Ronald Packard

Ronald Packard is a prominent figure in the education technology industry, recognized for building and leading influential companies within the sector. Earlier in his career, Packard worked in mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs and served clients at McKinsey & Company, providing a business foundation that informed his approach to scaling educational enterprises. Before his work in online learning, he served as CEO of Knowledge Schools and Knowledge Learning Corporation, and as vice president at Knowledge Universe, a major early childhood education provider in the United States. He also contributed to investments in the education sector, including LearnNow, Children's School USA, LeapFrog, TEC, and Children's Discovery Center.

Packard founded and served as CEO of K12 Inc., growing the company from inception to nearly $1 billion in revenue, establishing it as one of the largest education companies globally. As CEO and founder of K12, the largest K-12 online learning provider in the United States, he described technology-based innovations that began to transform K-12 education. Under his leadership, revenue compounded at nearly 80 percent, positioning Packard as a leading voice in personalized, technology-driven learning at scale.

Packard has continued to advance access to quality education through ventures such as Global School Management, which supports operational excellence across global education systems. Global School Management supports more than 190 schools and 55,000 students across four continents. He is also the founder of ACCEL Schools and Pansophic Learning, both reflecting his commitment to innovative, technology-enabled education models. As an author, his book "Education Transformation" explores how interactive software, electronically delivered curricula, adaptive instruction, and real-time data insights can personalize learning at scale, making individualized education both affordable and practical.

Packard has received the Education Industry Association's James P. Boyle Entrepreneurial Leadership Award, the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the IT Services & Solutions category in Greater Washington, and was named a Distinguished Alumni by the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He also received an Outstanding Leadership Award from the United States Distance Learning Association and the Jefferson Award from the American Institute for Public Service for his work in online and blended learning. Packard has served on numerous corporate boards, including the U.S. Department of Defense Education Advisory Committee and the Digital Learning Council, and serves on the board of GoStudent, eDynamic Learning, and Harvard Apparatus Regenerative Technology.

Packard has been featured on national radio and television shows and in magazines, including Bloomberg TV, Forbes, and The Washington Post. As a keynote speaker, he addresses topics such as business leadership, disruptive thinking, education, executive leadership, and entrepreneurship. His experience in building billion-dollar education enterprises and his ability to articulate a vision for the future of learning position him as an authoritative voice in the education technology sector.