Nate Levenson

Nathan Levenson is a managing director at DMGroup. With a depth of past experience as a public school superintendent, school board member, and private sector CEO, Nate brings a unique perspective to his work with superintendents and their leadership teams to identify and implement practical solutions to pressing challenges and to guide sustained efforts that turn opportunities into realities. Across all types of projects, Nate is focused on helping school districts better serve students despite tight financial times.

In over a decade working as a partner to school district leaders, Nate has led efforts to improve equity and outcomes for all students in nearly 200 districts across 25 states. He has deep experience working with district leaders to cost-effectively improve special education and social, emotional, and behavioral supports for students, to build student-centered schedules that support teaching and learning best practices, to create budgets that align with district priorities, and more. In addition, he frequently provides professional development for school district leaders, including training for new or aspiring superintendents in Connecticut, Florida, Louisiana, and Vermont.

Prior to joining DMGroup, Nate served as superintendent of Arlington Public Schools (MA). Under his leadership, the district reduced the number of students reading below grade level by 65% and decreased the special education achievement gap by 66%. In addition, some schools within the district were commended by the Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy, by the National Blue Ribbon Schools program, by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Compass Schools program, and by School Matters—all for outperforming schools in like communities. Nate also has previous experience serving as school board chair of Boxford Public Schools (MA) and as CEO of North American Industries, an engineering and manufacturing company.

A recognized thought leader in the K-12 education sector, Nate frequently speaks at national conferences, conducts primary research, and publishes resources for school district leaders. Nate has authored several books including A Better Way to Budget and Smarter Budgets, Smarter Schools. Nate’s latest work, Six Shifts to Improve Special Education and Other Interventions, offers a set of bold, yet practical new ideas for dramatically raising the achievement of students with disabilities and lays out a road map for improving social and emotional, and behavioral services.

He has also published numerous white papers in conjunction with leading think tanks, including “Something Must Change: Rethinking Special Education” (American Enterprise Institute), "The Promise of Education Information Systems: How Technology Can Improve School Management and Success" (The Center for American Progress), "Applying Systems Thinking to Improve Special Education in Ohio" (The Thomas B. Fordham Institute), and “Doing the Most Good: Academic Return on Investment” published in Educational Leadership.

Nate holds a Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College and a Master of Business Administration with distinction from Harvard Business School. He is a graduate of the Broad Foundation’s Urban Superintendents Academy. He has experience serving on both private and non-profit boards, including a number of family businesses, local chapters of UNCF, Habitat for Humanity, and Boxford Public Schools.