It all began with a Commodore 64… 

John is the Chief Technology Officer of Curriculum Associates, a large Boston-area K-12 EdTech company focused on making the classroom a better place for educators and improve student outcomes. CA’s flagship product i-Ready is unique in its focus on assessment-driven personalized instruction, giving educators the tools to focus in on where students need to improve in and beyond their grade level. 

Prior to joining Curriculum Associates, John ran technology and product teams at companies such as Chief, Groupon, Enova, and FTD. He began his career as a software engineer at Applied Systems, then a startup where he grew to become the company’s first non-founder CTO and was part of the management team that sold the company to a PE firm.  

John focuses on broadening access to tech careers through education and community building. He serves as a mentor with 1871’s “WMNTech” program for emerging women tech leaders and volunteers as a teacher and curriculum developer for i.c. stars, a coding boot camp supporting students from underrepresented communities. He has spoken at events focused on DEIB topics, including ChiWiTCon, ARA Mentors, and DisruptHR. From 2020-2023, he was a Board member and chair of the Tech and Data committee at the nonprofit BottomLine, which supports first-generation college students. 

He also serves as a board director for an early-stage cybersecurity company, Havoc Shield, and is a board observer for an AI-powered data migration company, Zengines.  

John holds a B.A. from Northern Illinois University and an M.S. in IT and Privacy Law, with honors from the University of Illinois-Chicago Law School, and is a frequent writer and speaker on the subjects of technology, leadership, and diversity.