http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/05/technology/mark-zuckerberg-hires-education-leader-to-run-philanthropic-effort.html 2016-09-15 00:42:29 Zuckerberg and Chan Hire Education Leader to Run Philanthropic Effort James H. Shelton, a former deputy secretary of the federal Education Department, will oversee the couple’s efforts in education. === Mark Zuckerberg Mr. Shelton will lead the education component of “When you think about philanthropy, the question is, ‘How can you be catalytic?’” Mr. Shelton said in a phone interview. “It’s a huge opportunity for transformational work.” Mr. Shelton’s hiring is part of a stream of Washington officials going to work for tech titans. Among them are Jay Carney, a former White House press secretary, who is The trend is more recent in education. Former federal education officials often used to enter politics or take up positions at universities and research groups. But in March, the Emerson Collective, an organization set up by Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple’s co-founder, Steve Jobs, said it had The advent of nontraditional philanthropic vehicles seems to be drawing new interest from veteran education officials. Both the Emerson Collective and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative are “Silicon Valley traditionally has not played a huge role in education reform,” said Richard Culatta, a former director of the Office of Educational Technology at the Department of Education and now chief innovation officer of the state of Rhode Island. He said the hiring of prominent education officials like Mr. Shelton, who is also a former executive at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Mr. Duncan could herald new approaches to learning. “There could be huge impact from nontraditional organizations in really innovating in the field,” he said. In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Mr. Zuckerberg said the couple’s education initiative would focus on “personalized learning” — the idea of using various technologies to help students customize their educational pathways — and on addressing barriers to education like poverty and illness. “We set up the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative with the flexibility to support nonprofits, invest in companies and advocate for policies that will advance this mission,” Mr. Zuckerberg wrote. “We’ll build technology where it can help, and we believe in listening to and working closely with parents, teachers and students to understand the specific needs of the communities we’re working in.” The couple are already involved in a variety of education endeavors. They donated $100 million to schools in Newark, and they have pledged $120 million to schools in the San Francisco Bay Area. They have donated $23 million to Dr. Chan is also working on The Primary School, which takes a new approach to elementary schools. Scheduled to open this fall in East Palo Alto, Calif., it is a free private school that will provide health care and education for students and their families. In a Facebook Live video on Wednesday, Dr. Chan said that she recognized the role that teachers could play in shaping students’ futures. “Teachers were the first people who opened my eyes to what was possible in the world, and what was possible to me,” Dr. Chan said.