Joan Sullivan Anane

Joan Sullivan Anane has over 25 years of experience across the nonprofit, civic, and philanthropic sectors, building and growing high-impact, high-integrity organizations. She is the founder and CEO of a consulting practice that partners with entities looking to generate transformational change in communities. Her focus is on supporting and sustaining mission-driven leaders by helping them to rally resources, people, and ideas; set and refine strategy; and redesign and co-create critical initiatives and systems.

Joan spent a decade as the CEO of one of our nation’s largest school transformation organizations, where she raised and deployed over $200 million to uplift a network of public schools in Watts, Boyle Heights, and South LA. In this role, Joan also crafted and drove a policy agenda that resulted in far-reaching systemic change in our nation’s second-largest school district, including a new funding formula that redirected over $1 billion to the highest-need schools and a digital equity initiative that made broadband available to 100,000 families otherwise without access.

As Deputy Mayor of Education for Los Angeles, Joan advised philanthropy, forged coalitions, facilitated public-private partnerships, and convened leaders from across California. She is a versatile strategist, entrepreneur, and communicator who has served mayors and presidential candidates, designed and led high-performing urban public schools, and published numerous articles and a well-reviewed memoir about electoral politics and civic engagement. She is a seasoned executive coach and a frequent public speaker.

A graduate of Yale College with a master’s in school leadership, Joan is also an alum of the Berkeley Executive Coaching Institute, the Pahara-Aspen Education Fellowship, and the Broad Center’s Superintendents Academy. She has a wife and three daughters and is a proud public school parent.