Pearl Chang Esau

Pearl Chang Esau is a nationally recognized leader for improving education and workforce outcomes. A former teacher and executive with Teach For America, she has dedicated her career to driving educational progress and system-wide improvement. As CEO of Expect More Arizona, Pearl successfully led initiatives to raise Arizona’s academic standards and build partnerships between government, industry, and education to strengthen pathways from early childhood through the workforce.

Her achievements include co-founding the Arizona Education Progress Meter, a tool to track key metrics for academic progress, and co-creating Achieve 60AZ, a statewide effort to ensure 60% of Arizonans earn a degree or credential by 2030. Pearl also led statewide outreach for Proposition 123, which secured $3.5 billion for K-12 schools and received widespread bipartisan support.

Appointed by three Arizona governors to education and workforce leadership roles, Pearl currently serves on the boards of the City of Phoenix Workforce, Teach For America, Aliento Education Fund, and ASU Morrison Institute for Public Policy. Among many honors, she has received the US Chamber of Commerce’s A Profile in Change, the Arizona Republic’s Top Arizonans to Watch, Arizona Business Magazine’s Top 5 Under 35 Most Influential Women in Arizona, and the Greater Phoenix Chamber Athena Award.

Pearl holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Public Policy, and Spanish from UCLA, and a Master’s in International Business with a focus on Digital Transformation from the Thunderbird School of Global Management at ASU. Her work continues to expand opportunities for learners, ensuring they are prepared to thrive in an economy shaped by rapid technological advancements.