Chad Ratliff (@chadratliff) is the Assistant Director of Instruction and Innovation Projects for Albemarle County Schools in Charlottesville, Virginia. Prior to accepting the post, he spent nearly a decade working in a diverse, high-poverty public school division and launched a successful entrepreneurial venture with which he remains involved.

He holds an M.Ed. in Administration and Supervision from the University of Virginia and is an M.B.A. Candidate in Management at Virginia Tech.

As an educator, he launched his division’s first virtual learning program, personal finance curriculum, and cultivated strategic alliances with key community, government, and education agencies to advance opportunities for at-risk youth. Chad also served as the head wrestling coach, was a 3x Most Influential Educator honoree and 7x Coach of the Year recipient while at Martinsville.

Chad was named one of the region’s “Top 20 Emerging Leaders Under the Age of 40″ in 2008 by the Blue Ridge Business Journal and presented with the Distinguished Alumni Award from nationally recognized Patrick Henry Community College.  He was recently appointed by the Virginia Board of Education to serve on the State Advisory Council for Career and Technical Education. He is also the Founder and President of the Spencer Chang Scholarship Foundation and served on the education policy advisory team for a 2009 Virginia gubernatorial candidate.

He is married to Cay Lee Chang Ratliff, who also worked in public education prior to taking a professional break to focus on their two young children and complete graduate studies. They reside in Charlottesville, Virginia.