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.
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Visionary, transformative and impact-driven education leader with a proven track record of driving innovation, fostering equity and accelerating academic outcomes
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Scholar-practitioner with experiences spanning public school teaching, school leadership, EdTech leadership, elected board membership, regional leadership and school district cabinet-level leadership (including Chief Academic Officer and Superintendent of Schools) in diverse ethnic, linguistic, cultural and socioeconomic school districts with enrollment ranging from 3,400 – 310,000 students
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Strong fiscal leader with experience managing the implementation of budgets totaling up to $45 million
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Co-author of the Racial Equity Adaptive Leadership (R.E.A.L.) Framework; featured speaker and presenter at the national, state and regional levels covering topics ranging from adaptive leadership, critical pedagogy, adult learning, implementation science, systems thinking and racial equity/diversity/inclusion (REDI)
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Legal acumen and data-informed systems thinker who leads and supports cross-functional teams to manage complex organizational growth and change
Dr. Marion Smith Jr. is an experienced and innovative former assistant state superintendent, superintendent of schools, school principal and public school teacher. He brings over 20 years of impact leading and managing complex organizational growth and change across the country in PK-12 education, post-secondary institutions and EdTech.
Currently, Dr. Smith serves as the vice president of education & impact for Bloom Software, Inc. (Thrively). Thrively is a leading social impact EdTech company dedicated to revolutionizing education through its strengths-based education and asset-based learning approaches. By leveraging cutting-edge technology and research-backed methodologies, Thrively empowers educators, students, and families to discover and cultivate individual strengths, interests, and talents. Through personalized learning experiences tailored to each learner’s unique profile, Thrively fosters a culture of engagement, growth, and empowerment to humanize learning in schools and communities nationwide.
Prior to Thrively, Dr. Smith served as the assistant state superintendent of instructional programs & services for the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Before that he was the chief academic officer and deputy superintendent of academics of St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS). Additionally, he made history after being appointed as the first Black administrator and first Black superintendent of schools of Summit School District in Summit County, Colorado, as well as serving as the first chief operating & education officer of TechSmart, a leading EdTech company specializing in K-12 computer science and coding education. Dr. Smith has held other 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 nation, 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 the founder and owner of Educate to Liberate Consulting (E2LC). In addition, he is the co-designer and co-facilitator of the ‘Coaching and Leading for Racial Equity’ series that has since become foundational training and professional learning offered by the largest educational service district (ESD) in Washington State that serves 35 school districts educating over 400,000 PK-12 students.
A life-long learner with a focus on excellence, Dr. Smith is a former public school K-12 student, performing arts high school graduate, and first-generation college student. His scholarship includes a bachelor’s degree in secondary English education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and a master’s degree in education administration & supervision with K-12 principal certification from the University of Phoenix – Las Vegas campus. He earned a doctorate degree in educational leadership & change from Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, California, and pursued post-doctoral studies in executive leadership at Seattle University (Seattle U), earning Washington State Superintendent Certification. Additionally, Dr. Smith is an inaugural graduate of the AASA Urban Superintendents Academy from the University of Southern California (USC); a Harvard Business School Public Education Leadership Project (PELP) Summer Institute alumni; Men of Color in Educational Leadership (MCEL) National Leadership Institute Inaugural Fellow; and a Spring 2024 graduate from the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.
For more information, please visit:
Thrively
Educate to Liberate Consulting (E2LC)
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