Terra Wallin serves as the P-12 Education Advisor at AmeriCorps. In this role, she provides ongoing support to existing AmeriCorps grantees and develops external partnerships with philanthropic, private, and federal partners to harness the power of national service programs to provide additional learning and enrichment opportunities and wraparound services for all students and to address in- and out-of-school workforce challenges. She manages two of AmeriCorps’ key public-private partnerships, the National Partnership for Student Success and the Youth Mental Health Corps.
Previously, Terra served as the Associate Director for Federal Policy and interim P-12 Policy Director at the Education Trust, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving student outcomes and eliminating educational disparities, particularly for students of color and students from low-income backgrounds. In this role, she helped to set the direction and vision for Ed Trust’s federal policy work, particularly in the areas of assessment, accountability, and COVID-relief funding; provided technical assistance to national, state, and local advocates; and developed recommendations for federal, state, and school district policies.
Terra has served in a variety of roles at the school, district, and federal levels. She began her career as an AmeriCorps member teaching high school special education and English in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. She served as chief of staff for academics at Denver Public Schools, as well as a consultant with Education First where she worked with state educational agencies, school districts, philanthropy, and non-profit organizations to develop strategic plans, make policy recommendations, and manage partnerships. Terra also brings five years of experience at the U.S. Department of Education where she co-led a team implementing key parts of the Every Student Succeeds Act and supported various school improvement efforts.
Terra earned bachelors’ degrees in accounting and political science from the University of Iowa, and a Master of Public Policy degree from Georgetown University.