Heather Harding Joins Campaign for Our Shared Future As Executive Director

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 1, 2022

Heather Harding Joins Campaign for Our Shared Future As Executive Director

Washington, D.C. - Today, the Campaign for Our Shared Future (COSF), a common ground effort committed to fighting the attack on public education across the country, announced that Heather Harding has joined the organization as its inaugural Executive Director. Harding is a lifelong educator with experience in nonprofit management and professional development.

“The Campaign for Our Shared Future is bringing together families, students, teachers, administrators, and activists to fight for our kids’ rights to a quality education. I am humbled by the opportunity to help lead this effort,” said Harding. “We know that an excellent K-12 education, inclusive of and accessible to all, is the foundation of a healthy multi-racial democracy. Together we will continue the work in pursuit of a country where this opportunity is guaranteed to every child.”

“At the heart of Heather’s career has been the belief that respectful collaboration between parents and teachers is an essential tool for helping kids succeed in life,” said Eliza Byard, COSF Senior Advisor and co-founder. “As a mother of two teenagers, she knows that parents play the role of a child’s first and primary teacher. This family centered leadership will be a strong driving force for COSF’s mission and efforts moving forward.”

Harding will lead the charge in stopping harmful anti-education policy by working with partners in local communities. In addition, the campaign will work to successfully shift the narrative about schools away from culture wars pushed by extremist politicians and instead focus on the needs of our children. Heather’s career has prepared her to build, mobilize, and strengthen a network of national and local organizations who are ready to sustain free, inclusive, and excellent K-12 schools.

“Heather is bringing decades of work from the intersection of access to high-quality education and racial equity to COSF. Her experiences as a public school teacher, education researcher, and mother have uniquely prepared her to lead our efforts to secure a more equitable and inclusive education for all students,” said Ruthanne Buck, COSF Senior Advisor and co-founder. “The campaign is stepping up to stop disinformation and represent the exhausted majority of parents who want to get back to the basics of what makes our public schools great. We are thrilled that Heather will be bringing her talents, expertise, and passion to COSF.”

Harding grew up in a Black and Indigenous family, living between Michigan and Massachusetts, which allowed her to experience different cultures and communities both at home and at school. She knows firsthand how a richly diverse, inclusive education can benefit our children’s growth and development. Her experiences in public schools propelled her all the way to Northwestern University and then to Harvard University, where she studied education before beginning her career as a middle school English teacher in underserved communities. She went on to research and philanthropy work all while furthering her career mission of improving education opportunities for all children.

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The Campaign for Our Shared Future (COSF) is a non-partisan effort to support high quality K-12 education and preserve access, inclusion, and meaningful content in our schools so that every student has an opportunity to succeed and thrive. COSF is a common ground effort committed to fighting the attack on education across the country.