Jeff Nelson, MA

Jeff Nelson, MA is co-founder and chief executive officer of OneGoal, an innovative, three-year college persistence program that identifies, trains, and supports our nation’s most effective teachers to lead underperforming high school students to reach their full potential and graduate from college. Under his leadership, OneGoal has grown from serving seven students in one high school in 2007 to empowering nearly 1,300 students in 23 high schools in 2012. At the beginning of his tenure with OneGoal, Nelson developed the organization’s first five-year strategic plan, restructured the program model, and expanded the funding base 15 times over. Under his direction, 94% of OneGoal students have enrolled in college, 85% of OneGoal Alumni are persisting in college, and the cost per student has dropped by 70%. 

Nelson began his career as a Teach For America corps member at O’Keeffe Elementary in Chicago. During his tenure at O’Keeffe, Nelson led his sixth graders to an average of two years’ growth in math. He also co-founded the school’s student council, raised money to send the council on a five-day trip to Washington D.C. to meet then-U.S. Senator for Illinois, Barack Obama, and coached the football team to a city championship. 

After completing his two-year commitment, Nelson served as a Teach For America corps member advisor at the Philadelphia Training Institute and was awarded the 2006 Sue Lehmann Award for Excellence in Teaching for the Chicago Region. Nelson is also the recipient of Teach For America’s Distinguished Alumni Award, the Community Renewal Society’s 35 under 35 Award, and the Bluhm/Helfand Social Innovation Fellowship, as part of the inaugural 2011 Chicago Ideas Week. Nelson graduated from the University of Michigan with Phi Beta Kappa honors, earned his MA in teaching from Dominican University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.