Jessica Grady Heard has over 20 years of experience as an educator, non-profit leader, and school district administrator. She began consulting with Building for Mission in 2022.

Previously, as NCTR’s Chief of Equity and Inclusion, she was an advisor for a national initiative to attract, prepare, and empower Black teacher residents. Additionally, she led internal diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts for NCTR staff. Prior to joining NCTR, Jessica worked in District of Columbia Public Schools as the Deputy Chief of Equity and Deputy Chief of Talent Acquisition and Retention. She also served DCPS and DC charter schools as the site leader for TNTP’s DC Teaching Fellows program. Earlier in her career, Jessica led out-of-school time programs with Breakthrough Collaborative, KIPP DC, and the Urban Alliance Foundation. She began her career teaching in the autism program at the Ivymount School.

Jessica holds a B.A. in Psychology from Grinnell College and an Executive Master’s in Leadership from Georgetown University. She is based in Cincinnati, OH and has long-standing family and professional connections to Washington, DC.