Joaquin Tamayo, a former high school teacher, principal and federal policymaker, is a Senior Policy Advisor at EducationCounsel, leading on projects related to advancing the science of learning and development to drive equity, improvement, and excellence in US education. Previously, Joaquin co-founded and was National Director of the Middle School Kindness Challenge at Stand for Children. In January 2017, Joaquin completed nearly three years of executive branch service in the Obama Administration as Director of Strategic Initiatives for Elementary and Secondary Education at the United States Department of Education. At USED, he created and led initiatives across the federal government and through public-private partnerships to substantially improve conditions for student learning in the nation’s public schools. Prior to his federal service, Joaquin was assistant director of the Aspen Institute Education & Society Program, where he managed the Aspen Congressional Education Staff Network. And, in 2005, he led a team of educators to found the Urban Assembly Academy of Government and Law (AGL), a small, government and law-themed public high school in New York City’s Lower East Side. Joaquin began his career in education in 1998 as a social studies teacher and student activities director in the Los Angeles Unified School District.