John Wood (activist)
 | This biographical article is written like a résumé. (April 2016) |
John Wood | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1963 or 1964 (age 61–62) Connecticut, U.S. |
| Education | University of Colorado Northwestern University (MBA) |
| Organization(s) | Room to Read U-Go |
John J. Wood (born 1963 or 1964) is an American activist. In 2000, Wood founded the global literacy and education charity Room to Read. In 2021, Wood founded the nonprofit U-Go to fund women's postsecondary education.
Early life
[edit]John Wood was born in 1963 or 1964.[1] He spent his childhood in Connecticut and Athens, Pennsylvania.[1] He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder Leeds School of Business in 1986[2] and graduated with a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management in 1989.[3][1][4] After a "stint" in commercial banking, Wood worked for Microsoft.[1] His last position in 1999 was Greater China director of business development.[5]
Room to Read
[edit]In 1998, Wood took a vacation from his work at Microsoft to trek through the Himalayas.[6] In Nepal, he found that many primary schools did not have the resources for books. Wood solicited 3,000 books donated from friends and family, and delivered them back to Nepal.[7][8]
In 2000, Wood founded Room to Read and worked full-time to promote literacy and fund primary education.
Wood published two autobiographies about his work with Room to Read: Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur's Odyssey to Educate the World's Children in 2006, and Creating Room to Read: A Story of Hope in the Battle for Global Literacy in 2013.
U-Go
[edit]In 2021, Wood left Room to Read to found U-Go, a nonprofit dedicated to funding women's postsecondary education in nine low-income countries.[5] According to the organization, U-Go funded scholarships for 5,900 awardees by the end of 2025.[9]
Published works
[edit]- Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur's Odyssey to Educate the World's Children. (HarperCollins, 2006) ISBN 978-0061835520
- Creating Room to Read: A Story of Hope in the Battle for Global Literacy (Viking Penguin, 2013) ISBN 978-1101606124
Personal life
[edit]In 2010, Wood lived in San Francisco. In 2022, Wood said in an interview that he left Hong Kong after eight years due to the COVID policy and the national security law.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Thompson, Bob (2006-09-09). "His Bottom Line: Educating the World's Kids". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2006-09-09.
- ^ "'Room To Read' Founder to Speak at CU-Boulder Commencement May 7". CU Boulder Today. 2010-04-28. Retrieved 2025-12-24.
- ^ For University of Colorado and Kellogg, see Thompson 2006. For year of MBA, see Church 2007.
- ^ Church, Asa (Spring 2007). "Room to Read". Northwestern Magazine. Retrieved 2025-12-24.
- ^ a b Knott, Kylie (2024-11-20). "How ex-Microsoft director is helping young women in low-income countries go to university". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 2025-12-24.
- ^ Wood, John, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World Archived 2009-09-04 at the Wayback Machine June 2008, Harper, page 261.
- ^ Van Slambrouk, Paul (2010-09-07). "Once a high-tech exec, he now shares his passion for reading in Asia and Africa". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2025-12-24.
- ^ Connolly, Norma (2006-01-23). "Bricks and books". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 2025-12-24.
- ^ "October 2025 Newsletter". U-GO University. Retrieved 2025-12-24.
- ^ DW News (11 April 2022). Companies and individuals leave Hong Kong over zero-COVID policy. DW News. Retrieved 19 April 2022 – via YouTube.
External links
[edit]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |