Tom Vander Ark

Tom Vander Ark

Tom Vander Ark is an advocate for innovations in learning. As CEO of Getting Smart, he advises schools, districts, networks, foundations and learning organizations on the path forward. A prolific writer and speaker, Tom is author of several books including Getting Smart, Smart Cities That Work for Everyone, Smart Parents, Better Together, The Power of Place and Difference Making at the Heart of Learning.13

Key Facts

• CEO of Getting Smart, an education advocacy organization12
• Director at Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC), a nonprofit working to replace traditional high school transcripts with a mastery transcript1346
• Previously served as the first Executive Director of Education for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation13
• Former public school superintendent in Federal Way, Washington123
• Serves on the board of several education organizations including 4.0, Latinx Education Collaborative, and Digital Learning Institute123
• Has visited over 2,500 high schools and worked with over 400 nonprofits3
• Author of over 50 books and white papers134

Tom is passionate about using innovations in learning to boost equity and access, especially for students from low-income backgrounds. He believes new tools and learning environments hold the potential to dramatically improve achievement and completion rates.2

As a Director at MTC, Tom is working to transform high school transcripts to better capture and communicate students' competencies and capabilities. MTC's mastery transcript is being accepted by an increasing number of colleges as an alternative to the traditional transcript.45