COMMUNITY & CULTURE
20 PEOPLE TO KNOW
BRITTANY
PACKNETT
Executive Director
Teach for America
A graduate of John Burroughs School and Washington
University, Brittany Packnett is an emerging national
leader in social justice. She is committed to empowering
young people to lead the modern movement toward
justice by building strong learners and leaders in
classrooms and beyond.
Brittany grew up in North St. Louis County and moved
to Washington D.C. after college. There, she taught third
grade, then worked in federal education policy and
advocacy for low-income students around the nation as
a Capitol Hill staffer and a director of government affairs
for Teach for America.
In 2014, Brittany was appointed to the Ferguson
Commission and to President Obama’s Task Force on
21st Century Policing. She was named by Time Magazine
as one of 12 New Faces of Black Leadership in January
2015, for her work involving Ferguson, Missouri, where
she continues to operate as a vital link between the
community and politicians in an effort to translate a tragic
event into long-term change.
The daughter of educators, Brittany affirms that
education equality is a fight for justice. She fits right
in at Teach for America where the mission is to enlist,
develop and mobilize our nation’s most promising
future leaders to grow and strengthen the movement
for educational equity.
SAVVY I SOPHISTICATED I SASSY