Josh Thompson

Co-Founder and CEO / Civics Unplugged + Onward Labs

Josh is CEO and & Co-Founder of Civics Unplugged. He is also a Venture Partner at Human Ventures and CEO and Co-Founder of Onward Labs. Josh has spent his career at the intersection of public/private partnerships, beginning with his landmark work alongside former Mayor Cory Booker to reimagine the possibilities for education and economic development leveraging the $100 million investment by Mark Zuckerberg. While serving in Newark, Josh had the privilege of returning to his former high school, St. Benedict’s Prep, as Vice President of Institutional Advancement and then Athletic Director.

Josh then served in Washington, DC, where he expanded high quality school choice for every child in the city. Josh was appointed as Director of Education in Bridgeport, CT where he eliminated their budget deficit and built the first vehicle to receive private investment to bring choice and technology to district schools.

He then came to New York City to serve as the Executive Director of New Leaders New York, an organization that serves half a million children across the country through the development of transformational school leaders and policies. This led him to New Classrooms, a personalized learning platform that enables teachers and students to experience an individualized way of learning math. Josh was a Mayoral Candidate for New York City in the most recent election and co-founded one of the first live and working companies built on blockchain in New York City to combat homelessness.