Crystal Rountree is chief executive officer of Jumpstart, a national early education nonprofit dedicated to ensuring every child enters kindergarten ready to thrive. Since joining Jumpstart in January 2024, Crystal has led the organization through a period of change, navigating the intersection of scale, sustainability, and equity in early learning. Her work focuses on strengthening the core program while aligning strategy, talent, and resources to build cost effective, scalable pathways to reach more children and families nationwide.

Prior to Jumpstart, Crystal spent eighteen years at Teach For America, where she most recently served as executive vice president and chief revenue and development officer. In that role, she led the strategy and team responsible for diversifying and growing more than $250 million annually in philanthropic partnerships and revenue pathways to support national impact. She oversaw enterprise wide fundraising and helped evolve the organization’s economic model to support long term sustainability.

Over her tenure, Crystal held senior leadership roles spanning fundraising, regional strategy, and operations, including regional field executive, executive director of the Charlotte Piedmont Triad region, senior vice president of strategic initiatives and partnerships, and founding executive director of Teach For America Jacksonville. In Jacksonville, she launched and scaled the region’s work, raising more than $20 million and securing a $5 million state appropriation.

Crystal began her career as a first grade teacher in Atlanta as a 2003 Teach For America corps member and was a regional finalist for the Sue Lehmann Excellence in Teaching Award. Her classroom story has been featured in Teaching As Leadership and Switch.

A summa cum laude graduate of Clark Atlanta University, Crystal lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband and son. Her leadership is shaped by her experience as an educator, a parent, and a lifelong advocate for opportunity.