For the past eight years, Jesse Markow has been engaged as an independent consultant in strategy and business development for companies and non-governmental organizations in the K–12 education assessment and professional learning spheres. He has led several groups through strategic planning and development, as well as providing guidance in language proficiency testing. Prior to that, he filled several roles with the WIDA Consortium at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, for over 10 years, serving as the Director of Assessment, Director of State Relations, and then as Chief Strategy and Development Officer. During that time, he was the principal point of contact for state departments of education, completing their membership with WIDA and fostering meaningful connections between the states and the WIDA office. Jesse also initiated and directed multiple new endeavors, including the WIDA Annual Conference and WIDA International.
For many years, Jesse managed the development of statewide customized test programs for ETS and Riverside, including the statewide testing system in California, managing the development of all components of the California STAR. Further, he has consulted for Avant Assessment, TESOL, Learnosity, Confianza, ELPA21, Pearson Education, and other organizations within the United States and internationally.