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Ryan Saunders

Deputy Director of State Policy

Ryan Saunders serves as Deputy Director of State Policy at the Learning Policy Institute. He is also a member of the Educator Quality team and supports the work of the Teacher Licensure Collaborative and the Educator Preparation Laboratory (EdPrepLab).  

Before joining LPI, Saunders worked at the Council of Chief State School Officers, supporting educator preparation reform at the state level through the Network for Transforming Educator Preparation. His work included a focus on teacher preparation data systems, preparation program approval, clinical partnerships, and teacher recruitment and retention across 15 states. Earlier in his career, Saunders taught high school social studies and literature in Turkey, the Dominican Republic, and Denver, CO. In Denver, he served as a Teacher Leader for the Literacy Design Collaborative in the public school system. 

Saunders holds an MA in Teaching from the Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, and a BA in English from the University of Georgia.