Thalia Tirado is the Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition and Strategy. Prior to joining the Center, Thalia worked on the Principal Effectiveness team in the Office of Human Capital at DC Public Schools (DCPS) for five years, working to recruit candidates for the principal, assistant principal, and instructional superintendent role. She managed the creation of competency-based selection processes for all three roles, as well as the district’s internal principal development pipeline program, the Mary Jane Patterson Fellowship, and collaborated with Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business to create an Executive Master’s in Leadership program for DCPS school leaders.

Most recently, Thalia worked at Education Pioneers (EP) supporting the organization's human capital work through revamping the internal recruitment and selection processes, developing and implementing virtual sessions for staff on implicit bias, and revamping the selection process for EP Fellows. She also supported EP Alums and their work to catalyze and mobilize that network of leaders.

Since joining the Center in 2022, Thalia has successfully led the Center’s hiring process with an equity and inclusion lens — from providing guidance on writing inclusive job descriptions, building a diverse pipeline of candidates, and structuring an equitable and unbiased interview process, to conducting salary equity reviews — resulting in diverse and incredibly talented new hires. Thalia has spearheaded continuous improvement projects to enhance recruitment and selection policies and processes. Thalia also leads the intern hiring process and serves as an indispensable resource to Intern Mentors and Intern Coordinators.

Thalia has a strong belief that recruiting talent from diverse professional and personal backgrounds will lead to transformational change for any organization. She received a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Brown University.