Michael Cohen (Washington, D.C.) became president of Achieve in 2003. Prior to joining Achieve, he was a senior fellow at the Aspen Institute. From 1993 to 2001, Cohen served in several senior policy positions, including senior advisor to Secretary of Education Richard Riley and assistant secretary of education for elementary and secondary education. From 1986 to 1990, he was director of education policy at the National Governors Association, where he helped the governors and President George H. W. Bush set national education goals and call for national standards and assessments. From 1990 to 1993, he was director of the National Alliance for Restructuring Education, a network of leading states and urban school systems committed to standards-based reform. He also helped launch the New Standards Project, an initiative of states, school districts, and philanthropic groups working to develop world-class standards and assessments.