations and Counsel for Majority Whip James E. Clyburn in the United States House of Representatives. Upon his appointment, Jaime became the first African-American to serve as Floor Director for a leader of the House of Representatives. Jaime has been featured in several Capitol Hill and South Carolina Publications. He was selected by The Hill newspaper as one of the “35 Stellar Staffers Under 35”; showcased as one of Roll Call’s “Fabulous 50 Staffers” on Capitol Hill (in 2006 – 2009), highlighted in the National Journal’s “The Hill People 2007”; and featured in articles in The State (“Orangeburg Native Rises Rapidly in D.C.”- February 24, 2008) and Politico “A Long Way from Orangeburg” – April 3, 2008.  Harrison has also served as Executive Director of the House Democratic Caucus, where he broke two barriers, becoming one of the youngest individuals and the first African-American to hold the position. As Executive Director, Jaime oversaw the day-to-day operations of the House Democratic Caucus, and participated in the development of national strategy, message, and policy for the Democratic Party. In 1998, Jaime, a first generation college graduate, received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Yale University. While at Yale, he won numerous awards for his leadership and community service. After graduating from Yale, Jaime returned to his hometown of Orangeburg, SC and taught 9th grade social studies at his high school alma mater, Orangeburg-Wilkinson High.  In 1999, Jaime became one of the youngest non-profit executives in the country when he served as Chief Operations Officer (COO) of College Summit, Inc., a national non-profit organization that works with communities to help students from low-income backgrounds successfully enroll into college.  Jaime, a member of the College Summit National Board of Directors, was successful in helping College Summit grow into a nationally recognized organization with offices across the country.  In 2003, this former Congressional Black Caucus Foundation intern rejoined the office of Congressman Jim Clyburn as Policy Advisor.  In 2004, Jaime graduated and obtained his Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center.  During the summer of 2004, he returned to South Carolina to serve as Political Director for the South Carolina Democratic Party’s Victory 2004 campaign on behalf of US Senate candidate Inez Tenenbaum. Jaime served as the party’s liaison to elected officials and candidates, oversaw the campaign’s Political Program, and coordinated efforts with the Base Vote Program (voter outreach, voter registration, and GOTV Programs) which produced record African-American turnout.  Jaime, a native of Orangeburg and a Member of the SC Bar, is the son of Rodney and Patricia Stewart.  He is the grandson of Jimmie Lou Harrison and the late Willie Harrison.

Vanessa Kirsch
President and Founder, New Profit Inc.

Vanessa Kirsch is the President and Founder of New Profit Inc. New Profit is a national venture philanthropy fund that unites engaged philanthropists with visionary social entrepreneurs to grow their social innovations to scale. Vanessa has more than 17 years of experience in developing innovative solutions to social problems and is widely recognized as a leading social entrepreneur. Prior to launching New Profit, Vanessa founded and led two nonprofit organizations, Public Allies and the Women's Information Network. Vanessa has received numerous public service awards and recognition for her work. In 2005, Ernst & Young named Vanessa “Entrepreneur of the Year” in the category of Social Entrepreneurship, an award that recognizes the innovation, vision, and tenacity of New England’s top entrepreneurs. She has been recognized by Forbes as one of 15 innovators who will reinvent the future; by Fast Company as "Who’s Fast 2000;" and by the Boston Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” as one of the most promising leaders in Boston. Currently, Vanessa serves on the Tufts Board of Overseers to the University College of Citizenship and Public Service, and on the Boards of New Leaders for New Schools and College Summit. Vanessa is a graduate of Tufts University and currently serves on the Alumni Council. She lives in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts with her husband, Alan Khazei, who is the Co-Founder and CEO of City Year, Inc., and their daughter, Mirabelle.

James J. McGonigle
Chairman, Corporate Executive Board

Jay McGonigle is the Chairman of the Corporate Executive Board, with responsibility for board leadership, high-level strategic and operational oversight, and CEO coaching and selected senior leadership development at this public company (NASDAQ: EXBD). Prior to July 2005, Jay McGonigle was Chairman and CEO, with responsibility for all strategy and operations. The Corporate Executive Board Company is a leading provider of best practices research and analysis focusing on corporate strategy, operations and general management issues. CEB provides its integrated set of services currently to more than 2,800 of the world's largest and most prestigious corporations, including over 80% of the Fortune 500. These services are provided primarily on an annual subscription basis and include best practices research studies, executive education seminars, customized research briefs and Web-based access to a library of over 300,000 corporate best practices. In 2005, the CEB grew revenues by 29% to $ 362 million, net income by 40% to $75 million, and ended the year with over 1800 employees in Washington, D.C., London and Delhi. The share price has increased ten-fold since the firm’s IPO in 1999. Prior to joining the Corporate Executive Board in May of 1995, Mr. McGonigle was a consultant in the Financial Institutions Group at McKinsey & Company in New York. In his six years there, he served commercial and investment banking clients in the U.S., Belgium, Denmark, and Australia. His areas of focus included bank turnarounds, performance measurement, risk management, retail network design, database marketing, and business unit strategy. He also served clients in the telecommunications, food, and information services industries. Mr. McGonigle holds a JD from Harvard Law School and a BA from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University. In addition to the CEB, Mr. McGonigle also serves on the Boards of FactSet Research Systems (NYSE: FDS), SNL Financial and College Summit.

