Local community and business leaders work together to advance our mission to ensure public schools are places all students can thrive.
Jon Hile served as COO with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City. Under Jon’s leadership, BBBSKC was recognized as a top performing ‘Gold Standard’ agency and was awarded BBBS Agency of the Year in 2011, 2013 and 2015. In 2012, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America recognized Jon as the most outstanding BBBS staff leader in the country. Jon has a bachelor's degree from Truman State University and a Masters in Public Administration from UMKC. He is a graduate of the Centurions Leadership Program (2012) and was elected to the Kansas City Missouri School Board in 2012 and served four years, including two years as president. During his term on the Board, the KCPS demonstrated four consecutive years of academic improvement under the Missouri School Improvement Plan, maintained a balanced budget, and had four consecutive years of clean financial audits. Additionally, Jon led a successful master planning effort that allowed for the redirection of nearly $8M in revenue directly to classrooms and executed the successful search process that culminated with the successful hiring of Dr. Mark Bedell.
Currently, Jon serves as a Board Member for City Year and the KCPS Foundation. He also serves in an advisory capacity to several other education improvement efforts related to early learning and school quality. Jon was recognized as one of Ingram’s magazine’s 40 under 40 in 2016. Jon and his wife, Allyson have two children, Ellery and Owen, and live in Kansas City’s historic Longfellow neighborhood.
Kate Bender is dedicated to helping cities use data-driven analysis and storytelling to understand their processes and better serve the community. For 15 years, she worked for the city of Kansas City, Missouri, beginning as a Cookingham-Noll Fellow, followed by Co-Lead for DataKC and most recently as Chief Analytics Officer.
As Co-Lead for the DataKC team, Kate designed and managed the City’s KCStat public performance management system. She oversaw administration of the City’s resident and business surveys and worked to integrate them into the City’s strategic planning efforts. Kate launched a new home page for Open Data KC and oversaw the City’s data storytelling efforts across multiple platforms. She developed and delivered the Data Academy training program to city employees and community partners, including a module for managers.
Kate earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Brown University and a Master of Urban Planning degree from the Wagner School of Public Service at New York University. She was a member of the 2013 class of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce Centurions Leadership Program and the 2020 class for the Greater Missouri Leadership Challenge. She was a participant in the inaugural Bloomberg-Harvard City Leadership Initiative in 2017-2018 and a recipient of the inaugural American Society of Public Administrators Emerging Leaders award.
Kate currently serves on the KCUR Advisory Board and recently served on the KCPS Education Foundation board of directors, including a year as Board Chair. She and her husband are proud parents of two KCPS students attending Lincoln Middle and Lincoln College Preparatory Academy High School. She and her family live in midtown Kansas City.
Troy Lillebo is the Associate Vice Chancellor for External Relations at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC), where he plays a pivotal role in fostering strong relationships between the university and its diverse community of stakeholders. With over 30 years of experience in higher education and public engagement, Troy’s work focuses on strategic partnerships, government relations, and community outreach to further UMKC's mission of providing high-quality education, research, and service.
Throughout his career, Troy has been instrumental in developing initiatives that enhance UMKC’s presence within the Kansas City metropolitan area and beyond. He works closely with local, state, and national policymakers, business leaders, and civic organizations to advance the university's goals and to promote economic and cultural development in the region. His ability to build lasting relationships and create collaborative opportunities makes him a vital contributor to UMKC’s leadership team.
Before joining UMKC, Troy held various leadership positions at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Ball State University, the University of Arizona and the University of South Dakota, where he led efforts in Student Affairs and University Residential Life.
Troy holds a Master’s degree from the University of Arizona in Higher Education Administration and a Bachelor’s from the University of South Dakota in Communications and Business Administration.
Troy is deeply involved in the Kansas City community, actively contributing to the Chamber’s legislative initiatives through his roles on the Missouri Public Policy Council, the Kansas City, MO Committee, and the Workforce Development Taskforce. As an inaugural member of the Mayor’s Challenge Cabinet, he led the community engagement team. His passion for the arts is evident through his work with ArtKC’s Regional Cultural Arts Plan steering committee, the Alvin Ailey Gala committee, the KC Chorale, the Kansas City Repertory Theatre Board, and the Kansas City Municipal Arts Commission. Additionally, Troy serves on the boards of United WE, two Community Improvement Districts, and his Neighborhood Association.
His passion for education, community engagement, and strategic growth continues to drive UMKC’s impact on both a regional and national scale.
Matt Oates served as an elected member of the Kansas City Public Schools (KCPS) Board from November 2015-April 2019, serving as board treasurer starting in 2016. During Matt’s time on the KCPS Board, the board has hired a high-functioning superintendent to execute the district’s goals. Further, the district has scored in full accreditation range two of the last three years. Oates delivered on his commitment to early childhood education (ECE) and voted to expand to 1,200 no-fee early education seats for KCPS families to ensure more students are ready for Kindergarten on Day 1. He also led and participated in thorough research for new board policies and invested in personal development in board governance.
Oates completed his K-12 education in the Kansas City Missouri School District, graduating from Paseo Academy of the Fine & Performing Arts. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He is a registered professional engineer in Missouri and works as a consulting engineer with Burns & McDonnell in the oil, gas and chemical industry.
Oates coaches baseball each summer through the Reviving Baseball in the Inner City (R.B.I.) program since 2009. He has volunteered in the Lead to Read program since 2014. And he served on the board at Friends of Hale Cook from 2013-2015.
Erica Orf-Ostroski is a results-driven Chief Operating Officer with Big Brothers Big Sisters Kansas City (BBBSKC), where she has held the role since 2018. With over fifteen years of leadership experience, Erica excels in driving performance improvements, spearheading strategic initiatives, and overseeing daily operations for the agency. She plays a key role in ensuring the agency’s growth, operational efficiency, and strategic alignment with its mission to ignite the potential of youth through mentorship.
In her current position, Erica leads the Kansas City Operations & Program teams, which manages enrollment, match making, match support, Trauma Informed Care, volunteer and family intake, facilities, systems and innovation. She works closely with all agency departments to shape organizational vision and strategy, ensuring the alignment of goals with BBBSKC’s long-term objectives. Erica also oversees three satellite offices and works closely with the many boards that guide the agency.
Erica has demonstrated a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), having led BBBSKC’s Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Board from 2019-2022. She is also responsible for managing a separate 501(c)(3) Thrift Foundation that generates over $1.5 million dollars of revenue for the organization through thrift donations. She’s known for creating processes that streamline operations and increase productivity while cutting costs, leading to improved service delivery and client relationships.
Before becoming COO, Erica served as the Director of Special Events at BBBSKC from 2008 to 2018, where she managed up to 30 events annually and significantly increased attendance and fundraising through innovative strategies. She played a pivotal role in cultivating relationships with donors, sponsors, and partners, ensuring the continued financial success of the organization.
Erica's leadership is defined by her ability to cultivate a culture of continuous improvement and mentorship within the organization, fostering opportunities for rising talent and improving employee satisfaction. She has also navigated the organization through periods of significant change with clear communication and decisive leadership.
A graduate of the University of Missouri Kansas City, Erica is an active member of the Kansas City community. She is affiliated with the Downtown Council of Kansas City, Driving Pursuits, and is a Leadership Overland Park Alumni. Erica is also a three-time "Big Sister" with BBBSKC, honored as "Kansas City’s Big Sister of the Year" in 2014. Outside of work, Erica enjoys spending time with her family and her two rescue dogs. She is deeply passionate about her role as a mentor, having been a Big Sister since 2008.
Caitlin Sharp is a Partner at TNTP, a national education non-profit focused on transforming educational opportunities for students. As a Partner, Caitlin oversees a portfolio of work across the Midwest, including advising state education agencies, districts, and school leaders on conditions for students to have greater opportunities in school that will generate economic and social mobility throughout their lives.
Prior to joining TNTP, Caitlin served as the Director of Technology and Data at the Ewing Marion Kauffman School, contributing to trajectory-changing results across the network. This builds on work for Double Line Partners building longitudinal data systems for State Education Agencies and creating education technology applications that enhance student opportunities. Caitlin started her career in education teaching third grade in The Bronx, New York through Teach for America. She co- founded the Teach for America Austin Alumni Chapter and served as Board Chair.
Caitlin has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Southern Methodist University and a Master of Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. She has three young sons and is a Kansas City Public Schools parent.
