One of the nation’s foremost experts on competency-based learning and assessment, Kate served as founding Chief Academic Officer of College for America (CfA) and designed its award-winning model for project-focused CBE. She was recognized by the Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN) for “extraordinary contributions to the field of CBE.” She has extensive experience designing and developing competency frameworks and learning strategies, such as market-facing stackable microcredentials, that meet the needs of both individual learners and organizations. She is a former Commissioner of NECHE, the New England accrediting body for colleges and universities and was a member of the C-BEN Board of Directors.

Kate served as Executive Director of the Higher Education Division at ETS; she is also a lawyer with experience both in government and in private practice. She has taught widely and was a faculty member at the University of Iowa. She holds an AB with Highest Honors in English from Smith College, a PhD in English from Cornell University, and a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was an editor of the University of Pennsylvania Law Review. Kate is often invited to present on CBE, 21st century assessment, project-based learning, and disruptive innovation at a range of domestic and international venues, including the Harvard Graduate School of Education, White House, New America Foundation, ACE, AAC&U, and a variety of global venues.