Julie Mork
Managing Director, ECA Foundation

Julie Mork is Managing Director of the ECA Foundation, a private, corporate foundation based in Denver with a focus on youth and education. She has been a Director of Energy Corporation of America since 1993. Mork served as a founder and Secretary/Treasurer of Pacific States Gas & Oil, Inc., and Eastern American Energy Corporation. From 1989 to 1991, she was Eastern’s Community Relations and Human Resources Director. Mork received a B. A. in History from the University of California in Los Angeles in 1972. She also holds a Certificate in Real Estate Paralegal Training. Mork volunteers her time to several organizations including the Anchor Center for Blind Children where she currently serves as a member of the Advisory Board and is a past President of the Board of Directors. She also served as a member of the Cherry Creek Schools Foundation for six years.

Stephen Sacks
Principal, McKinsey & Company (London Office)

Stephen Sacks is a Principal in McKinsey & Company’s London Office, and is a leader of the Firm’s Travel and Logistics and its Operations practice. His focus is on the development of business strategies and performance transformation programs for large companies and public sector institutions. He has an A.B. in politics from Princeton University and an M.S. in operations research from Columbia University.

Arthur J. Samberg
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Pequot Capital Management

Art Samberg is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pequot Capital Management. Prior to establishing Pequot Capital, Mr. Samberg served as the President of Dawson-Samberg Capital Management where he established the first Pequot investment fund in 1986. He spun the Pequot series of hedge funds out of Dawson Samberg in January 1999, creating PCMI. Prior to joining Dawson, Mr. Samberg was an employee and partner at Weiss, Peck & Greer, Inc. and served as a member of their Management Committee. Art holds a S.B. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he serves as a Member of the MIT Corporation and as Vice Chairman of the MIT Investment Company. He also received a M.S. from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from Columbia University where he sits on the Board of Overseers of the Business School and is a member of its Board of Overseers’ Executive Committee. Mr. Samberg is also on the Board of Directors Historic Hudson Valley, on the New York-Presbyterian Board of Trustees and its Executive and Investment Committees, and serves as Chairman of the Jacob Burns Film Center. Other philanthropic affiliations include the Board of College Summit, the National Board of Directors of the National Foundation For Teaching Entrepreneurship, the Board of Overseers at the Children's Hospital of New York, and a partner of Birthright Israel.

Laura Samberg
Co-Director, Samberg Family Foundation

Laura Samberg has been Co-Director of the Samberg Family Foundation since 2001, managing all aspects of grantee relations in the Foundation’s three program areas: children, youth and education; health; and Jewish issues. Prior to joining the Foundation, Laura was a Project Manager at RO.W. Sciences, a health services research firm. Her research, policy and advocacy experience also includes positions at the American Council on Education and the Institute for Educational Leadership in Washington DC. Laura is also on the Board of Directors of Harlem Children’s Zone and Jewish Outreach Institute. Laura holds a B.A. in History from Cornell University and a M.A. in Education from Stanford University.

J.B. Schramm
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, College Summit

See Executive Team

Steve Seleznow
Program Director, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Education Initiatives

Steven G. Seleznow is the program director for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s education initiatives and leads program grantmaking for the western United States and Ohio. Prior to joining the foundation, Seleznow served as partner and Chief Investment Officer at Venture Philanthropy Partners in Washington, DC and was responsible for developing strategies to cultivate new investments, leveraging portfolio investment partnerships, and managing the selection of new investments. Seleznow brings to the foundation nearly 30 years of leadership and management experience in public education, having led the Montgomery County, MD, Public Schools as deputy superintendent for education and the District of Columbia Public Schools as chief of staff and also interim superintendent. Prior to these appointments, Seleznow was a teacher, an elementary and a secondary school principal, and served in a wide range of district administrator roles. Seleznow was also associate research professor at the George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development. Seleznow earned a doctorate and master’s degree in administration, planning, and social policy from Harvard University, a master’s of arts degree from the University of Maryland, and is a graduate of Boston University.

 

>Founding Spokesman

 

Don Cheadle
Award-winning actor

Acclaimed actor Don Cheadle was born in Kansas City, Missouri, on November 29, 1964, to a psychologist father and bank manager mother. During his early childhood, his family moved to Denver. He first made an impression on audiences with his lead role in Hamburger Hill (1987), and, in 1994, he had his true screen breakthrough portraying Denzel Washington's best friend in Devil in a Blue Dress. 1997 proved to be a big year for him: he co-starred in three major films, Volcano, Boogie Nights, and John Singleton's Rosewood. He won particular praise for his work in the latter two films, earning nominations for SAG and Image awards. The following year, Cheadle made a triumphant return to television with his portrayal of Sammy Davis Jr. in The Rat Pack, winning an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe award. Also in 1998, he did stellar work in Steven Soderbergh's Out of Sight and Warren Beatty's Bulworth, playing a down and dirty ex-con in the former and a drug lord in the latter. Another Emmy nomination followed in1999, for Cheadle's powerful portrayal of a school teacher sent in to counsel a young man on death row, in A Lesson Before Dying. Cheadle would become something of a fixture in Soderbergh's films, gaining positive note for his role in Traffic and later turning up in the director's remake of the Rat Pack classic Ocean’s 11 and Ocean’s 12. In 2004, Cheadle earned a Golden Globe and Emmy Nomination for his powerful role in Hotel Rwanda. He also starred in, and was one of the producers of Crash, which won the 2006 Academy Award for Best Picture. Don Cheadle has been a College Summit Writing Coach at two workshops. He also served on the National Board of Directors for four years and is a longtime advocate for college access.