Margo Georgiadis and Bradley Horowitz join the nonprofit’s Board of Advisors
New York, NY – Today New Classrooms, a nonprofit on a mission to personalize education by redesigning how a classroom works, announced Kelly Merryman, Managing Director and Vice President of Content Partnerships for YouTube, has joined its Board of Directors. The nonprofit is also welcoming Margo Georgiadis, Ancestry President and CEO, and Bradley Horowitz, Vice President and Advisor to Google, to its Board of Advisors.
“We are thrilled to welcome Kelly, Margo and Ben to our boards. Not only are they incredible leaders, but they also bring a deep understanding of what doors open up for children who are given the time and support to master math,” said New Classrooms CEO Joel Rose. “With their help, we will expand New Classrooms’ positive impact on students across the country.”
Kelly Merryman leads YouTube’s global partnership strategy and management for content creators across the Americas. Previously, in her tenure with Netflix, Merryman was instrumental in driving the company’s international expansion. Kelly also held positions in digital distribution and business development at Sony Pictures, and spent time at both Bain & Company and Audax Group, a private equity firm in Boston.
In addition to her work, Merryman is committed to organizations focused on creating better outcomes for children. She also serves on the board of CoachArt, a California-based nonprofit that provides coaching sessions in the arts and athletics to chronically ill children and their siblings.
“Children’s creativity and limitless imagination build the bedrock for our future, and it is our responsibility to provide them with resources in technology, math, and more to bring their inventions and innovations to life,” said Merryman. “I’m honored and excited to join New Classrooms to actively work to ensure all students get the time and support needed to reach their full potential.”
Margo Georgiadis joined Ancestry as President and CEO in May 2018 and also serves on the company’s Board of Directors. Prior to joining Ancestry, Georgiadis served as CEO of Mattel, the global leader in play, learning, and development where she led a transformation of the strategy, organization, and operations to reset the company for profitable growth. Before Mattel, she spent nearly nine years at Google as the President of Americas, leading the company’s commercial operations and advertising sales in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America, as well as Vice President of Global Sales Operations, leading the teams that enabled the successful commercialization of Google’s products and the development of new businesses in local and commerce. She also held leadership roles as Chief Operating Officer of Groupon, Executive Vice President of US Card Services and Chief Marketing Officer of Discover Financial Services, and was a Partner at McKinsey in London and Chicago.
Georgiadis is passionate about STEM education and has championed multiple organizations that focus on inspiring girls to pursue these fields, including Made with Code, Girls4Science and Girls Who Code. She also co-led Women@Google, a global organization of over 10,000 women across 45 countries that focused on advancing women leaders and empowering girls to pursue careers in science and technology.
“Math is a foundation for future success in STEM fields. Too often, we are not providing our youth with the opportunities they need to have the mathematical foundation necessary to pursue their dream careers,” said Georgiadis. “I am eager to work with New Classrooms to ensure all students get the time and support needed to be successful in mathu002du002dan empowering investment in their future.”
As a Vice President and Advisor to Google, Bradley Horowitz has led the development of many of Google’s consumer products including Google Photos, Google News, Gmail, Google Drive and Docs, and Calendar. He has also led Google for Startups, an effort to foster opportunity for entrepreneurs worldwide, and co-founded Area 120, Google’s internal incubator. Before joining Google in 2008, Horowitz was Yahoo’s Vice President of Advanced Development, where he drove the acquisition of Flickr and MyBlogLog and was responsible for launching “Hack Days,” days in which engineers focus on building something they are excited about that may or may not have anything to do with the company. He also oversaw the Yahoo Development Network. Prior to Yahoo, Horowitz was a co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Virage, where he oversaw the technical direction of the company from its founding through its IPO and eventual acquisition by Autonomy.
“It’s not enough to just get kids to learn math so they can pass a test. We want them to get excited about it so they can use their skills to develop the technology and tools of tomorrow,” said Horowitz. “By ensuring kids are learning math at their level, New Classrooms is helping kids feel confident in math, which leads to an excitement about what they can do with their knowledge.”