Gretchen Livesey

Partnership Director

Gretchen joined Turnaround in 2017 as the Partnership Director in Washington D.C. In this role, she builds the knowledge and capacity of district and charter organization leaders to support Turnaround systems and strategies in their schools. Gretchen currently collaborates with three clusters of principals in District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). She also manages Turnaround’s partnership with KIPP DC, working at both the network level and with two schools: Quest and AIM academies.

Prior to joining Turnaround, Gretchen was the linked learning director for the Oakland Unified School District in California. Her greatest accomplishment in that role was leading the team that crafted the blueprint for high school redesign funded by a local property tax that ensured 10 years of public financing ($12 million annually) to improve outcomes for Oakland students. Throughout her 28 years in education, Gretchen has been an English and filmmaking teacher, a curriculum writer, an instructional coach, a small school founder and a leader at both the site and district level.

Gretchen earned an M.S. in Educational Leadership at California State University, East Bay, a B.A. in English and a teaching credential at the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Who is your hero?

My hero is my daughter, Julia. She is one of the most grounded, kind, compassionate humans that I have ever met. It is a great privilege to be her mother.

What book has influenced you the most?

“Love in the Time of Cholera” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez heightened my appreciation for small moments that happen every day. Being attuned to the gift of the present is something for which I will be forever grateful.