Great Minds Announces Founder and CEO Lynne Munson Transitioning to New Role; John White, Chief Success Officer and former Louisiana State Superintendent, Appointed CEO

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Jan 15, 2025, 13:21 ET

RICHMOND, Va., Jan. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Great Minds PBC^® Founder and CEO Lynne Munson announced today that she is stepping down to start a new role. As part of the leadership transition, Munson has been named CEO Emeritus of Great Minds and will launch a new, independent company. John White, Chief Success Officer and former Louisiana State Superintendent of Education, has been appointed CEO. White earned national acclaim for his work in Louisiana where he led efforts to modernize curriculum, improve teacher preparation, and overhaul state educational standards.

Great Minds was founded in 2007 as a research and advocacy organization dedicated to bringing content-rich curriculum to all students and teachers and providing innovative professional development and coaching for schools. Under Munson's leadership, Great Minds developed the now widely adopted Eureka Math and Eureka Math². Munson also led the development of best-in-class curricula in English Language Arts (Wit & Wisdom^®, Arts & Letters™, and Geodes^®) and science (PhD Science^®).

"Founding Great Minds and working alongside our incredible teachers over the last 18 years has been so rewarding," said Munson, who will stay connected with Great Minds as CEO Emeritus. "Together we've crafted knowledge-rich curricula that set high expectations for all students and teachers. My confidence in John and the entire Great Minds team to carry forward our mission makes this transition possible, and it allows me to move on to my next challenge of sharing some of Great Minds' most innovative products directly with families."

In addition to taking on projects focused on advancing the high-quality instructional materials movement, Munson plans to launch a consumer-focused company that will bring Great Minds' Geodes® books for emerging readers directly to families.

"Lynne has been an extraordinary leader, steering Great Minds from a non-profit startup to a major provider of PreK-12 curricula and services to schools and school systems nationally. I'm honored to succeed her as CEO. Our team will continue to bring the highest quality resources to our school and district partners, never wavering from our deeply held belief that all children are capable of greatness," White said.

White joined the Great Minds team as Chief Success Officer in 2022. Under his leadership, the company more than doubled the size of its services business while also building new customer success, research, and public policy functions. White has also spearheaded partnerships with states across the country, including Texas, where Great Minds provides print, digital, and implementation support for Bluebonnet Math, the new state-approved open education curriculum resource.

Before serving as State Superintendent, White led the Louisiana Recovery School District, helping to transform New Orleans schools after Hurricane Katrina, and was Deputy Chancellor for the New York City Department of Education. White started his career teaching high school English in Jersey City, N.J.

Maria Neira, chair of the Great Minds PBC Board of Directors said, "Thanks to Lynne's exceptional leadership and unwavering commitment to providing all children with a content-rich education, Great Minds is well-positioned to advance our mission and accelerate growth to reach even more students across the country. As the company enters this next chapter, John is the ideal successor to lead the team forward. He has been instrumental in driving operational and business success at Great Minds and has a proven track record of working with school leaders and educators to improve student achievement. As a former educator, he brings the strategic mindset that's needed to meet this critical moment."

White, who previously served on the Great Minds Board of Directors, will rejoin the board in addition to serving as CEO.

Chi Kim, Board Chair at Ibis Group, the majority shareholder of Great Minds PBC, added, "Lynne is a trailblazer whose contributions to PreK-12 education cannot be overstated. It's been an honor to partner with her to bring evidence-based, high-quality curriculum to classrooms in all 50 states. We are incredibly fortunate to have John succeed Lynne at Great Minds. Having an educator of John's stature lead a curriculum company is not only unique, but it also demonstrates how deeply we believe in our mission moving forward."

"We salute Lynne for her remarkable leadership and vision in founding and leading Great Minds," said Marc Sternberg, Co-Founder and Managing Director of A-Street, and a Great Minds board member. "Few have done more to improve learning outcomes or to empower educators in classrooms across the country. "We celebrate Lynne's choice of John to carry on her legacy. Great Minds is certain to benefit from John's mix of experience as an educator and advocate for excellence in teaching."

"Lynne's tremendous vision and leadership have allowed Great Minds to become an influential player in the push to ensure all students and teachers have access to high-quality instructional materials," said Nell McAnelly, a longtime Great Minds board member and an original project director for the original EngageNY curriculum, the precursor to Eureka Math. "As a Louisianan and an educator who proudly celebrated the great things John accomplished here, I know he will bring the same drive for excellence that propelled our state forward to his leadership of Great Minds."

About Great Minds
Great Minds PBC is a public benefit corporation and subsidiary of Ibis Group, a nonprofit organization. Teachers and content experts write Great Minds curricula, applying their experience to create materials that resonate with students, teachers, and families. In addition to Arts & Letters™, Great Minds curricula include Eureka Math², Eureka Math^®, PhD Science^®, Wit & Wisdom,^® and Geodes^® books for emerging readers developed in cooperation with the Fundations^® foundational reading program from Wilson Language Training.