Dr. Bobby White, Vice President of Groundswell Network, was previously the CEO of Leadership Memphis and the founder & CEO of Frayser Community Schools. Dr. White grew up in the Frayser neighborhood of Memphis and has dedicated his life to improving Memphis’ low-income neighborhoods by leading schools that embody a culture of academic achievement and positive community-building.

Prior to founding Frayser Community Schools, Dr. White was Assistant Director of the Tennessee Charter School Resource Center and worked as a teacher and school leader at some of Memphis’ highest-need schools for over a decade. Dr. White’s ideas about community transformation have appeared regularly in national media, and he has participated in fellowships at Mosaic, Flamboyan, the Broad Superintendent Academy and Pahara Aspen Institute among others.

Having experienced homelessness himself as a young father, Dr. White understands first-hand how education and support and encouragement from caring adults can reset the course of a person’s life. While living in a shelter, he attended Shelby State Community College and received his associate degree in education; he went on to graduate from LeMoyne-Owen College and earn his Master’s from Freed-Hardeman University and his EdD in Curriculum and Instruction with an Urban Focus from the University of Memphis.