Washington, D.C. (October 23, 2025)—The NEA Foundation is pleased to share important updates about its Board of Directors, reflecting its ongoing commitment to strong, visionary leadership in service of public education.
New Board Leadership
Oleta Garrett Fitzgerald has been elected Chair of the Board of Directors. Fitzgerald is Director of the Children’s Defense Fund’s Southern Regional Office (CDF-SRO), and also serves as the Regional Administrator for the Southern Rural Black Women’s Initiative for Economic & Social Justice.
In 1970, Fitzgerald was employed by the Southeastern Public Education Program of the American Friends Service Committee, where she participated in the Children’s Defense Fund’s Children Out of School in America, a national study of exclusion of children from public elementary and secondary schools; and monitored Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. In 1976, she became southern director for the Children’s Foundation, which educated citizens and members of Congress about the need for expanded access to federal food programs.
Fitzgerald later became a project director for the Southern Regional Council working with rural electric power customers in 12 southern states to increase minority representation on rural electric cooperative boards. Moving back to her native Mississippi, she served as former Congressman Mike Espy’s District Director from the beginning of his first term in 1987 until she joined the Clinton for President Campaign in 1992.
Before joining the Children’s Defense Fund, Fitzgerald was appointed White House Liaison and Executive Assistant to then Secretary of Agriculture Mike Espy by President Bill Clinton in January 1993. Shortly thereafter, she was named the Department’s Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, where she worked with local, state and tribal governments; coordinated the Administration’s long-term recovery of midwestern states affected by The Great Flood of 1993; and was a member of USDA’s executive review panel selecting rural Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities.
Fitzgerald serves as a board member for the Mississippi Head Start Association, the Mississippi Children’s Museum, the advisory committee for the Stennis Institute of Government at Mississippi State University, and is a member of the State Children’s Welfare Coalition and the Global Women’s Action Network for Children.
She also received honorary membership to Pi Alpha Alpha, the National Honor Society for Public Affairs & Administration from Mississippi State University in 1999. Fitzgerald holds a B.A. in sociology from Tougaloo College in Jackson, Mississippi. She is the proud mother of four children, Rashida, Yusef, Layla and Joi.
Derron Wallace has been appointed Vice Chair of The NEA Foundation’s Board of Directors. Wallace is Associate Professor of Education Policy for the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Previously, Wallace was Assistant Professor of Sociology and Education at Brandeis University. A sociologist of race, ethnicity and education, Wallace’s research focuses on structural and cultural inequalities in urban schools and neighborhoods as experienced by Black youth. He is the author of the new book, The Culture Trap: Ethnic Expectations and Unequal Schooling for Black Youth published by Oxford University Press.
Wallace brings to The NEA Foundation over fifteen years of experience in community organizing and youth development. Prior to joining the Brandeis faculty, Wallace served as a National Director at The Posse Foundation, and Community Organizer with Citizens UK, working with over 50 primary, secondary and higher education institutions on living wage, fair housing, immigration and street safety campaigns. In addition to his role at Brandeis, Wallace has worked with the Boston Public School District on school re-opening plans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Posse alumnus, Wallace is a Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude graduate of Wheaton College (Massachusetts), where he studied sociology and the African diaspora. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge, where he was a Marshall and Gates Cambridge Scholar. With wide-ranging experiences in educational activism, analysis, policy and research, Wallace has worked with nomads in Ethiopia, young people with disabilities in Rwanda, immigrant youth in London, economically disadvantaged rural youth in Jamaica, English language learners in Thailand and gifted students in New York City. He served as Special Assistant to the Minister of Education in Rwanda. He also worked as a consultant with schools and district authorities in London.
New Board Members
The Foundation is equally excited to welcome four distinguished new members:
Steve Chauby is a senior executive with a proven record of driving revenue growth, innovation, and customer-focused transformation in the insurance and financial services industries. He currently serves as Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing and Distribution Officer at Horace Mann Educators Corporation, where he leads a nationwide network of agents along with digital and partnership distribution channels focused on delivering affordable, custom, and quality financial products and services to educators and those who serve the community.
Chauby is recognized for scaling sales models, modernizing customer and agent experiences, and leading high-performing teams. His work has consistently delivered measurable results in growth, operational efficiency, and brand development. He is especially proud to apply these strengths in support of the education community, helping those who serve students build greater financial security.
