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Last month from May 28th - May 30th, we came together for Mad Science, our sixth organization-wide hackathon in Tysons Corner, VA. Thirty-nine cross-functional teams totaling over 300 participants sprinted for 48 hours to prototype bold ideas in areas like A/B testing, feature flagging, canary deployments, proactive security, and generative AI. The event wrapped up with a science fair-style demo display complete with judging and celebration. Our participants called it: “The most organized and well-supported hackathon I’ve ever been to!” “A great way to connect and recharge.” “The science fair format was genius.” Hackathons like this one help drive forward real product innovation at College Board and we’re hiring tech talent who want to be part of it. Explore our careers page at careers.collegeboard.org to find our latest opportunities!
We're seeking a Principal Architect to drive forward-thinking architecture strategy and lead the design of secure, scalable platforms that serve millions of students and educators. In this role, you’ll partner across teams as a technical visionary, guiding our tech strategy and fostering the adoption of modern technologies that align with our future growth while continuing to ensure our platforms are built for both innovation and impact. You'll lead by influence, promote engineering best practices, and help us scale systems that support our programs like SAT, PSAT, AP and CLEP. If you’re passionate about architecture leadership, collaborative problem-solving, and using your skills to support a meaningful mission—we’d love to hear from you. Apply now!
Curious about the latest from College Board? Last month, our CEO David Coleman shared some exciting insights on “The Report Card with Nat Malkus” podcast. Tune in here to find out the role College Board is playing in revolutionizing college admissions and the AP program. Discover the secrets behind the redesigned SAT, the transformative impact of AI on admissions, and the future of education. Plus, learn how we're making high school more engaging and relevant for students globally. Don't miss out—listen to the full episode now to see how we’re shaping the education landscape. And while you're at it, explore our career opportunities!
Happy Holidays! As we head into our winter break next week and 2024, we wanted to express gratitude for our employees, members, professionals, and partners. We appreciate your contributions and impact on our work serving millions of students while providing them with what they need for college and career success. Let's look back at our in-person, org-wide event Pencils Down attended by 1600 employees last month in Chicago, IL. As a remote-first organization, this event allowed us to engage and connect in new ways as well as step back from our day-to-day work. Read below to learn more from two members on our planning team who made this event a success! “Pencils Down helped our staff recenter on what we do, and why it matters. It offered a rare opportunity to convene in person with our colleagues to reconnect with one another and our mission, reminding us of our collective impact. Pencils Down reminded us that each person at the organization plays a critical role in clearing a path for all students and that we’re a fun group to work with.” - Jake Frasier, Director of Special Projects "We did so much, saw so much, and heard so much in just two days. People danced, performed, and spoke on stage. We heard from students and teachers. We got so many perspectives from our staff. We got to party and celebrate. We also got to exercise our creativity through portrait-taking and discover/rediscover connections with colleagues." - Chris Villanueva, Director, Digital Copywriting
In October, we launched the digital PSAT/NMSQT and PSAT 8/9 which over four million students in 15,000+ schools around the country took. Hear more from some of our leaders about our impact and work. Click the link to learn more about students’ test day. “The hard and ground-breaking work of hundreds of people across the organization, going back years to the creation of our new digital administration tool for coordinators in 2018, at-home digital AP exams in 2020, and the international digital SAT launch in March, is coming to life for millions of students, hundreds of thousands of educators, and tens of thousands of schools. We are delivering on our promise of an SAT Suite that is easier to take, easier to give, more secure and more relevant. And we are committed to learning and improving from here especially as we hear from students and educators about their experience.” - Priscilla Rodriguez, Senior Vice President of College Readiness Assessments “College Board staff are incredibly talented, collegial, solution oriented and driven which makes conquering even the biggest challenges more enjoyable.” - Tricia Renner, Executive Director, SAT Suite Institutional Assessment Management "We tie together the end-to-end experience users have with the test, and work to ensure students have the best possible experience with our assessments so they can connect to all opportunities.” - Mike Polizzi, Senior Director, Strategic Policy & Implementation
Florida's ban on AP Psychology removes choice from parents and students. Coming just days from the start of school, it derails the college readiness and affordability plans of tens of thousands of Florida students currently registered for AP Psychology, one of the most popular AP classes in the state. Tap our link to read our full statement.
This summer, College Board launched Small Talks, a series of 60-minute, virtual conversations that give colleagues time to talk – about who we are and why we do what we do – and learn – about important aspects of College Board’s portfolio. Small Talks are our take at virtual water cooler chat! This summer’s conversations featured topics like: • College admissions trends, where colleagues discussed hot-off-the-press findings about student, parent and higher education perceptions and behaviors around college-going – and how College Board is responding. • Financial aid, where colleagues learned about what it really takes to pay for college and how College Board is supporting hundreds of thousands of students, especially those who need it most. • High school counselors, where colleagues got a deep dive into the role high school counselors play in our work and in students’ lives. Here are some of the things colleagues said after joining: • “Within these virtual workspaces, I thought this was a good opportunity to learn of various divisions & how each operates & impacts our College Board communities.” • “The discussion was insightful, and I appreciated learning about our team's work with and support of counselors.” Small Talks are part of a broader effort to bring clarity, connection and joy to our team – no matter where we work and live.
On May 24 – 26 in McLean Virginia, the College Board’s Technology Division hosted Escape Velocity, our first org-wide hackathon since 2019. We had 25 teams compete and build new technology in innovative ways. Hear from 3 engineers on the winning team about their experiences at the event: “It was the first time I had the chance to meet and work with College Board engineers in person and it was such a fun and rewarding experience. Getting to work with new technologies and being encouraged to take risks and explore our curiosity was one of the highlights of my career. I’ve worked for several mid to large sized companies as well as a couple of startups and I’ve never felt as valued, not just for my technical contributions, but also as a person, as I do here at the College Board." - Emma Rios, Senior Engineer "The atmosphere was brimming with creativity, collaboration, and a friendly spirit of competition. The excitement of building something from scratch and seeing our ideas come to life was incredibly satisfying. The Hackathon allowed me to expand my skill set by exploring and learning new GitHub features such as GitHub CoPilot, GitHub Actions, and GitHub Wiki, while also practicing mob programming. - Rasin Moolakandy, Senior Engineer “This was my first hackathon ever! I appreciate being at College Board even more now because of this experience. I’m very proud to work here and of the work that I do.” - Mileena Garcia, Engineer II
On May 18th we had 42 of our New York Office colleagues participate in the American Heart Association’s Wall Street Run and Heart Walk. The College Board team comes together each year to have fun and to raise awareness about heart disease and stroke. Congratulations to the team on surpassing their fundraising goal this year!
Last month we held our annual advocacy and access conference Prepárate™: Educating Latinos for the Future of America. Hear from our two leaders on how Prepárate impacted their employee experience. "As someone who has left the organization a couple of times and returned, it just reaffirms why College Board is an organization I wish to be a part of. I am proud to work at a place that devotes resources to having these convenings, is not afraid of having difficult conversations, and gives employees visibility through leadership opportunities." - JR Treto, Director "Prepárate was amazing! It was inspirational to be surrounded by educators who were passionate about helping Latino families. As a first-generation college student, I experienced the issues that many first-generation Latino students face, and it was great seeing educators discuss barriers to success and solutions to better support Latino students. Prepárate reinforced the connection I have with the College Board’s mission, helping connect more students to college success and opportunity." - Rita Garcia, Associate Director
