Since 2015, Nathan Monell has served as the executive director for the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA), America’s oldest and largest volunteer child advocacy association. With over 20,000 local units in the U.S. and abroad—the majority of which are Title I schools—PTA’s millions of members are committed to making every child’s potential a reality through advocacy and strong family, school and community partnerships.
At PTA, Nathan advances family engagement and public policy addressing the educational success and well-being of our nation’s children. This work is a continuation of his lifelong commitment to elevate the voice of consumers as partners in the design, delivery and evaluation of services.
He has provided strategic programmatic and advocacy leadership to services supporting youth and families, foster care, mental health, educational/employment and HIV/substance abuse prevention and care. He has led public policy efforts in all these areas at local, state and federal levels of government and partnered with numerous foundations and corporations in improving outcomes and advancing equity in all communities.
Nathan is an ASAE-certified association executive. He also earned Georgetown University’s certificate in nonprofit management, a master’s degree in Communication Studies (Organizational Communication/Behavior) from the University of Michigan, and a bachelor’s degree in Speech from Cornerstone University.
In addition to his work with National PTA, Nathan consults with nonprofit organizations on governance issues and serves as a member of the board of directors for The Prometheus Consortium (which promotes effective association management practices and provides opportunities for peer consultation and problem-solving), as well as a member and previous chair of the Learning First Alliance (a partnership of leading education organizations representing more than 10 million members dedicated to improving student learning in America's public schools). He is also a member of the TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board, a member of the Motion Picture Association Movie Ratings Appeal Board and has served as an advisory board member for the American University’s Center for Postsecondary Readiness and Success (CPRS) and the Dream Project of Virginia. In 2024, Nathan was recognized by The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) with the Impact Award for his dedication for his significant contributions to narrowing opportunity gaps and fostering a more equitable education system.
Nathan and his husband, Robert Pignato, are proud dads of two adopted young adults, Kira and Gonzalo.