Callie Livengood ’26
Master’s Degree in Public Education Management
Senior director of K-8 curriculum and assessment, Uncommon Schools
Education sits at the intersection of so many other inequitable systems in our society. Leaders in the field need to be even more relentless in confronting them. At the same time, new forces like AI and school choice are reshaping the sector. We have to reimagine what education should and could be for students. I came to SOM to understand how we can deliver quality education at scale, to build a network of peers who are in this work with me, and to figure out who I am as a leader.
The curriculum has given me foundational knowledge as well as frameworks for tackling complex problems. During our first in-person residency, we learned about stress-testing decision-making processes: How do we push back on our own thinking and anticipate where we might fail? How can this make our systems more foolproof? This is something I immediately took back to my team at work. In my capstone project, I’m applying what I’ve learned in classes like Education Policy and Program Planning and Evaluation to ensure my own organization’s systems are measurable and impactful.
I’m still learning what it means for me to show up authentically as a leader in this space, which is why I love the Everyday Leadership course with Heidi Brooks. One of the questions she posed—“What would it look like to be 10% more courageous in this setting?”—is something I think about often and in many different contexts.
Before this program, I undervalued the importance of investing in my own growth. This is something Heidi also talks about in Everyday Leadership. Learning how we can sustain the difficult work we do has been one of the most meaningful takeaways.
My cohort has such deep and varied experience in education. It’s amazing. What’s most striking to me is what we have in common: the belief in an educational future that serves all students and a willingness to do the work to get there. We are always supporting each other—not just as education leaders but as human beings. I’ll cherish the relationships I’ve built here for the rest of my life.
