Daniela Fairchild

Daniela Fairchild has a diverse range of work experience, starting in 2006 as a Special Education Teacher at The Compass School. Daniela then worked as a Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist at Africare in 2009, evaluating a USAID food security initiative. From 2009 to 2010, they were a Research Assistant at The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, where they managed education policy reports and served as a copy editor. Daniela also coached the Girls Varsity Crew Team at Woodrow Wilson Crew Boosters from 2009 to 2013.

Fairchild then joined The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation again from 2010 to 2013, first as an Associate Editor and Policy Analyst, where they curated the organization's weekly online magazine and managed education-policy reports, and later as a Development Manager and Policy Analyst, where they managed grant reporting and donor relations.

In 2014, they became the Director of Leadership Development at 50CAN, where they ran the teaching and learning arm of the organization and streamlined processes. From 2015 to 2016, they worked as the Director of Strategy at RI-CAN.

Fairchild then joined the Rhode Island Office of Innovation, where they served as the Director of Education from 2016 to 2018, leading the state's education innovation cluster and working on personalized learning initiatives. Daniela later became the Director of the Office of Innovation from 2018 to 2021, overseeing efforts to improve public systems in the state.

Currently, they hold the position of Chief Strategy Officer at Rhode Island Commerce, where they are responsible for the development of the state's economic development strategy, as well as internal systems and processes. Daniela also works on maximizing federal capital investment in Rhode Island.

Daniela Fairchild completed their Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from Tufts University from 2002 to 2006. Subsequently, they pursued a Master of Science in Education (MS Ed) with a field of study in International Educational Development at the University of Pennsylvania from 2008 to 2009.