Title: Chief Learning Officer
Company: Bloom Software, Inc. (Thrively)
Location: Glendale, California, United States
Dr. Marion Smith Jr. has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Educators for his achievements in education, and his track record of driving innovation, fostering equity and accelerating academic outcomes.
– Visionary, transformative and impact-driven leader
– Scholar-practitioner with experiences spanning public school teacher, school leader, EdTech leader, elected board member, regional leader, school district leader and state-level leader in diverse ethnic, linguistic, cultural and socioeconomic educational settings with enrollment ranging from 3,400 – 890,000 students
– Strong fiscal leader of budgets up to $45 million.
– Co-author of the Racial Equity Adaptive Leadership (R.E.A.L.) Framework©
– Legal acumen and data-informed systems thinker
Dr. Marion Smith Jr. is a career educator with over 25 years of experience leading and managing complex organizational growth, change and impact in PK-12 education, post-secondary institutions and EdTech.
Currently, Dr. Smith serves as chief learning officer for Bloom Software Inc. (Thrively). Thrively is a leading social impact EdTech company revolutionizing education through strengths-based education and asset-based learning. Thrively’s innovative ecosystem, learning-centered platform, pedagogical approaches and targeted supports develop the whole child by identifying strengths, supporting well-being, and instilling Hope. Prior to Thrively, Dr. Smith served as the assistant state superintendent of instructional programs & services for the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Before state-level leadership, he was the chief academic officer and deputy superintendent of academics for St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS). Additionally, he made history as the first Black administrator and first Black Superintendent of Schools for Summit School District in Summit County, Colorado, as well as serving as the first chief operating & education officer for TechSmart, a leading EdTech company specializing in K-12 computer science and coding education. Dr. Smith has held other educational leadership roles in Washington, Pennsylvania and Nevada. He began his career as a secondary English language arts teacher in his hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada in the fifth largest school district in the country, Clark County School District.
Guided by an unwavering pursuit of personal, institutional and systemic equity, Dr. Smith is the co-author of the Racial Equity Adaptive Leadership (R.E.A.L.) Framework©, and founder and owner of Educate to Liberate Consulting (E2LC). A first-generation college student, his education includes a doctorate degree in educational leadership and change from Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, CA; a law degree from the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University; a masters degree in education administration and supervision with K-12 principal certification, and a bachelors degree in secondary english education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Additionally, he is an inaugural graduate of the AASA Urban Superintendents Academy at the University of Southern California (USC); Harvard Business School Public Education Leadership Project (PELP) alumni; and a Men of Color in Educational Leadership (MCEL) National Leadership Institute Inaugural Fellow.
For more information, please visit:
Thrively
Educate to Liberate Consulting (E2LC)
Contact Dr. Smith:
