Baton Rouge, LA. (Dec. 1, 2014) – New Schools for Baton Rouge (NSBR) announced today that it has hired Ashley Heard as its Director of Strategy and Innovation. Heard’s work will focus on ensuring high quality schools have the talent, resources and infrastructure to deliver excellent education opportunities to all students in Baton Rouge.“We are excited to welcome Ashley to our team and welcome her back to Baton Rouge. She brings a wealth of unique experience that will be incredibly important as NSBR moves forward as an organization focused on delivering excellence in Baton Rouge,” said Chris Meyer, CEO of NSBR.A native of Baton Rouge, Heard started her career as a high school special education teacher in Washington, DC. After teaching, she joined the staff of Teach For America, first managing the logistics of one of the organization’s summer teacher training programs then working as a program director charged with supporting secondary special education teachers. In 2011, Heard moved to Chicago to attend law school. During law school she worked with Chicago Public Schools as an Education Pioneer Fellow. Most recently, she served as a Charter Growth Manager at the Illinois Network of Charter Schools where she helped teams plan charter schools for their communities.Heard earned her undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt, her masters degree in special education from American University, and her law degree from Loyola University Chicago.About New Schools for Baton RougeNew Schools for Baton Rouge (NSBR) is a community partnership bringing together talent and resources to deliver excellent schools to students and families in Baton Rouge. Its mission is to ensure that every child in Baton Rouge has access to an excellent school. By 2017, NSBR will improve educational outcomes for 12,000 students in the city’s highest-need neighborhoods.###