The New York-based Edison Schools has named Leroy D. Nunery II ’77 president of its Edison Charter Schools division. He will lead 28 charter schools that serve 21,000 students nationwide.
Edison Charter Schools is a for-profit provider of educational services that are an alternative to public schools. Located mostly in inner cities, the schools serve children from kindergarten through twelfth grade.
“I am interested in that there should be some dramatic changes in the way that education is delivered to kids who are often under-served,” says Nunery. “It is a perfect marriage of my business and community interests.”
Nunery was a member of Lafayette’s Board of Trustees from 1987-98, and he established the Leroy D. Nunery ’77 Intellectual Citizenship Award, presented each year to a student whose scholarship advances knowledge on important social, political, or economic issues in a multicultural community and who demonstrates outstanding perseverance, concern, and perspective in pursuing research interests.
A history graduate, Nunery recalls the pivotal career guidance of Robert Weiner, Jones Professor of History.
“I still value him very much as a friend, counselor, and adviser,” he says. “It was because of his advice that I ended up going to business school instead of law school. He had the right blend of academic superiority and rigor with this sense of who I was as a person.”
An active member of the Lafayette community since his graduation, Nunery credits Gladstone (Fluney) Hutchinson, dean of studies, with helping him stay connected to his alma mater through work on the Board of Trustees and other capacities.
“After my days as a student, he became a very good and close friend who kept me involved with Lafayette,” he says.
Nunery serves on the board of West Philadelphia Partnership, a consortium he became involved with as vice president of business services at University of Pennsylvania. The partnership is dedicated to developing the work force and social services in west Philadelphia.
He earned his doctorate in higher education management from University of Pennsylvania and his MBA from Olin School of Business at Washington University, St. Louis.