Executive Management

James Rhyu, Chief Executive Officer, joined Stride in June 2013 and became CEO in January 2021. He has more than 20 years of financial management experience in various global industries

Mr. Rhyu works with leaders across the company to expand the market for Stride and reach new students. He also drives product innovation and improvements in the customer experience that are designed to attract more students to the company’s services. Prior to his CEO role, Mr. Rhyu served as Stride’s President of Corporate Strategy, Marketing, and Technology, Chief Financial Officer, and President of Product and Technology. In these positions, Mr. Rhyu led the development of marketing and messaging to support market expansions and executed on merger and acquisition opportunities that support Stride’s growth strategy.

Before his tenure at Stride, Mr. Rhyu served as CFO and Chief Administrative Officer of Match.com, a subsidiary of publicly traded IAC/InterActiveCorp. In those roles, he was responsible for overseeing a broad range of functions, including human resources, legal, information technology and operations, and certain international operations and product development.

Prior to his roles at Match.com, Mr. Rhyu was a SVP of Finance at Dow Jones & Company where he ran the global financial function. Previously, he served for three years as the Corporate Controller of Sirius XM Radio Inc. and its predecessor company, XM Satellite Radio, as well as serving in the same role for Graftech International. Mr. Rhyu also spent six years with Ernst & Young LLP in the United States and South America.

Mr. Rhyu holds a bachelor’s degree from The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from London Business School.

Donna Blackman, Stride’s CFO, brings more than 20 years of experience in accounting, finance, and strategic planning. As CFO, Blackman informs Stride’s efforts to lead innovation in education for learners of all ages. She had previously served as Stride’s Chief Accounting Officer and Treasurer.

Prior to joining Stride in 2020, Ms. Blackman served as the SVP of Business Operations at BET Networks, where she oversaw finance, strategy, research, live events, security, facilities, and operations. During her tenure at BET, she also held roles as SVP and Head of Finance, SVP, Financial Planning and Analysis, and SVP Finance and Controller.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Blackman worked for Marriott International and KPMG in a variety of leadership roles in accounting and finance.

Ms. Blackman earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, a bachelor’s degree in accounting from North Carolina State University, and is a certified public accountant.

Mr. Chavous joined us in January 2017 and currently serves as Senior Advisor to the CEO. He was a member of our Board of Directors from January 2017 to October 2017 before resigning to take his current position. Previously, he was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Chavous Group, an educational consulting firm, a position he held from January 2012 until January 2018 and was a founding board member of the American Federation for Children (“AFC”). He served as AFC’s Executive Counsel from 2012 to 2016. Previously, Mr. Chavous was a partner at the SNR Denton law firm from 2002 to 2012 and served as a member of the Council of the District of Columbia from 1993 to 2005, where he was Chair of the Council’s Education Committee. He also has served on the boards of various charter schools across the country, including the Friendship Charter Schools in Washington, D.C. Mr. Chavous holds a B.A. from Wabash College and a J.D. from the Howard University School of Law.

Mr. Mathis joined us in September 2018 and serves as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. In this role, he has executive responsibility for providing comprehensive legal counsel for our business, including matters relating to securities, litigation, regulatory compliance, intellectual property, contracts and licensing, and corporate governance. Mr. Mathis has more than 20 years of legal experience counseling diverse global businesses. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Mathis served as Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Corporate Secretary and Chief of Staff to the CEO at The AES Corporation where he earlier was Vice President and Deputy General Counsel. Prior to his roles at The AES Corporation, Mr. Mathis was an Executive Vice President and General Counsel at ContourGlobal, LLC, a private international energy company. Previously, Mr. Mathis worked for Venable, LLP, Shearman and Sterling, LLP, and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Mr. Mathis formerly served on the board of directors of Indianapolis Power and Light Company Enterprises, Inc., AES Tietê Energia S.A., and AES Elpa S.A. In addition, he previously served on the board of directors at IPALCO Enterprises, Inc., DPL Inc. and The Dayton Power and Light Company and was Chairman of Eletropaulo Metropolitana Eletricidade de São Paulo S.A. Mr. Mathis holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia and a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from The University of Richmond.

Valerie Maddy, SVP & Chief Human Resources Officer at Stride Inc., brings more than 20 years of global leadership and innovation in the full range of human resources disciplines. At Stride, Ms. Maddy is leading the development and implementation of new systems, processes, policies and programs aimed at maximizing every employee's contribution to student academic success. As part of that effort, she is working with business teams to drive alignment, clarity and competitive advantage across the company and plan, acquire, develop and retain the talent required to achieve organizational goals.

