The Schott Foundation is pleased to announce that during the most recent Schott Foundation Board meeting, Vice Chair Kyle Serrette was elected to Board Chair.

“We are deeply grateful to outgoing Board Chair Alandra Washington for her dedication and service,” said Dr. Jackson. “Kyle Serrette’s keen strategic sense and decades of experience in the education justice movement will be invaluable in guiding Schott’s trajectory moving forward.”

At the meeting, three new members were elected to join the Schott Foundation board. They bring a wealth of expertise in philanthropic and advocacy work to Schott’s mission of resourcing racial and education justice movements.

“Sonia Chang-Díaz, Frank L. Gettridge, and Troy Johnson are trailblazers and fierce advocates for equity and justice,” said Dr. John H. Jackson, Schott Foundation President & CEO. “They join the Schott team at a pivotal moment in our nation’s history. I’m excited to work alongside them as we support our grantee partners, shift the philanthropic sector, and meet the demands of this moment.”

Kyle Serrette, Board Chair

Kyle Serrette is the National Education Campaign Manager at the National Education Association. In this role, Kyle directs the work of the Campaign to Promote, Protect, and Strengthen Public Education.

Kyle Serrette started his career as a Chemistry teacher in Massachusetts and then went on to serve in various leadership roles, including the organizing director for AFSCME’s nurses’ union, the campaign director for SEIU’s campaign to organize airport and security workers, the organizing director for Change to Win’s Retail division, and the Education Justice Campaign Director at the Center for Popular Democracy. Read more >

Sonia Chang-Díaz, Board Member

Sonia Chang-Díaz is the first Latina and first Asian-American elected to the Massachusetts State Senate and the first woman of color to ever make the ballot for Governor in state history.

As a leading progressive thinker and advocate for racial and economic justice, she’s spent her career crafting and winning transformational policy across education, economic growth, criminal justice, immigration, and LGBTQ rights. Read more >

Frank L. Gettridge, Board Member

Frank London Gettridge is an educator who has dedicated his career working to improve the lives of the most vulnerable children and families.

A New Orleans native, Frank possesses over 30 years of experience in education, logging in impressive time and variety as an early childhood, elementary and high school teacher and administrator. Before joining the Philanthropic Collaborative for Education, Frank was a Program Officer at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) overseeing the integration of national program strategies, and managing a team of officers and support staff to support WKKF’s efforts to address issues of inequality, including creating the conditions that help vulnerable children to achieve. Read more >

Troy Johnson, Board Member

Troy is the Chief Financial and Operations Officer for Georgia Health Initiative. He is responsible for the sound execution of all financial and operational aspects of the Initiative’s work. He ensures that the finance, information infrastructure, data management, office administration, and human resources functions are operating in full support of the Initiative’s mission and vision.

Troy is a 21-year veteran of the nonprofit sector. Prior to joining Georgia Health Initiative, he served 12 years as CFO/COO of the Southern Education Foundation, a social justice organization. Read more >