Before joining Horace Mann, Chauby held senior leadership roles at PURE Insurance, Openly Insurance, and Liberty Mutual. Across these organizations, he played a key role in launching new products, developing strategic partnerships, and implementing programs and technologies to improve service delivery.
Chauby earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Pennsylvania State University. He is a Fellow of The Marketing Academy and an active advisor to several boards in the financial and technology sectors.
Dr. Jemelleh Coes is an award-winning educator, advocate, and leader dedicated to advancing equity and teacher leadership across K-12 and higher education. She serves as Director of Teacher Leadership Programs at Mount Holyoke College, where she designs and leads initiatives that empower educators to drive systemic change in their schools and communities. She also teaches in the Disability Studies program at the University of Georgia, bringing critical perspectives on inclusion, identity, and justice into the classroom.
Named 2014 Georgia Teacher of the Year and recognized as one of the University of Georgia’s 40 Under 40, Dr. Coes has contributed nationally as a keynote speaker, consultant, and advisor for organizations including the National Network of State Teachers of the Year, Prince George’s County Public Schools, Specialized Education Services, Multiple Choice Independent Living Center, Clarke County Schools Local School Governance Team, and many more. Her expertise spans co-teaching, special education, leadership development, and social-emotional learning.
A first-generation college graduate, Dr. Coes is committed to creating inclusive pathways for students and educators alike. She brings to The NEA Foundation board a deep passion for supporting teachers, fostering innovation, and ensuring all students have access to excellent, high-quality education.
Kent McGuire served as Program Director of Education at The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation from 2017 to 2025. He led the investments of its teaching and learning and open educational resources strategies, with a focus on helping all students succeed in college, work, and civic life.
Previously, McGuire was the President and CEO of the Southern Education Foundation, an organization committed to advancing public education in the American South, with a focus on equity and excellence.
Prior to that, he served as the Dean of the College of Education at Temple University and was a tenured professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.
From 2001 to 2003, McGuire was a senior vice president at the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, where he split his time between research projects on school reform and directing its department on education, children, and youth. He has also been an education program officer at the Pew Charitable Trusts and directed the education program at the Lilly Endowment. McGuire served as Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education from 1998 to 2001.
McGuire earned his Ph.D. in public administration from the University of Colorado, an M.A. from Columbia University Teacher’s College, and a B.A in economics from the University of Michigan. He serves on the boards of The Wallace Foundation, Teacher’s College Columbia University, the Success for All Foundation, the Philanthropic Collaborative for Education, the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, and the Learning Policy Institute.
John Weiss is Vice President of Sustainability and Environmental Policy at Entergy, one of the nation’s 10 largest investor-owned electric power utilities serving three million customers in the Gulf South region. In this role he leads a team with a broad mandate to help define, and publicly report progress against, the company’s sustainability objectives. As a group within Entergy’s External Affairs organization, the team he leads is also closely involved in developing and implementing engagement initiatives with stakeholders from the investment and non-profit advocacy communities.
Weiss came to Entergy from the Boston-based nonprofit advocacy organization Ceres, where he served as senior director of the Ceres Company Network and guided direct engagement with large, US-based corporations focused on sustainable business strategies, governance practices and operational performance. Prior to joining Ceres, Weiss spent more than 20 years as a consultant to clients in the public and private sectors on a broad range of environmental and energy-related issues. He also previously worked at Cambridge Energy Research Associates, where he developed and communicated strategic insights to global energy industry clients.
Weiss has long demonstrated a commitment to serving in volunteer leadership roles. He is currently the Chair of the Board of Directors of River Network, an organization with a mission to strengthen organizations across the US that strive to improve and protect waterways, create climate-resilient communities, and ensure equitable access to safe, affordable drinking water. While at Ceres, he served on the Board of Global Compact Network USA, the US Chapter of the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative and the creator of the Sustainable Development Goals. Prior to moving to Washington, DC from Boston, Weiss served in multiple leadership roles at Beth El Temple Center, a Reform Jewish congregation in Belmont, MA, culminating in a two-year term as the congregation’s President and Board Chair. His role in temple leadership led to multiple years in a leadership capacity with the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization, a non-partisan, interfaith, multiracial power organization rooted in Greater Boston’s neighborhoods and congregations.
Weiss earned a bachelor’s degree in geological sciences from Brown University and a Master of Science degree in technology and policy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
To learn more about The NEA Foundation, visit www.neafoundation.org.
