Dr. Ryan Tauriainen is the executive director of Teach For America D.C. and Virginia, leading vision, programming, and development for one of the region’s most consequential education non-profits. Prior to working with Teach For America, Ryan was a 2019-2020 White House Fellow placed at the U.S. Department of Education where he played a significant role in the rollout of emergency funding to schools during the outbreak of COVID-19.

His early career was in Title I public schools, including leading early childhood strategy at a district level, being a D.C. school leader, and starting as a Teach For America corps member in Hawaii. Ryan was the 2016 Washington Post Principal of the Year and has national awards from Leading For Children, the Council for Exceptional Children, and the National Council of Teachers of English. His published dissertation is among the largest studies centered around LGBTQ pre-service teachers in the world. Ryan earned his bachelor’s degree from Middlebury College as a National Merit Scholar, his master’s degree in education from Chaminade University of Honolulu, and a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.