Francisco Cruz

About Francisco Cruz

Proven education equity leader who takes great pride in creating sustainable systems and fostering symbiotic, innovative partnerships. I\'m passionate about individual agency, particularly youth leadership, community empowerment, and leading impactful programs that connect real world-learning and education equity. I started my career as a 7th grade ELA teacher, finding a passion for education equity, and seeking to find a way to empower young people to see themselves as change agents not only in their communities, but centrally, in their lives. I\'m an impact-driven organizational leader, directing education equity programs, with skills in: strategic leadership, fundraising, team-building, everything programs from design to implementation to evaluation, cross-team collaboration, and partnership and business development with an eye for sustainable growth. People-centric in my system orientation-I never lose sight of how systems can be improved to be more supportive of the work and the people doing it.I\'m a dad to a soon-to-be-seven-year-old who\'s my everything! When I\'m not working in community, I am an avid cinephile, sci-fi enthusiast, poet & short story writer who has an uncanny ability to see the writing on the wall for how stories and characters play out. I\'m also a \"Dungeons & Dragons\" Game Master for my closest friends, building worlds and doing active storytelling!

Experience

1. Director, Leadership Development

   Teach For America

   Dec 2025 — Present · CT, US

   Provide individualized, data-informed coaching to corps members that improves teaching practice, fosters student academic and social-emotional growth, and builds long-term leadership capacity. Analyze data trends in cohorts, setting individualized goals, and evolving strategies as needed to drive outcomes.Build and maintain strategic relationships with school leaders and community partners that enhance corps member development and ensure alignment with school priorities. Serve as a liaison between CMs and school stakeholders, proactively addressing challenges and surfacing opportunities for collaboration.Design and facilitate targeted group learning experiences, such as workshops, coaching milestone events, and learning series, that deepen CM leadership and align with regional goals. Establish clear learning outcomes, gathering feedback, and adapting sessions to meet emerging needs.

Education

• Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics

  High School Diploma

  2005 — 2009

• Lehman College

  Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Psychology and Philosophy

  2009 — 2014

• Fordham University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences

  Master of Science of Education (M.S.E.), Education

  2014 — 2016

• Lehman College

  Bachelor of Arts - BA, Psychology