Prior to joining Stride, Ms. Maddy was Vice President, Global Human Resources Operations for Ciena Corporation, a global leader in next-generation network infrastructure, where she introduced reliable automation to HR systems, significantly increasing efficiency levels, and led the HR due diligence efforts and integration activities of eight acquisitions. Before rising to this position, Ms. Maddy served in a number of leadership roles at Ciena in the areas of Global Total Rewards and Global Risk Management.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Maddy held leadership roles in Human Resources and Finance at Crown Vantage, a specialty paper manufacturer and distributor. Prior to that, she served in Human Resources and Auditing roles at SAFECO and American General, both providers of financial and insurance services.

Ms. Maddy is a graduate of Humboldt State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She holds a certificate in Global Benefits Management, a designation from Fellow Life Management Institute, and is also a Certified Employee Benefits Specialist and Certified Internal Auditor.

Todd Goldthwaite, managing director of portfolio companies, has more than 25 years of experience in technological innovation, marketing, operations management, and enterprise sales. At Stride, Mr. Goldthwaite manages a growing number of portfolio companies. He also leads Stride’s enrollment and customer service operations.

Prior to this role, Mr. Goldthwaite served as Stride’s chief marketing officer. He also previously served as senior vice president of school services for Stride's online public schools. In this position, he amplified best practices and drove improvements in academic performance, teacher effectiveness, and student retention.

Before joining Stride, Mr. Goldthwaite managed operations for Blackboard Student Services. He also spent 18 years in the telecommunications field. This includes a position at MCI Communications where he launched operations for the company's emerging telemarketing and customer service business, established call centers across the country, and expanded the company's global sales and service footprint to five international locations.

Les Ottolenghi, EVP & Chief Information and Technology Officer, has had a remarkable 30-year career designing and implementing digital service strategies. At Stride, Mr. Ottolenghi is leading the company into a new era of IT solutions. In his role, he is responsible for establishing a best-in-class technology experience for Stride customers. This includes ensuring that applications, platforms, infrastructure, processes, and operations are efficient, reliable, scalable, and secure.

Previously, Mr. Ottolenghi served as CIO and Executive Vice President of Caesars Entertainment where he led the company’s digital business strategy, developed seven cloud transformation platforms including the "zero trust" cybersecurity program, and implemented the first cybersecurity readiness program at Caesars. Prior to that role, he was the Chief Information and Innovation Officer for the Sands Corporation where he improved regulatory compliance on data privacy and gaming, oversaw a global IT staff, and built strategic relationships with tech leaders in Silicon Valley, among many other accomplishments.

Mr. Ottolenghi currently serves as an advisor for the MIT Technology Review Global Panel and the Nevada Governor’s Advisory Board. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Technology Business Management Council where he advises on best practices for enterprise technology leadership. He was recently recognized as an innovator in the Artificial Intelligence and data analytics space by The Economist and Harvard Business Review.

He earned a Master of Business Administration from Emory University and a bachelor’s degree from Duke University.

Dr. Charles "Tony" Bennett, President of Schools, has more than three decades of experience in school management, strategic planning, and operations. As one of the nation's foremost experts in education policy, he manages and implements a diverse portfolio of initiatives and programs that support, measure, track, and ultimately improve student academic achievement and growth across schools powered by Stride K12.

Dr. Bennett began his career as a high school science teacher and rapidly ascended to leadership roles in two of the country's pioneering education reform states: Florida and Indiana. He served as Commissioner of Education in Florida before starting TBX2, Inc./Education Reform Strategies, a consulting company that focuses on supporting education reform across the country.

Prior to TBX2, Inc., Dr. Bennett served as State Superintendent in Indiana. During his tenure, the state saw record high- school graduation rates and participation and success rates in Advanced Placement® courses and exams, student achievement on the Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress (ISTEP) assessment rose dramatically, and improvement in the state's National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) results was ranked among the top three in the United States.

Dr. Bennett previously held roles in Indiana as School Corporation Superintendent for Greater Clark County Schools and Assistant Superintendent for Administration and Operations at New Albany Floyd County Schools. He also served on the board of the Council of Chief State School Officers, the governing board of the Partnership for the Assessment for Readiness for College and Career (PARCC), and was a founding member and former chair of Chiefs for Change.

Dr. Bennett holds a doctoral degree in education and a superintendent license from Spalding University. He earned his certification in secondary administration and supervision, a master's degree in secondary education, and a bachelor's degree in secondary education from Indiana University Southeast.

