

Episode Description
In today’s challenging educational landscape, it’s important to remain focused on the work that will prepare students for success now and in the future.
Dr. Melvin Brown, superintendent of Montgomery Public Schools, navigates these challenges daily and understands the value of this work. He joins Dr. Karen Garza, president and CEO of Battelle for Kids, for a conversation about why he believes a Portrait
of a Graduate and a Portrait of an Educator can help overcome these challenges. Drawing on his experience with system transformation, Dr. Brown discusses his new role in an urban K-12 school district. They also discuss the need for change in education
systems and how applying content to real-life contexts will help students become the type of citizens
needed to solve the world’s problems.
Dr. Melvin Brown has served as superintendent of Montgomery Public Schools in Montgomery, Alabama since 2022. He has 21 years of school administrative experience, serving as superintendent, deputy superintendent, and director of human resources. Additionally,
he has experience as an elementary and middle school principal.
Battelle for Kids (BFK) is a national, not-for-profit organization with the mission of realizing the power and promise of 21st century, deeper learning for every student. In addition, BFK helps education leaders engage their communities to re-envision
and transform their school systems. One way BFK does this is the Portrait of a Graduate, a locally developed but globally positioned vision, which serves as a North Star for system transformation.