Rachel Gallardo brings more than 10 years of experience in teaching, educational leadership and teacher development to her role supporting districts with leadership pipeline planning.
Prior to joining Holdsworth, Rachel served as managing director of program innovation at By the Hand, an afterschool program for children who live in high-risk, inner-city neighborhoods in Chicago, Illinois. In this role, she led the creation of a new program model for the organization and restructured the talent development system. As a result of her innovation and work across the city, program and school leaders are helping children flourish academically.
Rachel began her career in education as a science teacher in Charlotte, North Carolina and soon began working in leadership positions for Teach for America in Dallas, Fort Worth, and Chicago. Throughout her tenure, she successfully worked alongside teachers and district leaders to impact student achievement gains, designed and executed high-impact professional development sessions for adult learners, and coached elementary, middle, and high school teachers to help them deliver rigorous instruction.
Rachel holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Texas A&M University. She is a graduate of New Boston ISD outside of Texarkana and enjoys running, gardening, wood working and spending time with her husband and young daughter.