Mahnaz Charania

Mahnaz R. Charania, PhD is Chief Transformation Officer at TNTP, where she leads the national effort to transform K–20 education systems into genuine opportunity platforms for historically underserved learners. Her work sits at the intersection of research, innovation, and systems change — designing and scaling the evidence-based services, measurement tools, and learning frameworks that help districts and states move beyond narrow achievement metrics toward a fuller picture of what enables students to thrive. Mahnaz is recognized for her expertise in measuring non-academic outcomes and translating that evidence into practice at scale — including launching TNTP's Mobility Research Lab and Student Mobility Experiences Survey, and a national research and learning agenda focused on social and economic mobility. Before TNTP, she founded the Rozhar Education Collaborative, co-led a $1.5M field-building initiative at the Clayton Christensen Institute focused on social capital and career-connected learning, and launched Fulton County Schools' inaugural Department of Research and Program Evaluation. Mahnaz holds a PhD in Experimental Social Psychology from UT Arlington and is a Pahara Fellow.