Heather Gage Consultant
Heather has more than 15 years of experience working with school districts, postsecondary education, advocacy organizations and state government. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning, policy development, project planning and management, and consensus development. Since joining Education First, Heather has worked with variety of clients including the Data Quality Campaign, Hawai'i P20 Council, the State of Tennessee (First to the Top), and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Before joining Education First, Heather worked as the policy director for the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE), where she focused on state and federal policy action and directed more than $500 million in grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. While at the ADE, Heather coordinated the development and promotion of its policy agenda by working in partnership with other senior staff to facilitate cross-division discussions on short- and long-term initiatives, and assisted the legislative and legal divisions in conducting research and outreach to key policymakers and stakeholders for legislative action. Heather also coordinated the College- and Career-Ready Policy Institute for Arkansas and served as the department's liaison to the Arkansas Department of Higher Education and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) Federal Liaison Network.
Prior to joining the ADE, Heather was the director for the Arkansas Study Circles Project (ASCP) at the Arkansas School Boards Association, where she was responsible for the overall management of ASCP and other public engagement strategies. In this work she provided technical assistance to communities across the state using the study circles model for extended and short term conversations about education issues. Heather also served on the association's legislative team by tracking legislation, conducting research, assisting with the development and promotion of ASBA position statements, and facilitating action with educational stakeholders and policymakers.
Heather earned her master's degree in public administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and her bachelor's degree in social work from the University of Maine at Presque Isle. She currently lives in Bedford, New Hampshire.