Geoffrey Canada

Former President and Chief Executive Officer of the Harlem Children’s Zone

An educator, social activist, and author renowned as a thought leader and passionate advocate for education reform

Under his visionary leadership, HCZ became a national model of place-based innovation and the subject of significant media attention

Author of two books: Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence in America (1995; reissued as a graphic novel in 2010) and Reaching Up for Manhood: Transforming the Lives of Boys in America (1998)

Grew up in the South Bronx and earned a bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College and a master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education

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