Will Burns is the Executive Vice President of National Advocacy and the Executive Director of the Charter School Action Fund. Before joining the National Alliance, Will managed government relations and public affairs for Airbnb and subsequently Spin. Prior to entering the private sector, he served in the Chicago City Council and the Illinois House of Representatives where he advanced public policies that promoted equity, reduced poverty, and increased opportunity. He had a strong interest in education funding and ensuring access to high-quality public schools—including charter schools.

Pete Kirkham has over 25 years of experience on Capitol Hill and serving clients through his firm, Red Maple Consulting. Prior to entering private practice, Pete served as chief of staff to Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) and later as executive director of the National Republican Campaign Committee when Mr. Cole was its chairman.

Ron C. Rice has over 20 years of public policy experience in the fields of education, urban development, and community empowerment initiatives as an executive state government appointee and two-term local elected official. Ron has served as the Special Assistant to the Commissioner of the NJ Department of Education and as a city councilman in Newark. Ron serves on the Boards of the Diverse Charter Schools Coalition and the National Charter Collaborative. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., a graduate of American University in Washington, D.C. and the Seton Hall University, School of Law.

Christy Wolfe is the Senior Vice President for Policy, Research and Planning for the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. She has more than 20 years of experience working on federal education policy, and has been a strong advocate of charter schools ever since her first visit to a charter school in 1998 for a U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce field hearing. Christy spent eight years at the U.S. Department of Education, serving as the associate deputy secretary for policy. In this role, she managed policy development and implemented regulations for all federal elementary, secondary, and special education programs. Christy was also a professional staff member for the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Education and the Workforce, where she worked on major education legislation, including the No Child Left Behind Act.