Stanford Thompson

Session

Stanford Thompson (he/him) founded and led music education organization Play On Philly, served as the founding board chair of El Sistema USA, and founded and currently serves as executive director of Equity Arc. In those roles, he has led complex strategic planning and organizational design projects for local and national initiatives that provide equitable arts access for communities and artists.

As a Principal with Goldsmith Strategies, he has guided the strategic development of dozens of organizations across the United States. He has also collaborated with WolfBrown on strategic planning, program evaluation, and establishing new ventures with the support of national institutional funders.

Stanford serves on the faculty of the Global Leaders Institute and regularly speaks at major arts and business conferences and institutions. He has been a TED Fellow, presenting on music as a powerful tool for positive personal and societal change. Stanford holds degrees from The Curtis Institute of Music and New England Conservatory.