Marnae Chavers, M.Ed., is a transformational education leader and St. Louis native with over a decade of experience spanning classroom instruction, instructional coaching, and executive operations. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Human Development and Family Studies with a minor in Leadership Development from the University of Missouri in 2014, before launching her career as a fifth-grade science teacher and Teach For America Houston Corps member. Driven by a passion for education and global exploration, she went on to teach secondary science in Abu Dhabi — earning her Master of Education in Secondary Science Education from Johns Hopkins University in 2017 — and later returned to serve students in Saint Louis Public Schools. Those years of navigating demanding environments across multiple continents deepened her commitment to intentional living, personal growth, and building systems that support both people and performance.

Since joining Kairos Academies, Marnae has grown steadily from Instructional Director to Chief of Staff to her current role as Chief Operations Officer — each step marked by a willingness to build where nothing existed and lead teams to greater impact. As COO, she oversees all non-instructional operations, including facilities, IT, health services, food services, student data, and state reporting. Her results speak for themselves: she grew her team's workplace satisfaction from 33% to 85% — the highest score in the organization increased on-time compliance submissions from 27% to over 90%, and achieved 100% enrollment for the 2025–26 school year. She also led the organization's full charter renewal end-to-end and earned a Board on Track Governance Award for excellence in board management. A current Board of Trustees member at the Wyman Center, Marnae brings both operational excellence and a deep commitment to community to everything she does.