Long Phan

"What's your thing? Everyone has at least one thing in their life--family, friends, a group or cause--that would benefit from your time, energy and attention. Mine is the high school in the community that I grew up in, but everyone has that one thing that fuels a fire deep inside."

-Long Phan

Long Phan is a strategy officer at the Gates Foundation where he supports programs and initiatives that help to create more equitable educational outcomes for Black & Latino students, first generation students and students experiencing poverty. Previously, Long worked in public service at the City of Seattle and the White House. He started his career in corporate finance before totally switching and pursuing a new career in education. Long’s passion for making a difference comes from being the child of refugees, choosing to attend his neighborhood public schools, and being the first in his family to graduate from college. He’s proud to have grown up (and still live) in White Center—a historically diverse, working-class community in south Seattle—and is a tireless supporter of his alma mater, Evergreen High School.