Longtime Bellwether Partner and noted early-childhood education expert Sara Mead will leave the organization at the end of this month to become the next Assistant Superintendent for Early Learning in DC’s Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE).
Mead has been a part of Bellwether from its beginning, joining in 2010 as the third official employee. As a partner and the head of our Policy practice, she has advised hundreds of clients and authored dozens of papers examining the impact of various policy levers. 
At OSSE, Mead will help shape the development of the early childhood sector in the city she calls home. Her last day at Bellwether will be July 29th. She begins her new role on August 3rd.
“This is an exciting opportunity for me to directly benefit DC’s youngest learners at a time when early childhood programs and families of young children face unprecedented challenges. My new role will build on work I’ve been doing for 10 years at Bellwether, helping improve outcomes for underserved children,” said Mead. “I’m grateful to have seen the team grow from six to sixty, and know that there are incredible leaders — including Andy Rotherham, Jennifer Schiess, Julie Squire, Allison Crean Davis, Jeff Schulz, and Rebecca Gifford Goldberg — to continue our work on behalf of clients and kids.” 
Partner and co-founder Andy Rotherham added: “Sara was instrumental in building Bellwether into what it is today and is part of its fabric. She’s a wonderful, generous, and caring colleague and while we’re all excited for her, she will be missed in big and small ways.”
Partner Jennifer Schiess will step into the role of practice lead for Bellwether’s policy and evaluation team. A six-year veteran of the team, she’ll oversee Bellwether’s work answering questions of policy. Looking forward, we’ll continue to iterate on how we grow and create impact across the P-20 spectrum as a firm. 
“We have always said that Bellwether is a great place to build a career, learn a lot, and carry that knowledge forward to other positions,” says Bellwether managing partner Mary Kroupa Wells. “While we’re going to miss her deeply, we are absolutely thrilled to see Sara support DC’s youngest residents in this critical role and cannot wait to see the impact she has.” 
For More Information
Alyssa Schwenk
Interim Communications Director, Bellwether Education Partners
alyssa.schwenk@bellwether.org