Beginning his career in education as a state policy analyst, Hirsch has led the nonprofit 鈥� which takes an independent, Consumer Reports approach to reviewing instructional materials 鈥� since its founding in 2014. He previously spent years surveying teachers on to learn more about what made them want to stay in their careers, and in a similar way, aimed to elevate the role of teachers in what is often an 鈥渙paque鈥� industry, he said.  

The organization鈥檚 initial reports were not well received and drew 鈥渘asty letters,鈥� from publishers, Hirsch said. More than 1,100 reviews later, many states and districts consider EdReports the leading authority when deciding on new materials.

鈥淥ne of the things about 鈥� leading something as big, impactful and important as EdReports is this is an idea that’s bigger than me. It鈥檚 about the impact we’ve had,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 hope the job is as exciting to someone else as it has been to me. It’s just time for me not to be the one doing that job.鈥�

Hirsch, who said he鈥檚 not sure what he wants to do next, will leave at the end of the school year while the board conducts a search for a new chief. 

Hirsch鈥檚 departure comes at a time of change for the organization. Last year, it revised its scoring process in response to feedback from experts and educators. In June, the organization expanded to review pre-K materials, influenced by a 2024 showing that curricula for 3- and 4-year-olds often 鈥渇all short鈥� and don鈥檛 provide enough support for multilingual learners. 

have also taken a larger role in determining which materials districts select, with several to use EdReports reviews as guides. But with the growing attention to the role of high-quality materials in student learning, the organization has faced increased criticism.

Some argued the review process was slow to emphasize the science of reading. Reviewers gave its to programs that still encouraged students to guess words based on pictures or the rest of a sentence while also giving lower, yellow ratings to programs found to boost student achievement.

鈥淚 think we’ve caught up in terms of the criteria,鈥� said Courtney Allison, EdReports鈥� chief academic officer. 鈥淣ow we’re working on 鈥� just making sure that we can provide as much information as possible about as many programs as possible.鈥�

Other critics say EdReports鈥� review system overemphasizes whether materials address the . Hirsch acknowledged many of the concerns, and the released in November placed a greater focus on phonics, fluency and phonemic awareness while 鈥渟till considering standards where they鈥檙e useful,鈥� said spokeswoman Janna Chan.

Additional organizations, like and the , have also launched as alternatives. Hirsch said he鈥檚 never viewed them as competitors, and Allison said additional 鈥減artners鈥� can provide helpful signals to district leaders. The risk, she said, is that there鈥檚 so much 鈥渘oise鈥� that leaders picking curriculum 鈥渢hrow up their hands and say, 鈥楴ever mind, it’s too much.鈥� 鈥�

Devon Gadow, a partner with TNTP, a nonprofit consulting organization, said she appreciated Hirsch鈥檚 confidence in EdReports鈥� mission. 

鈥淭hey could have gone in 15 different directions, and certainly there are other organizations that have popped up over the years that are now reviewing materials,鈥� she said. But Hirsch鈥檚 鈥渟ingular focus鈥� on the connection between curriculum and standards 鈥渁llowed states and educators to demand better quality materials.鈥� 

In looking for a new leader, EdReports needs someone who understands the intersection of artificial intelligence and curriculum, both as a real-time , but also as a guide for teachers on how to present a lesson to students who might be working below grade level, Gadow said. With more schools incorporating tutoring and intervention groups into the school day, she said teachers also need more support in connecting their primary curriculum to additional materials.

With all the emphasis on high-quality materials, Hirsch noted growing research showing that simply adopting a strong curriculum isn鈥檛 enough. A from the Rand Corp. showed there鈥檚 often a mismatch between curriculum, teacher training and assessment. Teachers are using more curriculum materials than ever, but often 鈥渨ater it down鈥� to their students鈥� level, wrote David Steiner, executive director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy. 

An released last month showed that most districts don鈥檛 pilot materials before adopting them districtwide and don鈥檛 have their own process for measuring whether the materials they choose are effective.

鈥淲hy hasn’t the needle moved on student achievement more?鈥� Hirsch asked. 鈥淲e鈥檙e starting to think the next decade has some really important questions that build off all we鈥檝e done.鈥