Meet Our Team

Karen Annette Francois is proud to serve as Chief Executive Officer of Explore Schools after nearly two decades working in education, including 10 years in leadership roles at Explore Schools. Most recently, as Assistant Superintendent, Karen Annette led the network’s strategy around culturally responsive teaching and unfinished teaching and learning, ensuring a strong, rigorous core academic program across K-8 and spearheading a shift to asset-based thinking. Among her many accomplishments, while leading Explore Excel Charter School, as Principal, Karen Annette led the school to an impressive 43 percentage point growth in ELA and 42 percentage point growth in Math. Her success underscores her deep commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, centering students’ experiences and identities. Karen Annette believes in the importance of strong partnerships with all stakeholders and values understanding the community’s motivation and context as key levers to authentic, long-lasting student achievement. 

Before her appointment as Chief Executive Officer, Karen Annette held teaching, coaching and leadership positions in district schools and charter schools in New York City. She started her career in education as part of the New York City Teaching Fellows program. Karen Annette earned her BA in Speech Communication and Rhetorical Studies from Hofstra University and MS in Childhood Education from Brooklyn College. Additionally, she completed the School District Leadership program and performed post-graduate work at Hofstra University. She is a native New Yorker who proudly identifies as Haitian-American and can be found jogging in Prospect Park or in deep thought at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.