Caroline O’Connor

Caroline joined ESG in early 2024 to support the Career Readiness portfolio. Prior to joining the firm, Caroline was a policy manager at Jobs for the Future, a national nonprofit focused on educational attainment and economic mobility, where she supported several work streams including The Big Blur, the Center for Justice and Economic Advancement, and the Center for Apprenticeship and Work-Based Learning. Before entering the policy space Caroline served as a City Year Corps Member in Boston Public Schools in middle school mathematics.

Caroline earned her Master’s in Public Policy in Education Policy from Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College and her Bachelor’s degrees in Education and Psychology from the University of Virginia.

During her graduate studies Caroline completed a fellowship with Tennessee SCORE, a statewide policy-advocacy organization, where she supported the analysis of Tennessee’s 146 districts ESSER plans and the advocacy for overhauling the Tennessee K-12 funding formula.

Why are you in this work?

I’m in this work because I believe everyone has a fundamental right to high-quality education and training opportunities, not only those who live in the right zip code or who know the right people. When given the opportunity, and the support to persist, education and skill acquisition can be transformative.

Why ESG?

After working at both the state and national level of research and advocacy, ESG offers the opportunity to engage more closely with the people and systems working to improve the learner and worker experience for all facing barriers to attainment and advancement.