John Alford

As the Chief Network Growth Officer, John manages the team of Relationship Managers and Strategy Leads at the KIPP Foundation. Additionally, John directly supports a portfolio of regions including New Orleans, Memphis, and Delta. Prior to returning to KIPP, John worked at the New York City Department of Education where he served as Senior Director in the New Schools office, training founding and turnaround principals as a key strategy in the District’s turnaround effort.

Prior to that, John was the Founder, CEO and middle school principal at Langston Hughes Academy Charter School in New Orleans. John helped establish New Schools for New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and taught fifth grade math at KIPP Ujima Village Academy. John spent four years with the KIPP Foundation during its founding years, first as a Trailblazer and later as the National Director of the Trailblazing team. John has a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from NC A&T State and an MBA from Harvard Business School.