Dr. Coketha Hill
Dr. Cokethea Hill-Woodard built BLAQUE Kansas City on a simple premise: the people closest to a school system should shape it. Her team recruits and trains everyday community members for school board seats, then builds the teacher pipeline those schools depend on. Governance and talent, rebuilt at the same time.
Introduced in 2022, the Charter School Board Draft connects community leaders with charter schools seeking dedicated and talented board members. This three-month training program includes sessions on governance, the history of education from 1867 to the present, and comprehensive data analysis, ensuring candidates are ready to serve from day one. Modeled after the NFL Draft, the Charter School Board Draft celebrates local charter schools, their students, and current board members while offering community champions the chance to join and contribute to these boards.
The Charter School Board Draft has placed 51 community champions across 14 schools, including charter schools and traditional Kansas City Public Schools.
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700+ student seats created or supported through board-led school expansion.
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Three schools served by Draft alumni now rank among Kansas City’s top-performing growth schools.
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Two schools earned long-term charter renewals or national academic distinctions.
“Many organizations state that it is difficult to locate and access professional candidates of color to serve on governing boards. Our goal is to build a pipeline of professional candidates of color, train those candidates on governance, and help place them on local boards.”