Katrina Stevens

Katrina Stevens is the fourth president and CEO of The Tech. As an educator, administrator, advisor and policymaker, she has focused on ways to create inspirational and impactful learning experiences for young people around the world.

Before joining The Tech, Stevens was the director of learning science at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, where she sought opportunities to improve learning, especially for young people who face the most serious obstacles to success. There, she oversaw a $200 million portfolio of 67 grants.

Among the projects Stevens led were grants to PBS Kids to develop infrastructure to better measure the impact of its educational programming and to EF+Math, which uses an inclusive R&D approach prioritizing the voices and lived experiences of those the program aims to serve, and the e2i Coach, which helps schools understand what practices and tools work for whom in what context. She also helped fund the creation of 100 open-source Next Generation Science Standards assessments in physical science.

In 2014 Stevens was appointed by the Obama Administration to serve as the deputy director and senior adviser in the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology, where she led the Future Ready Schools movement to help district leaders implement best practices in digital learning, as well as overseeing education innovation clusters, rapid cycle evaluations, developer outreach, and the National Education Technology Plan.

Katrina also served as the co-founder of the University of Virginia’s Edtech Education Exchange and was the founding entrepreneur-in-residence for JFF Labs, EdSurge Summit Director, and the founding Executive Director of EdTech Maryland.

Before her time in government, Stevens worked as an educator, including roles as a classroom teacher, department chair, program director and interdisciplinary curriculum leader. She worked in the central office in Baltimore County Public Schools and spent three years with the Ministry of Education in Bermuda for Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Talented Youth, launching a lab school and gifted program for students from across the island. She also wrote about the educational technology sector as a journalist for Edsurge, and co-founded #edtechchat, the first Twitter chat for education technology. Throughout her career, she has consulted with a wide range of education startups, foundations and nonprofits and served on multiple boards and advisories.

Stevens is the first educator and first woman to lead The Tech. She is deeply committed to equity and to ensuring The Tech helps to diversify the STEM workforce to ensure people from all backgrounds play a role in the development of technology.

A magna cum laude graduate of Temple University, Stevens has a bachelor’s degree in English literature and a master’s degree in English literature and composition. She loves to hike, is passionate about otters, enjoys baking and writing, and is a fan of “So You Think You Can Dance.” She grew up in Chambersburg, Pa., and lives in San Carlos with her partner, Chip, and their Covid rescue dog, Clover.