Learn more about Bellwether’s governance work here.
EBP Will Bring Deep Expertise in Board Governance and Support to Bellwether’s Strategic Advising Practice
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Bellwether, a national nonprofit that partners with leaders and organizations across the education sector, and Education Board Partners (EBP), a national nonprofit that helps public charter schools and education organizations build diverse, effective governing boards, today announced that EBP will join Bellwether early this year. As part of the transition, EBP co-founder and CEO Carrie C. Irvin will become a Senior Adviser leading governance work within Bellwether’s Strategic Advising practice. EBP’s Board Chair, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Charles Hooper, will join Bellwether’s board.
Both organizations share a commitment to expanding educational opportunities for all young people — especially systemically marginalized students — to ensure they can lead fulfilling lives. Since 2010, EBP (originally Charter Board Partners) has supported 650 boards serving a total of 200,000 students. Bellwether has partnered with more than 600 schools, districts, charter networks, states, foundations, and other organizations across the education sector since 2010.
“We often hear from education leaders that board governance deserves greater focus across the sector — and this partnership positions Bellwether to help make that happen,” said Rebecca Gifford Goldberg, Senior Partner and Strategic Advising Practice Leader at Bellwether. “The combination of EBP’s governance expertise and Bellwether’s growing Academic and Program Strategy services for schools and systems will be a unique offering in the education space.”
“I’m excited to bring EBP to Bellwether, which has the infrastructure and reach in the field to sustain and scale our important work,” said Irvin. “Effective board governance is an overlooked catalyst for improving educational outcomes — especially for the most vulnerable students — and I’m looking forward to finding synergies between Bellwether’s important, sector-leading work and EBP’s intense focus on boards. I’m proud of the work we’ve built, and grateful to Bellwether for seeing the opportunity to elevate the importance of governance and bring the programs and support we’ve built over the last 12 years to benefit many more organizations and, most importantly, many more students.”
“This is a wonderful opportunity to advance EBP’s mission and bring effective governance to more schools and education organizations across the country,” said Hooper. “I want to thank Carrie and her entire team for their outstanding work over the last 12 years. I look forward to seeing that work continue to grow as part of Bellwether.”
“This partnership can offer valuable lessons for the education sector,” said Grace Heintz, Bellwether’s Board Chair. “Integrating high-impact, small-scale organizations into larger organizations with a robust infrastructure means more resources can flow to direct services for schools and partner organizations — while giving leaders the opportunity to focus more on delivering impact, and less on operations.”
Tom Vander Ark, an EBP board member since 2011, added, “Boards matter, for innovation, excellence, and equity. EBP has built a powerful and sector-changing body of work — but as a small nonprofit, they have struggled to balance impact and scale. Joining forces with Bellwether will have a multiplier effect and allow this work to have the broader impact the sector needs.”
***
About Bellwether
Bellwether is a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. Founded in 2010, we work hand in hand with education leaders and organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way. For more, visit bellwether.org.
Media contact:
Andy Jacob
andy.jacob@bellwether.org
(347) 987-0749
