Learning First Alliance Staff & Leadership

Richard M. Long, Executive Director

longr@learningfirst.org
703-738-9081

Richard M. Long became Executive Director of the Learning First Alliance in February 2016.

Dr. Long is a nationally known advocate, writer and commentator on pre-K-12 issues and federal policy. Prior to joining LFA, he spent the past four decades working in education policy, including 37 years as the Government Relations Director for the International Reading Association. He also concurrently served as Executive Director/Government Relations Director for the National Title I Association from 1995 to 2014. He earned bachelors, masters and doctorate degrees from George Washington University.

Zoe Klein, Association Support Specialist

kleinz@learningfirst.org

Zoe Klein is the Association Support Specialist for Learning First Alliance. In May 2021, she graduated from Brandeis University with a Bachelor of Science in Education Studies and History. Before joining Learning First Alliance, Zoe worked as an Intern for Power in Place and volunteered with Brandeis' Department of Orientation.

Joetta Sack-Min, Communications Director

sackminj@learningfirst.org

Joetta Sack-Min has spent more than 20 years working in K-12 education policy and communications, and she has seen the formation of policy up close as well as its impact on local schools. Most recently, she spent nearly eight years producing publications for school boards and guiding internal and external communications at the National School Boards Association. Prior to that, she was an award-winning journalist at Education Week, the nation’s K-12 newspaper of record, for nine years.

A graduate of the University of Maryland’s School of Journalism, Sack-Min began her career as a White House news aide for the Associated Press, and she also has worked with several other news services and associations. As a reporter, she has interviewed presidents, cabinet secretaries, members of Congress, and high-ranking Washington insiders. But her favorite experiences were visiting schools and meeting with teachers and school officials across the country. Outside of work, she can usually be found volunteering at her children’s elementary school in Falls Church, VA. She is also a graduate student at George Mason University's College of Counseling & Development.

Board of Directors

The Learning First Alliance Board is composed of chief executive officers and other senior staff of each Alliance member organization. The Board meets at least six times each year to determine Alliance policy and practice. Board members include:

2020-21 Board Chair:
Keith R. Krueger
CoSN

2020-21 Secretary-Treasurer:
L. Earl Franks
NAESP

Immediate Past President:
Marla Ucelli-Kashyap
American Federation of Teachers

Board members: