30th Anniversary Spotlight: Tina Prichard from Startup to Lasting Impact

When J.C. Huizenga interviewed Tina Prichard for a position as his assistant 30 years ago, he asked her, “Have you ever heard of charter schools?”. She had no idea that question would help launch an entirely new educational movement and define her career.

In February 1995, Tina chose to stay in Michigan and accept the position instead of moving home to California. She joined National Heritage Academies^® as one of its first employees. There were no playbooks, no systems, and no roadmap, just a small team with a big idea to expand access to high-quality education.

“We were a startup renegade group,” Tina said with a smile. “We didn’t have all the systems we have today, but we had passion and problem-solving.”

The stories from those early days still feel legendary. When they discovered the computer disk that held team’s original charter application was corrupted the night before the filing deadline, panic could have taken over. Instead, perseverance did.

“We had a paper copy, thankfully,” she said. “I retyped about 180 pages overnight. And J.C. proofread them. We went to Kinko’s at 5 a.m. to get it printed and delivered on time. It was intense but exciting.”

The Excel Staircase

Opening the first school also meant navigating the unexpected. One of Tina’s most vivid memories happened the day before Excel Charter Academy was set to open in a renovated two-story office building.

Everything was ready students enrolled, classrooms prepared, until the final inspection uncovered a problem: the main staircase didn’t meet school code.

“The rise of the steps worked for an office building but not for a school,” Tina recalled. “We had one narrow stairwell in the back that met code, but you practically had to shimmy past people to get up and down it.”

Because of the issue, opening day was delayed by one day while the team determined a solution.

“It felt huge at the time,” she said. “But we did what was needed so students could safely start school and then we opened with about 174 students.”

The energy was electric Tina recalls, “Everyone was rowing in the same direction. It wasn’t an us and them. It was a we.”



Growing a Network and a Career

As NHA grew, so did Tina’s role. She worked across nearly every corner of the organization from school expansion, operations, communications, enrollment, project management, and school quality.

“One of my favorite roles was working in schools during change management,” she said. “We helped realign schools to our vision and culture. It was challenging, but it made a difference for students.”

She remembers years when NHA was opening ten or more schools at once, all while creating systems, training teams, and supporting families.

“You don’t just open schools,” Tina said. “You have to run them well. We learned and improved every year to become best in class.”

Staying Grounded in Mission

She also experienced the skepticism surrounding charter schools but Tina stayed grounded in the mission.

“My hope was that we would raise the bar in education,” she said. “If we raised it, others would raise it too and students would win.”

Tina has watched NHA grow from one school to a network serving thousands of students in multiple states. “In the beginning, we dreamed of maybe having 100 schools someday,” she said. “We couldn’t even picture what that would look like and here we are.”



Looking Ahead with Purpose

Today, Tina serves in IT and Project Management, helping guide complex projects that support schools nationwide. She is known as a connector, someone who remembers history, understands culture, and keeps NHA focused on doing what is right.

“My driving force is always making sure that we’re doing the right thing, always,” she said. “That can look different to different people, but if each of us commits to it, we will continue to be successful for students and team members.”

Thirty years later, her passion remains steady.

“I still love what I do,” Tina said. “It gives me purpose because we are making a difference in the lives of kids. I don’t know exactly what NHA will look like in another 30 years, but I know it will be just as special.”

Outside NHA

Tina’s passion may be for education, her greatest joy is her husband and their two sons. They enjoy time together camping, traveling, and geocaching around the United States.

“We’ve taken the boys to more than 40 states,” she said. “The world is a classroom too.”

Together, they’re making memories that remind Tina why the work she does every day matters so much.



Congratulations on 30 years Tina!