Jean-Claude is the President and CEO at Digital Promise, a global, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization focused on accelerating innovation in education. Jean-Claude is a former Senior Advisor and Deputy Director at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and prior to his time at the foundation, he was the Chief Executive of Chicago Public Schools and Superintendent of Schools for the Rochester, NY School District. Under Jean-Claude’s leadership, both the Chicago Public Schools and the Rochester City School District saw substantial improvements in student performance. Jean-Claude’s experience also includes a 21-year career as an educator and administrator with the NYC Department of Education. There, he was a Regional Superintendent, supervising more than 100 schools in the Borough of Brooklyn, and he also served as the system’s Executive Director for secondary schools. Jean-Claude is a Fellow of the Broad Center, a Fellow of the third class of the Pahara-Aspen Institute Education Fellowship, and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. A commercial pilot and a native of Haiti, Jean-Claude credits his parents—both of whom were educators—with inspiring him to pursue a career in education. He is married to Dr. K. Brooke Stafford-Brizard and is the proud father of four beautiful children.