Credit: Courtesy of Jason Kamras

National Advisory Council member Jason Kamras was a middle school math teacher in the District of Columbia Public Schools when he was honored as the 2005 National Teacher of the Year. Since his early days at the middle school as a Teach for America participant, he led the effort to double the instructional time allotted for math, and he overhauled the curriculum to emphasize educational technology and real-world, project learning.

Kamras is still with the Washington, DC, school system, but he now serves as a special assistant to the chancellor, Michelle Rhee (featured in this Edutopia article. He also advised President Obama's election campaign on education policy. Kamras holds degrees from Princeton University and Harvard University.

He is featured in the following Edutopia content:

• Jason Kamras: Making Connections in Math, Part One
• Jason Kamras: Making Connections in Math, Part Two
• On Teaching and Education: Jason Kamras, Part One
• On Teaching and Education: Jason Kamras, Part Two