Chris Thinnes, career educator and education consultant speaks at length about public versus private education, progressive education, when and why schools fail or succeed in meeting the needs of children and society.
Chris Thinnes, Ed.D. is a veteran independent school division head, experienced DEI consultant and facilitator, former English teacher, and long-term collaborator with education leaders from the public and private sectors. He has served as a Head of Lower School (K-5), Academic Dean (K-6), Head of Upper Elementary School (3-6), Head of Upper School (7-8), and Dean of Upper School (7-8) in Los Angeles-area independent schools. In all of these settings, as in his consultation and facilitation, he has championed systemic DEI work, progressive pedagogy, student agency and voice, faculty collaboration, home-school communication, and public-private partnerships. He has been affiliated with EduColor since 2015, and has co-chaired its board since 2020. Chris also serves on the board of the Progressive
Education Network, and has been a member of NAIS‘s DEI advisory council (“Call to Action”), EdLeader21’s Advisory Group, and a variety of local school boards and advisory groups. He has facilitated workshops at national conferences for NAIS (PoCC and Annual), ASCD, the Progressive Education Network, and EdLeader21, and is a founding member of the design and facilitation team of The Equity Exchange, a week-long annual institute for DEI practitioners in the public and private school sectors. He has been honored as a Fellow of the Martin Institute for Teaching Excellence, named
one of Carney Sandoe’s“8 Thought Leaders to Follow Now,” and featured as a panelist for the ASCD Whole Child Town Hall. Chris has been a Senior DEI Consultant with Blink Strategic Consulting since 2021, and he completed his doctorate in Educational Leadership for Social Justice at LMU in 2022. His writing about education issues has appeared in Education Week , Inndependent School Magazine , GOOD , and a variety of other blogs and publications. Throughout his service in schools, Thinnes has promoted an understanding that“deeper learning” for our students depends on diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice in our schools.