Constance Jones is a national leader with over 15 years’ experience driving transformation, innovation, sustainable growth, and significantly improved outcomes for 100K+ schoolchildren. She brings deep expertise in change management, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), organizational health, and the education sector. As the CEO of Noble Schools, Chicago’s largest public charter school network, Constance directs an annual budget of $230MM. Through the strategic planning initiative she completed in 2018, she stabilized a large school system in a complex political environment. Key indicators of impact include record-breaking accomplishments: the Class of 2022 secured over $500MM in scholarships, 10 out of 12 Noble Schools ranked in the Top 12 CPS Schools for 2019, and Noble reached its highest student and staff retention in history at 97% and 85%, respectively. Constance met the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic head-on and ensured that her students and staff continued to thrive. As the first person of color on the executive team at Noble Schools, Constance committed early on to DEI work and has built a sustainable anti-racist organization. Her influence and kind relationship-building style allow her to create consensus and build an inclusive, healthy work culture. Most recently, she increased staff diversity by +12% within five years, to 70% people of color with a focus on instructional staff, diversified the executive team to 70% people of color and 70% female in 2022, and increased diversity on the Board of Directors to include 56% women and 53% people of color. These changes ensure that leadership reflects the communities that Noble Schools serve. Policy changes and restructuring the organization have led to some of the highest and best outcomes in Noble’s history, across 12,000 students, 23,000 alumni, 1,600 staff, and 18 campuses. Prior to being CEO for Noble Schools, Constance held progressively responsible roles in program evaluation and development at KIPP Foundation, the foundation supporting KIPP Schools, the largest public charter school network in the U.S., with 280 schools and 175,000 students and alumni. There, Constance secured $6.5MM in seed funding to launch KIPP Teaching and Learning Labs and raised over $3MM during the 20th anniversary event. She was the sole recipient of the 2013 Team & Family Award, KIPP Foundation’s most prestigious award. Constance also built critical strategic partnerships with the NYU Stern School of Business and The University of Chicago. Earlier in her career, Constance was an outstanding Pharmaceutical Sales Representative for Johnson & Johnson, growing her territory to 135% of product quota in six months and receiving a Top 10 Sales Representative Award for the Mid-Atlantic Region. Constance earned her bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her MBA from Harvard Business School. For her impact in Chicago, Constance was recently awarded the Chicago Bulls MLK Legacy Award for Civic Leadership and the UNC-Chapel Hill Distinguished Young Alumni Award, as well as being named as one of the ‘50 Most Powerful Women’ in Chicago. She leads with empathy and authenticity and builds strong, positive relationships to foster trust and credibility. Her work has been featured on 60 Minutes, in Chicago Magazine, the Chicago Sun-Times, The 74, and other publications. As Founding Vice Chair of Hope Chicago, a non-profit funding post-secondary scholarships and non-tuition costs for Chicago Public School graduates, Constance laid the ground for thousands of college scholarships and university partnerships that will allow CPS students and their parent or guardian to attend and graduate college debt-free. As the initial portfolio Board Member for the Charter School Growth Fund, Constance provides critical guidance to one of the largest education venture funds in the U.S. that is currently completing Fund IV, a $550MM funding round. To date they’ve funded over 1,400 schools that serve more than 650,000 students in 34 states, expanding the impact of great schools. In each leadership role, Constance is committed to pushing forward bold change and tackling complex challenges.