Owen Stearns is the CEO of the Excel Academy charter schools in Boston and served as founding board chair from 2003 until 2008. Prior to joining Excel as CEO, Owen was a strategy consultant for twelve years, working with nonprofit leaders to achieve large-scale social change through innovative strategies, strong organizational design and nimble leadership teams. Prior to joining Excel Owen was with the Monitor Institute, where he was an Associate Partner focused largely on educational issues. Prior to Monitor, he was a Senior Consultant with the Foundation Strategy Group (now FSG). He was also an early board member and eventually the Co-Director of The City School, which develops young leaders from public, private and parochial schools through a service-learning curriculum. Owen is a graduate of Amherst College. He also serves as the Secretary of the Board of Trustees of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation.