The Wallace Foundation Announces Jean S. Desravines as New President
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
10 a.m. April 24, 2025
Contact:
Robin Harris
rharris@wallacefoundation.org
(212) 251-9782
Melissa Mellor
mmellor@thehatchergroup.com
(301) 656-0348
The Wallace Foundation Announces Jean S. Desravines as New President
New York, NY – April 24, 2025 – The Wallace Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of seasoned nonprofit leader Jean S. Desravines as its new President. The board selected Desravines after an extensive national search to replace Will Miller, who announced in June 2024 he would be stepping down after nearly 14 years of successfully leading the independent, nonpartisan, research foundation. Desravines will join the foundation on September 1, 2025.
“I am deeply honored and energized to join The Wallace Foundation as its next President,” said Desravines. “The foundation has a strong reputation for generating credible and useful insights that lead to positive change in its three focus areas of arts, education leadership, and youth development. I am excited to collaborate with the board, staff, grantees, and partners as Wallace writes its next chapter. Building off the legacy and great work of the team and Will, my vision is for Wallace to continue to be a catalyst of scalable and sustainable impact for communities across the country.”
Desravines currently serves as the CEO of New Leaders, a national nonprofit that for over 20 years has worked to develop transformational school leaders who are committed to the success of every child. Under Desravines’ 14 years at the helm, New Leaders has grown significantly in impact and scale, building a $30M operating reserve, expanding to support district and teacher leaders, and launching groundbreaking partnerships with Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University, preeminent historically Black institutions, along with Bank Street Graduate School of Education, to create one of the nation’s largest aspiring principals programs serving leaders who are representative of their communities.
Today, New Leaders boasts a national network of over 8,000 leaders serving nearly 2 million students across 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Evaluative studies by the RAND Corporation and Mathematica document the organization’s positive influence on student achievement.
“Jean stood out among a broad range of exceptional candidates for his strategic vision, transformational leadership, and deep alignment with Wallace’s mission and values,” said Board Chair Mary Beth West, who led the search committee. “His lived experience as an accomplished and forward-thinking leader, coupled with his studied knowledge of what it takes to be a great leader and passion for developing talent, uniquely position him to steer the foundation into its next chapter.”
Desravines grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant and East Flatbush neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York. He often talks about the influential leaders in his life, such as his father, a prominent judge who left Haiti and moved the family to the U.S. for a better life. Desravines’ father was determined to provide him with the high-quality education that he says drastically changed the course of his life. Another influential leader was his high school principal who refused to let him drop out after his father passed away and his mother returned to Haiti.
“Jean is an excellent choice to lead the foundation into the future,” said outgoing president Will Miller. “He brings a spirit of humility and collaborative leadership, which are at the core of the Wallace culture and key to our strategic approach to grantmaking. I’m confident he will work to strengthen Wallace’s role in improving outcomes. Advancing the foundation’s mission to help all communities build a more vibrant and just future is as important today as ever.”
Before joining New Leaders, Desravines served in several executive leadership roles with New York City Public Schools, including senior counselor to then-Chancellor Joel Klein and executive director of parent and community engagement. Desravines has extensive board experience, serving on for-profit, foundation, and nonprofit boards. He is the co-author of two books: Breakthrough Principals and The School Leadership Playbook. Additionally, he has been recognized for his entrepreneurial leadership, being named to the Forbes’ “Impact 30” list, distinguishing the world’s leading social entrepreneurs.
Desravines earned a bachelor of arts in history from St. Francis College and a master’s degree in public administration from New York University. He has been married to his wife Melissa for close to 30 years, and they are the proud parents of Jalen and Mia.
About The Wallace Foundation
The Wallace Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan research foundation focused on the arts, school leadership, and youth development. The foundation collaborates with grantees and research partners to design and test innovative approaches to address pressing problems in the fields it serves. The evidence-based insights shared by the foundation support policymakers and practitioners in their efforts to improve outcomes, enhance community vitality, and help all people reach their full potential.
