Erika Donalds
American conservative activist (born 1980)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Erika Brynne Donalds[1] (née Lees; born 1980) is an American school choice activist from Florida. She leads education policy at the America First Policy Institute. Her husband, Byron Donalds, is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
1980 (age 45–46)
Florida Atlantic University (MS)
Erika Donalds | |
|---|---|
Donalds in 2021 | |
| Born | Erika Brynne Lees 1980 (age 45–46) |
| Education | Florida State University (BS) Florida Atlantic University (MS) |
| Occupation | School choice activist |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
Early life and education
Donalds holds a bachelor's degree (Florida State University, 2002) and a master's degree (Florida Atlantic University, 2006) in accounting.
Career
Donalds worked for New York investment management firm Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC (DGHM) from 2002 until 2018.[2]
Education activism
In 2013, following a dispute with administrators of her second child's public school in Naples, Donalds placed her child in a private school. She became involved in local efforts (via the group Parents ROCK) to deploy state education funds to establish a charter school, the Mason Classical Academy.[3][4]
Donalds was named by Florida House of Representatives Speaker Richard Corcoran to the 2017-2018 Constitution Revision Commission. Governor Ron DeSantis appointed her to the Advisory Committee on Education and Workforce Development and the Florida Gulf Coast University Board of Trustees.[5]
In 2017, Donalds founded OptimaEd, a company that provides management support for several classical charter schools in Florida.[6]
Donalds currently leads education policy at the America First Policy Institute.[7]. She is also a visiting fellow at The Heritage Foundation and serves on the advisory boards of Classical Learning Test, Moms for Liberty, and the Independent Women's Forum Education Freedom Center.[8]
In October 2025, Donalds embarked on a campus speaking tour with the Leadership Institute. Calling the U.S. education system "Wasteful, bureaucratic, monopolistic", she advocated for privatizing the student loan system and increasing the number of groups administering standardized testing.[9]
Personal life
She married Byron Donalds on March 15, 2003. They have three children and live in Naples, Florida.