Aspen is a place for leaders to lift their sights above the possessions which possess them. To confront their own nature as human beings, to regain control over their own humanity by becoming more self-aware, more self-correcting, and hence more self-fulfilling.

Walter P. Paepcke, Aspen Institute Co-Founder

Benjamin Shuldiner

Superintendent, Seattle Public Schools

Benjamin “Ben” Shuldiner is the Superintendent of Seattle Public Schools. Prior to assuming the role of Superintendent of SPS, he served as Superintendent of the Lansing School District in Michigan from 2021 through January 2026. Under Ben’s leadership in Lansing, the district achieved significant gains in graduation rates and attendance, and realized a net increase in student enrollment for the first time in decades. He also strengthened the district’s fiscal position through increasing the fund balance by more than $40 million and establishing a new investment fund to generate ongoing revenue. Prior to his role in Lansing, Ben held several prominent system and policy level leadership roles. He served as a Dean’s Fellow and Distinguished Lecturer in Education Leadership at Hunter College, City University of New York, where he directed all School and District Leadership programs. In 2015, he was appointed to the New York City Board of Education, the largest school system in the nation, serving more than one million students. In 2016 and 2017, Ben was elected President of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the nation’s largest professional education organization, representing more than 125,000 education leaders and practitioners across 138 countries and 52 affiliate organizations. Ben has also consulted nationally and internationally to support school systems in strengthening leadership and improving student outcomes, including partnerships with the BI Norwegian Business School BI in Norway and education systems in Bangalore and Coimbatore, India.