Avni Gupta-Kagan serves as an independent consultant, working to improve education outcomes for children in South Carolina and nationally on a range of issues including human capital management, leadership development, and K-12 curriculum. Avni’s clients include the Urban School Human Capital Academy, Global School Leaders New, New Leaders, and the South Carolina Department of Education. Avni works intensively as a volunteer with Achieve Columbia where she mentors a group of middle and high school students. In 2016, Avni narrowly lost a race for a spot on the Richland County School District One School Board. Prior to her consultant work, Avni served as an assistant principal in the DC Public Schools, including a turnaround preK-eighth grade school. Avni taught middle school science at the Academy of the Pacific Rim in Boston and helped found Amistad Academy, the first Achievement First charter school. Previously, Avni worked at New Leaders, a national organization focused on developing and supporting strong school leaders, as a program executive director leading the design, development, and implementation of several programs. In this role, Avni was responsible for working across a number of functions of the organization to design and implement the program in the local offices. Avni earned her bachelor's degree from Yale College, has a master’s degree in education administration from Trinity University, and a JD from Yale Law School. Avni is on the board of the Richland County Library, Children’s Theater of Columbia, Richland County Public Education Partners, and Washington, DC-based Critical Exposure.