Dr. Shane Goldstein Smith is the founder of CultivateEd, a strategic advisory practice focused on reinvention, workforce transformation, and the future of work. She works with senior executives planning their next chapter, early-career professionals deciding where to place their first big bets, and organizations rethinking how their people learn and grow.

Shane brings more than 25 years of experience across public education, edtech, private equity and venture capital, and higher education. She began her career teaching high school history at Whitney Young Magnet High School in Chicago, then served as principal of a K-12 International Baccalaureate school and as a deputy chief of schools for Chicago Public Schools. She went on to lead school networks and programs as Chief Schools Officer at Hebrew Public, Head of Schools at WeGrow/WeWork, and Chief Academic Officer at Ingenious Schools, a virtual PreK-12 startup serving students across the US and Latin America. From 2001 to 2010, she also taught as adjunct faculty at Northwestern University.

Shane’s work is strategy, built one client at a time, and no two engagements look alike. She starts by listening closely, then designs a plan around the person in front of her: weekly conversations, carefully chosen reading and listening, and work between sessions that keeps the thinking moving. The focus is on what comes next. Together, Shane and her clients pin down what they are genuinely good at, test it against the full range of options (not just the obvious next job), and build a concrete plan for putting those strengths to work in the world. Clients set the direction; Shane brings the structure, the rigor, and an honest read on what she sees.

Shane holds a doctorate from National Louis University, an MSEd from Northwestern University, and a BA from Miami University (Ohio). She lives in Livingston, NJ, with her husband, three children, and their much-loved beagle.

LinkedIn: Shane Goldstein Smith