Sara Mead

Sara Mead

Board Member

Assistant Superintendent of Early Learning, DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education

As a partner with Bellwether Education Partners, Sara leads Bellwether’s early childhood work across both our policy and strategic advising teams. Since joining Bellwether in 2010, she has written and conducted policy analysis on early childhood education, charter schools, teacher quality, and state and federal education policy issues and has provided strategic advising support to foundations, advocacy organizations, and early childhood operators. Her work has been featured in media outlets including The Washington Post, The New York Times, Slate, and USA Today, and she is a regular contributor to U.S. News & World Report’s Knowledge Bank vertical. Before joining Bellwether, Sara directed the New America Foundation’s Early Education Initiative. She has also worked for Education Sector, the Progressive Policy Institute, and the U.S. Department of Education. From September 2009-July 2017 she served on the District of Columbia Public Charter School Board, which authorizes charter schools in Washington, D.C. She holds a bachelor’s degree in public policy from Vanderbilt University.


Most Recent Posts
No Shortcuts to Student Success: The Case for Statewide Annual Assessments
When I think about why I’ve dedicated my career to advancing and strengthening the ideas and practices of authorizing, I think about the students I’ve met over the years—bright, curious...
Raising the Bar: NACSA’s Updated State Policy Recommendations
NACSA believes that strong laws enable strong authorizing. In turn, strong authorizing leads to strong public education outcomes for students, families, and communities. That’s why we regularly update our state...
A New Path Forward: NACSA’s Bold New School Application Guidance
I’ll never forget a foundational principle I learned nearly two decades ago, while authorizing in Indianapolis: It should be hard to gain approval to start a new charter school. But...