James Troupis

Chief People Officer

About – James Troupis

James Troupis serves as the Chief People Officer for the Noble Network of Charter Schools, a role he has held since 2013. In this role, he leads the talent (recruiting, hiring, leadership pathways), employee engagement (onboarding, employee surveys, Kickoff, Leadership Retreat, OneNoble), and HR (benefits, payroll, investigations, employee relations) teams. During his tenure as Chief People Officer, the People Team has: recruited the talent that allowed the organization to double in size to now 1,400 full-time employees; increased organizational diversity from 42% POC to now over 60% POC; overhauled teacher and employee compensation systems for the organization; launched Distinguished Teacher; and rebuilt virtually all hiring and HR systems with an eye for both operational efficacy and internal equity.

Prior to this role, James served as the founder and principal of Gary Comer College Prep, Noble’s first school on Chicago’s South Side. While principal, Gary Comer College Prep led all high schools in Chicago in college enrollment and was among the top three schools in the city for ACT growth. In 2013, James was awarded the Ryan Award for his accomplishments as one of the nation’s highest-performing principals.

James is a proud alum of Northwestern University (’03), Leadership Greater Chicago (’12) and Teach For America (New Orleans ’03). He and his wife (Colleen) have three children (Addie, 8, Patrick, 6, and Quinn, 3).

Why do you work at Noble?

There are innumerable small and big reasons, but of most note is that Noble’s approach to love and high expectations embodied in the people I get to work with, our hungry approach to always improving, and our approach to working with students is unmatched in the country.

Who was your favorite teacher while growing up?

Mr. Ulrich, band teacher. Mr. Ulrich had the trifecta of high expectations, love, and instilling in me a lifelong love for the content.

Favorite thing about Noble or favorite Noble moment?

My favorite Noble moment was the graduation of GCCP’s founding class in 2012. The years of work, the collective pride, and the joy in the moment is unparalleled in my professional career.

What do you/your department do at Noble?

The People Team is responsible for the hiring, happiness, and support of the 1,500 incredible educators and staff at Noble. The teams I oversee include:

  • Talent
  • Employee Engagement
  • Human Resources.
  • People Team (Led by James Troupis, 20 people)
    The People Team is responsible for the hiring, happiness, and support of the 1,500 incredible educators and staff at Noble. The Chief People Officer oversees the following teams:
  • Employee Engagement (Led by Paul Hughes, 3 people)
    Responsible for administering and analyzing Mid-Year and End-of-Year Employee Engagement Survey, organizing Kick-Off, Leadership Retreat, OneNoble events, and onboarding new employees to Noble.
  • Human Resources (Led by Quiana Jones, 6 people)
    Responsible for executing payroll, benefits strategy and administration, policy compliance (e.g. Staff Handbook), federal, state and city law compliance, workplace accommodations, leave administration, investigations into claims of discrimination and harassment, and general employee support.
  • Talent (Led by Tanya Klinkhachorn, 11 people)
    Our recruitment team is responsible for marketing Noble, building partnerships, sourcing candidates, developing and executing cultivation events/engagements, and conducting the initial screen of applicants.

Our hiring and selection team is responsible for developing our hiring processes, tracking and analyzing talent acquisition data, engaging with campuses to ensure positive candidate experience, and supporting hiring manager development.

Our talent pathways and operations team is responsible for developing programs, including the Management Accelerator and the Teacher Leader Program, that grow and develop the skills and capacity of our people through long-term professional development opportunities.

Start at Noble?

2007

Hometown:

Born in Mendota, IL, raised in Madison, WI

Education:

Northwestern University (B.S. in Communications, Radio/TV/Film)
National-Louis University (M.Ed. in Educational Leadership)

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