Pavani Reddy

Students 1st Solutions Architect/Project Manager
Student Freedom Initiative (“SFI”)

Pavani Reddy is an entrepreneurial leader with over 20 years of experience in developing ethical, effective solutions in education and information. For SFI, she serves as Solutions Architect & Project Manager of Students 1st, a program to bring together industry and public sector partners to improve outcomes for lower-income students of color.  At EAB, she currently serves as Principal of the company’s first public-private partnerships venture, with a core mission to erase racial equity gaps and promote economic empowerment.

Pavani also oversees an innovation project, supported in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to enable practitioners to use data to improve outcomes for historically underserved students.   Previously, Pavani led product management and user experience design for EAB’s data & analytics portfolio and for Navigate, higher ed’s first and leading student success management system. Prior to EAB, Pavani directed product and platform management initiatives at LexisNexis, a provider of legal, government, business, and digital information sources.

Pavani is known for cultivating high-performing, creative, and mission-driven teams. She is passionate about practical, student-centered education for learners of all ages and stages. When she’s not at work, Pavani spends time with her daughter and husband and advises organizations like Character Lab, a nonprofit that advances scientific insights to help kids thrive. She is the author of Ethical Product Development (2020), which provides practical guidance to help innovators maximize positive social impact while minimizing harm.

Pavani earned a B.A. in Economics from Brown University. She also earned an MBA and a JD from the University of Virginia and is a member of the D.C. Bar and the Virginia State Bar.