Joshua Elder

Vice President and Head of Grantmaking at Siegel Family Endowment

Joshua Elder serves as the Vice President and Head of Grantmaking at Siegel Family Endowment, where he explores technology's societal impacts across learning, infrastructure, and workforce dynamics. In his role, Joshua strategically directs investments and cultivates partnerships within SFE's focus areas. Previously, Joshua held the position of Director of Strategic Initiatives at CSforALL, a partner organization of SFE. Here, he spearheaded initiatives aimed at enhancing the capacity of school districts and educational agencies to deliver comprehensive computer science education to all students. With over a decade of experience in domestic and international education, Joshua has dedicated his career to advancing science education, instructional leadership, and pedagogical practices. Notably, he co-founded a network of low-cost private schools in South Africa and Kenya. Currently pursuing his EdD in Leadership and Innovation at New York University, Joshua holds a Master's in Public Affairs from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, an M.Ed. from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a BS from Longwood University.

2023 Back to School Featured Speaker
2024 Back to School
2025 Back to School

Joshua Elder

Vice President and Head of Grantmaking at Siegel Family Endowment

Joshua Elder serves as the Vice President and Head of Grantmaking at Siegel Family Endowment, where he explores technology's societal impacts across learning, infrastructure, and workforce dynamics. In his role, Joshua strategically directs investments and cultivates partnerships within SFE's focus areas. Previously, Joshua held the position of Director of Strategic Initiatives at CSforALL, a partner organization of SFE. Here, he spearheaded initiatives aimed at enhancing the capacity of school districts and educational agencies to deliver comprehensive computer science education to all students. With over a decade of experience in domestic and international education, Joshua has dedicated his career to advancing science education, instructional leadership, and pedagogical practices. Notably, he co-founded a network of low-cost private schools in South Africa and Kenya. Currently pursuing his EdD in Leadership and Innovation at New York University, Joshua holds a Master's in Public Affairs from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, an M.Ed. from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a BS from Longwood University.

2023 Back to School Featured Speaker
2024 Back to School
2025 Back to School
2025 Back to School Summit
Wednesday, September 10, 2025
2:00 pm

Tech Done With Us: A Technopragmatist Vision for Work, Learning, and Opportunity

What’s behind the teenage disengagement crisis—and how can we fix it? Journalist Jenny Anderson and Brookings’ Rebecca Winthrop explore how re-engaging teens is critical not only for education, but for building skills, expanding social capital, and unlocking economic mobility. Drawing on their new book The Disengaged Teen, they’ll unpack how relevance, agency, and real-world learning can reconnect young people to school, work, and opportunity.
2023 New York, 'Back to School' Summit
Thursday, September 7, 2023
2:00 pm

Shifting Landscapes, Shaping Education: Funding Strategies for Impact

This dynamic session will surface strategic decisions faced by many philanthropic organizations and policy makers when seeking to align funding infrastructure to meet the needs of a changing and uncertain education landscape. Explore the tension in transforming community and school collaboration that raises fundamental questions around power, what counts as data, the role of evidence, and the right balance between supporting proven approaches and seeding new ones.