Jane Best is a strategic partner at EDGE Consulting Partners. Previously she was the Chief Strategy Officer at McREL International, a private 501 (c) (3) education research and development corporation, where she led the government relations, institutional development, grant writing and strategic planning. She has also served as a senior policy associate for the Regional Education Laboratory (REL) Midwest, a federal contract to support state education agencies, funded by the U.S. Department of Education at Learning Point Associates (now American Institutes for Research) in Chicago. She was a senior policy specialist at the National Conference of State Legislatures in Denver, and a policy associate for the Vanderbilt University Peabody Center for Education Policy in Nashville. Dr. Best started her career in education as a high school French and ESL teacher in Columbus, Ohio.
Jane has experience developing, providing technical assistance and implementing federal, state and foundation funded initiatives. She is skilled at project management, writing proposals, facilitating meetings and translating complex technical research for multiple stakeholders. She has written numerous policy briefs on pressing education issues that impact schools and systems. She has been on the board of directors of Knowledge Alliance and STEM Education Coalitions, trade associations that advocate for federal funding for education research and development. She also served on the board of governors for the College of Education at The Ohio State University. She holds a B.A. from Indiana University, a M.A. from The Ohio State University and a Ph.D. in higher education leadership and policy studies from Vanderbilt University.
