I'm Dr. Jas L. Thurmond, Founder and CEO of AnchorED Leadership, LLC. I've spent my career in Chicago schools: first as a teacher in high schools, then as a principal, and now as a district leader. Every seat taught me the same lesson. The leaders who last are the ones who build other leaders.

Through AnchorED Leadership, I bring that same lens to districts, schools, and nonprofits. Whatever the organization, whomever the person, my goal is the same: remove the obstacles and watch them SHINE!

I earned my Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from National Louis University, where my research studied the critical supports for novice principals to lead well alongside their Local School Councils. I'm also a contributing author to two books: The ABCs of Social Emotional Learning for School Counselors and Administrators (Corwin), edited by Kirsten H. Perry and Melissa S. Ockerman and Tales of Urban School Leadership: Real Stories from Real Leaders, edited by Dr. Cynthia Treadwell. I also co-host a podcast, Real Talk about SEL, with Kirsten Perry and Dr. LaVerne Coke, where we focus on practical social-emotional learning (SEL) in schools.