Kent McGuire

Kent McGuire joined the board of directors of The Wallace Foundation in 2016.

McGuire is currently an advisor to both the Spencer Foundation and the Stuart Foundation, assisting with strategy, the review of grants, and the strengthening of connections to the education policy and practice communities.   

From 2017 to 2025, McGuire was the Program Director of Education at The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. He led the investments of its teaching and learning and open educational resources strategies, with a focus on helping all students succeed in college, work, and civic life. 

Previously, he was the president and chief executive officer of the Southern Education Foundation, an organization committed to advancing public education in the American South. Before that, he served as the Dean of the College of Education at Temple University and was a tenured professor in the university’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.

From 2001 to 2003, McGuire was a senior vice president at the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, where he split his time between research projects on school reform and directing its department on education, children, and youth.  He served as Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education from 1998 to 2001.

McGuire earned his Ph.D. in public policy from the University of Colorado, an M.A. from Columbia University’s Teachers College, and a B.A in economics from the University of Michigan. In addition to The Wallace Foundation, he sits on the boards of Teachers College, the Success for All Foundation, the Philanthropic Collaborative for Education, the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, and the Learning Policy Institute.