Margaret A. Honey

Dr. Margaret Honey is a nationally recognized education leader whose career has been defined by a lifelong commitment to equitable creative learning opportunities for children. Over more than four decades, she has led major institutions, shaped national policy, and built programs at the intersection of research, practice, and systems change. Her work is grounded in the conviction that the environments we build shape what children imagine is possible, and that the best of those environments center children’s curiosity and creativity.

Most recently, Dr. Honey served as President & CEO of the Scratch Foundation, a platform that has shaped the creative and computational lives of over 160 million children worldwide. During her time at Scratch, she launched three major initiatives: building a sustainable revenue model to ensure the organization's long-term viability; re-engineering the platform's backend; and developing a vision for creative, child-centered AI.

Prior to Scratch, Dr. Honey led the New York Hall of Science for fifteen years, re-imagining one of the nation’s most innovative informal learning institutions. Under her leadership, the museum launched Connected Worlds, the world’s first large-scale digitally immersive exhibit, and launched the 6,000 sq. ft. hands-on Design Lab experience, hosted World Maker Faire for a decade, and opened a STEAM-focused preschool that serves more than 300 children annually in partnership with the City of New York. She also led the institution through the COVID-19 pandemic and catastrophic flooding from Hurricane Ida.

Earlier, Dr. Honey spent fifteen years at the Education Development Center, rising to Vice President and Director of its Center for Children and Technology. She secured funding for and oversaw the implementation of large-scale R&D projects supported by the NSF, U.S. Departments of Education and Energy, the Carnegie Corporation, and others, raising hundreds of millions in program funds. A signature initiative was the landmark school reform work in Union City, New Jersey.

She began her career at the Children’s Television Workshop and Bank Street College’s Center for Children and Technology, where her work on the PBS series The Voyage of the Mimi crystallized the conviction that has endured across her career: that the best learning experiences open a space for curiosity and creativity to take hold.

Dr. Honey has advised Congress, state legislatures, and federal panels, and is the author and editor of multiple books, including Design Make Play for Equity, Inclusion, and Agency and STEM Integration in K-12 Education. She is an elected member of the National Academy of Education and serves on the boards of Bank Street College of Education, Gulf of Maine Research Institute, Post University, and Sphero.

She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Developmental Psychology from Columbia University and a B.A. in Social Theory from Hampshire College.