The following bio is that of an event speaker or guest author. This person is not directly affiliated with the John Locke Foundation.

Burck Smith is the CEO and founder of StraighterLine. Before launching StraighterLine, he was the founder and CEO of SMARTHINKING, the dominant online tutoring provider for schools and colleges. Burck has worked as an independent consultant with such clients as the Gates Foundation, Microsoft, Computer Curriculum Corporation, the CEO Forum on Education and Technology, the Milken Exchange on Education and Technology, Teaching Matters Inc., Converge Magazine, and others. He has written chapters for two books on education policy for the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and is a member of the AEI’s Higher Education Working Group. As a writer about education and technology issues, Burck has been published by Wired Magazine, Wired News, Converge Magazine, University Business and the National School Boards Association. He holds a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and a B.A. from Williams College.