Jack Elsey has been a results-oriented educator for nearly two decades. In 2022, in his home state of Michigan, Jack founded the Michigan Educator Workforce Initiative (MEWI), an organization committed to addressing the teacher shortage crisis and building a more robust educator pipeline for Michigan. MEWI’s first project, Talent Together, an innovative set of teacher pathway programs led by 56 Michigan Intermediate School Districts, is the largest collaboration of its kind between school districts in Michigan history and has over 1,100 candidates in pathways to teacher certification. Before establishing MEWI, Jack led the Detroit Children’s Fund, a non-profit dedicated to improving public schools in Detroit. Since 2024, MEWI has begun to explore expanding its work as the Educator Workforce Initiative (EWI) outside of Michigan.

Elsey has served in multiple district leader capacities, including Chief of Innovation and Incubation at Chicago Public Schools and Assistant Superintendent at Detroit Public Schools. He began his career as a middle school teacher with Teach For America in New York City and is a graduate of Wake Forest University, Pace University, and the Broad Center at Yale University. Elsey is a Broad Residency alum, inaugural Future Chief with Chiefs For Change, and Senior Fellow with Empower Schools. He serves on a number of local non-profit boards including chairing the Diploma Equity Project, supporting the Black Leaders Detroit’s Ally Council and serving on the advocacy committee for Talent Together.