A. Joseph Tamer
LEADERSHIP, PARTNERSHIP, & INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT
Building Strategic Partnerships
I have built partnerships that connect educational institutions with complementary expertise and shared goals. Through Infiniscope, I cultivated collaborations with NASA scientists, universities, school districts, and community organizations; through REAL CHEM, I worked with Carnegie Mellon, the Gates Foundation, and participating institutions. I approach partnerships by understanding what each organization values and designing work where shared interests create lasting mutual benefit.
Leading & Developing High-Performing Teams
My selection as Interim Director reflects a role I had already played for much of the prior decade: helping the Center solve its hardest institutional problems. I became known as the person who could think across workstreams, understand how complex issues affected the larger organization, and find practical solutions when conventional approaches fell short. Today, I lead ETX’s institutional decision-making, planning, and problem-solving while guiding the Center through a consequential period of transition.
Senior Leadership & Strategic Thought Partnership
For more than a decade, I worked alongside ETX Director Ariel Anbar as his administrative and strategic partner. Ariel often brought the academic vision; I helped translate that vision into programs, staffing, budgets, partnerships, and organizational systems that could be implemented, evaluated, and scaled. That partnership taught me when to question, when to support, and when to act, while keeping institutional priorities and the people doing the work in view.
Leadership Through Change & Crisis
My leadership experience includes navigating periods when institutions could not simply follow established plans. At Marianapolis, I served on a five-person leadership team rebuilding the school following financial hardship. At ETX, I have led through funding uncertainty, organizational restructuring, and major technology transitions. As Interim Director, I now help determine priorities and make difficult staffing and resource decisions while communicating candidly and preserving mission-critical work.