Kaya Henderson 

Chancellor

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On June 21, 2011, the DC Council confirmed Kaya Henderson as Chancellor of DC Public Schools.

A native of Mt. Vernon, N.Y., Henderson was born on July 1, 1970, and attended Mt. Vernon public schools, where she graduated from Mt. Vernon High School with honors. Henderson was strongly influenced by her late mother, Kathleen Henderson, an educator who became a school principal at the age of 30. The elder Henderson worked in Yonkers, New York City and Long Island Public Schools.

Kaya Henderson received her bachelor’s degree in international relations from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service, and her Master of Arts in leadership, also from Georgetown University. 

Her education career began as a middle school Spanish teacher in the South Bronx, and she spent her summers overseeing the professional development of new teachers at summer institutes with Teach for America. She also served Teach for America as a recruiter and the national director of admissions. In 1997, she became the executive director of Teach For America-DC, where she was responsible for 170 teachers in more than 50 DC public schools.

In 2000, Henderson began her work with The New Teacher Project, where she eventually became the Vice President for Strategic Partnerships, overseeing the organization’s work on improving teacher hiring for school districts from a process, policy and capacity-building perspective. 

She also launched alternative certification programs—including the DC Teaching Fellows Program—in a number of districts. Her work significantly contributed to the organization’s two major reports: Missed Opportunities and Unintended Consequences. 

In 2001, she worked closely with DCPS leadership and the Washington Teachers’ Union to make significant policy changes to improve teacher hiring in the district.

She came to DCPS as Deputy Chancellor in 2007. She led the district’s human capital efforts, and served as chief negotiator for the groundbreaking 2010 contract between DCPS and the Washington Teachers’ Union. 

Henderson’s team also led the development of IMPACT, a new and innovative teacher assessment system designed to ensure that an effective teacher is leading every classroom in DCPS. Henderson’s work in developing human capital at DCPS has served as a model for other school districts throughout the country. 

She has shared the successful strategies developed at DCPS with other districts and countries in national and international conferences.

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