Elisa Villanueva Beard

Elisa began her career as a Teach For America corps member, teaching bilingual first and second grade in South Phoenix. She returned to her hometown in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas to lead TFA’s work there, quickly advancing to Chief Operating Officer and then CEO in 2013. As CEO, she led a national network of over 70,000 corps members and alumni across 300+ communities, guiding TFA’s strategy and mission. After 24 years of service, she retired in 2025. She continues to champion educational opportunity through board service with GoGuardian, the Holdsworth Center, and Leaders for Educational Equity.