Katherine Craven P’22 Named Chair of Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

Katherine Craven P’22, Chief Administrative and Financial Officer at Babson since 2014, has been appointed Chair of the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education by Gov. Charlie Baker.

The mission of the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is to strengthen the Commonwealth’s public education system so that every student is prepared to succeed in postsecondary education, compete in the global economy, and understand the rights and responsibilities of American citizens, and in so doing, to close all proficiency gaps.

“Katherine is an experienced educational leader who cares deeply about expanding opportunity for every community and every child in the Commonwealth. Her deep knowledge of state government and her commonsense approach to policymaking and problem solving will be a tremendous asset to the Board and the Department in her new role.  I am so thankful for Katherine’s willingness to accept this new challenge,” said Secretary Education Secretary James Peyser in a press release.

Craven currently serves as the chief administrative and financial officer of Babson College, the top-ranked college for entrepreneurship education. She began her career in state budget analysis, planning and policy, helping deliver more than 10 state budgets for the Massachusetts House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means.

“Katherine is an accomplished and experienced leader with a long history of supporting and championing education at all levels,” said Babson President Kerry Healey. “I am so pleased and proud that she has been named Chair of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, and I know that she will be a valuable advocate and resource for Massachusetts schools, families and communities.”

“I am honored and grateful for the support of the Baker-Polito administration. I look forward to continuing the great work of Chairman Sagan and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to promote forward-thinking policies providing educational opportunity for nearly 1 million children of all different learning styles and socio-economic backgrounds across the Commonwealth to succeed in an ever-changing world,” Craven said.

In 2004, Craven was appointed as the founding executive director and chief executive officer of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, where she won plaudits for her effective management and leadership.

While leading the School Building Authority, Craven was also named First Deputy Treasurer of the Commonwealth. Craven left the School Building Authority and the Treasurer’s Office in 2011 when she was appointed executive director of the UMass Building Authority and assistant vice president for capital finance for the University of Massachusetts.

She is a member of many local government and community organization boards, such as the Dorchester Boys and Girls Club, the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress, the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the Massachusetts Business Roundtable, and Women in Public Finance. Craven received a Bachelor of Arts in History from Harvard University. She lives in Brookline, with her husband and five children.

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