Mary Kingston Roche brings 20 years of experience in education to NCFL including from the local to federal levels of policy and system change. Mary began her career as a middle and high school English teacher in Oakland, CA. She has held policy leadership roles at various organizations, including as Vice President of Policy for the Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL) where she led national advocacy for the Coalition for Community Schools and helped increase funding for the Full-Service Community Schools program from $10 million to $150 million within ten years, and launched a network of state coalitions that has contributed to supportive policies and funding across several states. While at IEL, she also served as National Director of the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP), designed and launched modules on policymaking and advocacy, and coached hundreds of leaders in effective advocacy and coalition-building. As NCFL’s inaugural Director of Strategic Partnerships, Mary leads the development of high-impact relationships that drive the spread and scale of NCFL’s mission and vision nationwide, including through the development of Family Learning Communities.