A former governor of West Virginia and nine-term member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Bob Wise has dedicated his career to expanding education opportunities for students, combining a lifetime of public service with national leadership in education reform.
As governor, Bob prioritized education, economic development, and health care, establishing the PROMISE Scholarship Program, which expanded access to higher education and significantly increased college attendance in the state. He also chaired the Southern Governors Association and the National Governors Association Committee on Natural Resources. Earlier in his career, he served as a state senator before representing West Virginia in Congress for 17 years.
Most recently, Bob spent 14 years as president of the Alliance for Excellent Education (All4Ed), a Washington, D.C.–based nonprofit recognized for shaping policies and practices to ensure every student graduates high school prepared for success in college, career, and life. Under his leadership, All4Ed launched Digital Learning Day, the groundbreaking Project 24 initiative, and Future Ready Schools®, a network of more than 3,300 districts committed to transforming learning through effective use of technology. While there, he was honored by The NonProfit Times as one of the “Power and Influence Top 50,” an annual listing of the most influential leaders in the nonprofit sector.
Currently, Bob coordinates the Global Science of Learning Education Network, which he co-founded to bring together researchers, policymakers, and educators worldwide to promote evidence-based strategies that meet the needs of today’s learners.
The author of “Raising the Grade: How High School Reform Can Save Our Youth and Our Nation,” Bob earned a Juris Doctor from Tulane University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Duke University.
