John Barker

A native of Humboldt, Tennessee, Dr. John Barker draws on more than ten years of C-level experience in urban school districts and higher education to provide innovative decision support to policymakers, district leaders, and corporate partners in his consulting venture, JB Logical Solutions.

Prior to founding his new firm, Dr. Barker was for three years the Chief Accountability Officer for Chicago Public Schools, leading the district’s work in teacher/principal/school accountability, performance management, and data quality.

Dr. Barker also served for several years as Chief of Staff and Executive Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessment with the Memphis City Schools.

Dr. Barker holds the Ph.D. in Education and Human Development from Vanderbilt University and was a summa cum laude graduate in history and communications from his undergraduate institution, the University of Tennessee at Martin.

With more than a dozen peer-reviewed publications and scores of scholarly presentations to audiences nationwide, Dr. Barker is committed to sharing lessons learned from practice and supporting senior leaders in the complex task of data-driven decision making. He is a former Vice President for Advancement and Operations for Memphis Theological Seminary and served for seven years in the administration of University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Dr. Barker is married to Dr. Katherine (Kathy) Simpson Barker and is the proud father of an incredible 13-year old daughter, Sophie.