James H. Shelton, a former U.S. deputy secretary of education, will head the education efforts of the multibillion-dollar philanthropic organization created last fall by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, pediatrician Priscilla Chan.
Shelton departed the Education Department last summer to become the president and chief impact officer of 2U Inc., an education technology company. He previously worked as a program director at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and as a partner at the NewSchools Venture Fund.
Sonja Santelises, a former chief academic officer in the Baltimore district, will become CEO as of July 1.
She replaces Gregory Thornton, who came to the district in 2014.
Santelises is the vice president of K-12 policy and practice at the Education Trust, a Washington-based education policy organization. She also served as an assistant superintendent of pilot schools and assistant superintendent in charge of professional development in the Boston school system.
