We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Mary Beck as our new President and CEO! Mary succeeds Scott Frauenheim, who has transitioned to the Executive Chairman role of the Distinctive Schools National Board.

As CEO and President, Mary will continue to lead the Distinctive Schools’ strategic vision, talent development, academic innovation, and network growth across Chicago. Her focus will remain on strengthening instructional quality, building leadership capacity, and developing scalable models for innovations to ensure long-term organizational impact and sustainability.

“Mary’s leadership has been instrumental in advancing our mission to foster joyful, student-centered learning environments, conducive to all students,” said Scott Frauenheim, Distinctive Schools Executive Chair. “Her strategic vision and commitment to academic excellence have positioned us for continued innovation and growth. It has been incredible to work alongside her, and I am excited for what the future of Distinctive Schools looks like with Mary at the helm.”

Prior to joining Distinctive Schools, Mary served as Deputy Chief of Teaching and Learning for Chicago Public Schools (CPS). In this role, she led district-wide instructional strategies and spearheaded initiatives such as the development of the CPS artificial intelligence framework. Under her leadership, CPS achieved significant post-pandemic academic recovery, while focusing on strong innovative approaches to teaching and learning. 

Mary's extensive experience also includes serving as assistant principal and principal in Chicago. Throughout her career, she has been dedicated to developing leaders, building high-performing teams, and creating systems that balance autonomy with accountability to drive student success.

We are so excited for Mary to lead our network into the next chapter! Congratulations, Mary!