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Craig Richard
President & CEO

(813) 518-2620
crichard@tampabayedc.com

Helios Education Foundation

Helios Education Foundation is dedicated to creating opportunities for individuals in Arizona and Florida to achieve a postsecondary education. The Foundation’s work is driven by four fundamental beliefs in Community, Investment, Equity, and Partnership. Helios invests in programs and initiatives across the full education continuum – from early grade success through postsecondary education. In Arizona, where Latino students comprise the largest percentage of the K-12 public school population, the Foundation is implementing its Arizona Latino Student Success initiative focused on preparing all students – especially students in high poverty, underserved Latino communities – for success. Through Helios’ Florida Regional Student Success Initiative, the Foundation is helping underserved, minority, first-generation students from the state’s large population centers in of Tampa, Orlando, and Miami achieve a postsecondary education. Since 2006, the Foundation has invested more than $233 million in education programs and initiatives in both states.




Charles Hokanson

Charles Hokanson is Senior Vice President, Community Engagement and Strategic Partnerships for Helios Education Foundation, where he leads Helios’ staff engagement with the community and stakeholders to improve quality, access, and achievement across the birth-16 education continuum.

Mr. Hokanson’s career has bridged the worlds of nonprofit, private sector, and government policy development and executive management. As President and CEO of Hokanson Consulting Group LLC, Mr. Hokanson provided strategic and public policy advice to nonprofit, think tank, trade association, and federal and state agency clients.  Mr. Hokanson previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education at the U.S. Department of Education, as president or executive vice president of three national education reform nonprofits, and as professional staff to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce.

Mr. Hokanson graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University, earning a BA in History and American Studies and an MA in History, before earning JD and Master of Public Policy degrees at the Harvard Law School and Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

He currently serves as Chairman of the Florida Education Foundation’s Board of Directors and Vice Chair of Hostelling International USA, and sits on the governing boards of the Florida Chamber Foundation (investment committee chair) and Florida Philanthropic Network (policy committee chair). Mr. Hokanson is also a member of the advisory boards for the Florida College Access Network (Chairman), Florida TaxWatch’s Education and Workforce Policy Council (Vice Chairman), the Florida College System’s Student Success Center, the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations, and the Center for Postsecondary Success at Florida State University.

Charles Hokanson
Senior Vice President, Community Engagement and Strategic Partnerships