EdSurge Welcomes Top Journalists and Educators to Advisory Board

EdSurge announced six new members to its Advisory Board, among them a mix of experienced journalists and education leaders.

Todd Frankel, Patrick Harris II, Nneka McGee, Ramona Schindelheim, Avery Thrush and Manoush Zomorodi have joined the board, each bringing a wealth of experience and expertise. The board will serve as a vital resource for the EdSurge newsroom, offering strategic insights and industry perspectives across all areas of coverage.

“Partnering with such a talented, versatile group of journalists and educators is a huge win for EdSurge and our readers,” says Sarah McKibben, EdSurge Editor-in-Chief. “With their unmatched expertise, this board brings both national perspective and deep classroom understanding to our newsroom. They will help us tackle pressing challenges like AI policy while ensuring our early childhood and K-12 coverage remains relevant, cutting-edge, and grounded in real-world impact.”

Designed to maximize impact while respecting members’ time, the board acts as a strategic, high-level advisory body. In accordance with the Institute for Nonprofit News standards, board members provide strategic guidance while holding no editorial influence or veto power on published content.

Meet the Advisory Board

Todd Frankel is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter at The Washington Post. The D.C. native has previously worked at newspapers in Missouri, Washington, West Virginia, Kentucky.

Frankel brings award-winning journalism experience to the board, particularly in the role of business and economics in all areas of life.  He anchored the lead story in a series that won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for coverage of the AR-15 rifle’s role in mass shootings and American culture.

Patrick Harris II is a storyteller and educator on a mission to ensure humanity is centered in the future of education. A former middle school teacher and dean of students in metro Detroit, Harris was named a 30 under 30 Honoree from the International Literacy Association in 2021 and an EdSurge Voices for Change Fellow in 2022-23. His book focusing on new educators, “The First Five: A Love Letter to Teachers,” was named a finalist for Best Professional Audiobook by the Audies. Harris is currently a doctoral student studying popular culture at Michigan State University. 

Having previously written for EdSurge, Harris hopes to use his new involvement as a board member to support EdSurge’s efforts to highlight student and teacher innovation.

“I deeply respect the work of EdSurge and its commitment to editorial independence,” Harris says. “I deeply appreciate the care EdSurge has for teachers and educators and how it comes through the compelling stories they report on and uplift.”

Nneka McGee is an educator and researcher who taught middle school mathematics and served as a district administrator. As part of her doctoral studies, McGee completed research on the impact of artificial intelligence in K-12 learning environments. 

Most recently, McGee served as project lead and principal co-author of “Responsible Assessment in the AI Era” and  “AI + Learning Differences: Designing for a Future with No Boundaries,” published by Stanford Accelerator for Learning. Her latest work, “AI for Young Learners: Balancing Tech Use with Authentic, Off-Screen Experiences,” was released as a jump start guide by the International Society for Transforming Education in early 2026.

“I understand the importance of offering informative content that helps create a better understanding of an ever-changing landscape. The EdSurge Advisory Board provides an opportunity to be part of the conversation,” McGee says.

Ramona Schindelheim is an award-winning journalist and storyteller covering the future of work and pathways to economic mobility. She is a Top Voice on LinkedIn and her monthly newsletter, The Future of Work(ers), features reporting and interviews on the programs, initiatives and people helping American workers prepare for and find quality jobs and economic mobility. Ramona has worked in national and local news, including at ABC, CBS, NBC, CNBC and The Wall Street Journal.  

Schindelheim brings unique perspective and expertise on work readiness and the need for educators to meet the moment. She decided to join the board “to help shape the narrative around the future of work and the role education must play in preparing learners and workers for the changing economy.”

Avery Thrush is an education policy analyst and writer, currently working as a LEE Fellow at the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. After spending her early career as a sixth-grade science teacher, Thrush has led community organizing efforts and contributed to state-level policy initiatives related to artificial intelligence in education, school funding and strengthening career-connected education. She was selected as a 2022-23 EdSurge Voices of Change Fellow.

Thrush brings versatile expertise in the education field, from rural and Appalachian education to public schools as engines of democracy. She joins the board with the hope of elevating the voices and expertise of students and teachers, since they are the closest to the challenges facing education today.

Manoush Zomorodi is an award-winning journalist, author, and host of NPR’s “TED Radio Hour,” whose work explores how technology is changing the way we think, work, learn and live. Her latest book, “Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim Your Well-Being,” grew out of a groundbreaking NPR–Columbia University public health project involving more than 20,000 participants. 

She is also the author of “Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self,” and her TED talks on the attention economy and the physical effects of technology on our bodies have been viewed more than 7 million times. Zomorodi hosts NPR’s “Body Electric” podcast, a six-part series on the physical toll of digital life and how to reclaim our bodies. A 2025 Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center resident, Zomorodi has won two Gracie Awards and a Webby Award and was named one of Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business.”

Zomorodi brings her expertise in the effect of media and tech on behavior and health to EdSurge’s edtech coverage. 

“I respect the work of the group and its readers immensely and want to support them [as they] figure out this next chapter for education and tech,” Zomorodi says.