Myra Edwards. Photo credit: MPS Foundation The Milwaukee Public Schools Foundation has named Myra Edwards as its new leader. Edwards most recently served as the City of Milwaukee Health Department’s chief of staff. She previously spent 15 years working for Milwaukee Public Schools, including about two years as a community development
[caption id="attachment_618927" align="alignleft" width="300"] Myra Edwards. Photo credit: MPS Foundation[/caption]
The Milwaukee Public Schools Foundation has named Myra Edwards as its new leader.
Edwards most recently served as the City of Milwaukee Health Department’s chief of staff. She previously spent 15 years working for Milwaukee Public Schools, including about two years as a community development administrator from 2001 to 2003. Edwards began her new role as the MPS Foundation’s executive director this month.
“As a servant leader, as an MPS alumna, as the daughter of MPS educators, and as a parent of an MPS graduate, I bring a comprehensive perspective about the real lives of students and families in this district,” Edwards said. “Understanding that lived experience will inform and drive how we scale resources for students in MPS classrooms in all of our schools.”
Edwards succeeds Willie Jude II, who exited the organization in July to serve as vice president for institutional advancement at Claflin University in South Carolina. Jude led the MPS Foundation for nearly two years after he joined in October 2023.
Jude had replaced the foundation’s previous director, Tiffany Tardy, who left to become the executive director of PEARLS for Teen Girls. Prior to Tardy’s roughly nine-month term, the MPS Foundation was led by Wendell Willis, who served as executive director of the foundation from 2018 to 2022.
“The MPS Foundation serves as one of the most dynamic resources for MPS students,” Edwards said in a news release. “I want that resource to outpace the critical daily needs that confront students in classrooms throughout the district.”
For over 13 years, Edwards was senior advisor and council liaison officer in the Milwaukee Mayor’s office. In that role, she built partnerships, led education and workforce initiatives, as well as helped to raise over $5 million for the Earn and Learn Program, according to a news release.
“Myra brings extraordinary leadership, a collaborative spirit, and an unwavering dedication to Milwaukee’s students,” said John Kersey, MPS Foundation board president. “Her career demonstrates a commitment to public service and the belief that every student deserves the resources they need to thrive.”
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