Before joining Advance Illinois, Jim taught high school math and science in rural Arkansas and later in the Chicago Public Schools. He then founded a public middle school on Chicago’s west side, where he was a principal for six years. Jim was also the Executive Director of Student Services at School District U-46 in Illinois, where he led SES tutoring and SPED services. Jim finished two terms as an elected school board member in Oak Park Elementary School District 97 in 2019. Jim has been at Advance Illinois for the last 14 years where he heads up educator quality policy.