About
Carol Rava is the Vice President of Education Grantmaking. In this role, she oversees Ascendium’s programmatic grantmaking teams across its three core strategies: Expand Opportunity, Support Learner Success, and Connect and Align Systems. She also guides strategic engagement. She joined Ascendium in 2025.
Previously, Carol launched and led operations and external affairs at the Postsecondary Commission, an accreditor for colleges that provide strong economic returns to their students. She helped found the national nonprofit Get Schooled, which offers free digital college and career counseling for learners from low-income backgrounds and learners of color. She also served as an executive at Seattle Public Schools, overseeing strategy and performance management, and spent eight years in various leadership roles at the Gates Foundation, advancing its education strategy across policy, advocacy, communications, and program teams. Outside of Ascendium, Carol is active in Seattle Public Schools.
She earned a master’s degree in education policy from Stanford University and a bachelor’s degree in history and religion from Harvard University.
