An Idea Whose Time Has Come: A Conversation with Rey Saldaña, President and CEO of Communities In Schools

My guest today is Rey Saldaña—President and CEO of Communities In Schools®, the national organization that surrounds students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life. A CIS alumnus, Rey’s journey from student to national leader reflects the mission of the organization he now leads. 

Born and raised on the South Side of San Antonio, Rey is the son of immigrants from Mexico and a graduate of Stanford University, where he also earned a master’s degree in education and received the President’s Award for the Advancement of the Common Good. Before taking the helm of Communities in Schools, he served as Regional Advocacy Director for the Raise Your Hand Texas Foundation, as Chair of the San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Agency, and as the youngest person ever elected to the San Antonio City Council, serving four terms focused on education, public transportation, and opportunity for working families. 

In this episode, we begin in San Antonio, where Communities In Schools first shaped his path—then trace his journey to leading the organization at a defining moment: taking the helm as the pandemic shut down schools nationwide, stewarding a transformational gift from MacKenzie Scott, and advancing an ambitious vision to expand CIS to more Title I schools across America.