Bryan W. Flood, SVP & Chief Public Affairs Officer, joined Stride in 2002. Mr. Flood previously served as a public affairs strategist, consultant, and spokesman for corporations, interest groups, and senatorial, gubernatorial, and presidential campaigns.

As Vice President at the MPGH Agency, a Virginia-based public affairs consulting firm, he advised clients ranging from high tech start-ups to Fortune 500 firms, including several leading education companies. Mr. Flood helped clients like MCI, The Learning Company, and Achievement Technologies win complex public policy and opinion battles by designing and managing advocacy campaigns at the local, state, and national levels. While serving at MPGH in 1999, Mr. Flood helped direct a sweeping review of the military recruitment process for the United States Department of Defense.

Mr. Flood was chief spokesman for Michigan Governor John Engler's successful reelection campaign in 1994, and was national spokesman for United States Senator Lamar Alexander's presidential campaign in 1995-96.

Mr. Flood holds a BA in Public Policy from New College of Florida.

Karen Ghidotti, Senior Vice President of Customer Experience, joined Stride in 2002. She leads efforts to drive a positive experience for students and their families—from their first interaction with Stride, through their entire school journey to graduation day. Ms. Ghidotti also spearheads initiatives across teams and departments to design and implement new tools that will help strengthen the customer experience.

In her most recent role as the Senior Vice President of the Southern Region, Ms. Ghidotti was instrumental in launching nine Stride-powered schools and an active member of numerous teams that changed state code guidelines across the South to pave the way for Stride's signature, personalized approach to education. Under her leadership, enrollment for the Southern Region grew to more than 30 thousand students. She was also the Operations Manager and then Head of School for Arkansas Virtual Academy.

Throughout her career, Ms. Ghidotti has demonstrated a consistent, passionate devotion to professional development and to strengthening the hiring process. She led the development of the first-ever Stride Heads of School Boot Camp. She also supported the creation and pilot implementation of HireVue as a hiring tool.

Prior to joining Stride, Ms. Ghidotti worked with the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation and the Arkansas Department of Higher Education.

Peter Stewart, Senior Vice President of School Development, works with parents, teachers, community groups, school districts, school boards, departments of education, and policy makers across the United States and internationally to start new high-tech schools that use the Stride academic program.

In the past seven years Mr. Stewart has helped develop large-scale, public e-learning programs in sixteen states that currently serve over 100,000 courses annually.

Prior to joining Stride in 2000, Mr. Stewart was a Head of School, a teacher, a school principal, and a curriculum director with ten years' experience working in urban, rural, and international schools.

Mr. Stewart holds a BA in English from Williams College, and an MA from Columbia University Teachers College.

Paul Rhyu, Stride’s chief marketing officer, has decades of executive experience in marketing, sales, and operations at public and private companies. As CMO, he manages a wide range of functions related to Stride’s marketing strategy, brand management, market analytics, and innovation to drive customer acquisition and brand engagement.

Before joining Stride, Mr. Rhyu served as the founder and managing partner of Rooster Media Services, a consultancy that specializes in marketing, customer acquisition, digital media, and product development.

Mr. Rhyu previously served as senior vice president of digital media and marketing operations at the Apollo Education Group. During his tenure, he managed one of the largest digital media budgets in the world and optimized end-to-end metrics across all digital channels to deliver double-digit growth with double-digit savings.

Mr. Rhyu began his career at the strategy consulting firm Monitor Group, now part of Deloitte’s consulting division. During his 12-year tenure, he became a partner and led strategy engagements for global enterprises in the tech, telecommunications, consumer goods, and automotive industries across Western Europe, the Americas, and Asia.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and a master’s degree from Hautes Etudes Commerciales in Paris, France. Mr. Rhyu is also trilingual in English, French, and Spanish having lived and worked in eight countries across four continents.

Ms. Azzarello brings more than 25 years of experience in strategy and corporate development, general management, commercial operations, investor relations, and finance to her role as Stride's senior vice president of career learning. At Stride, Ms. Azzarello manages the company's growing portfolio of career exploration curriculum, courses, and resources for middle and high schoolers.

Before joining Stride, Ms. Azzarello served as divisional vice president of nutritional products at Abbott where she guided the development and implementation of the company's global nutrition strategy; spearheaded growth and innovation in emerging markets, including the design, development, and launch of multiple new products; devised and led business development and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) strategy; and was general manager of an international business.

Ms. Azzarello previously led corporate strategy and M&A teams during her tenure at R.R. Donnelley and FMC Corporation, where she also served in various leadership roles.

Ms. Azzarello earned a bachelor's degree in economics and government from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago.