Gordon Freedman

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Gordon Freedman is an American education technologist, former film and television producer and journalist.

Contents

Freedman is currently the president of the National Laboratory for Education Transformation (NLET), an educational nonprofit, which he founded in 2010. NLET is based in California and advocates for key transformations in mathematics education, STEM outreach, career and technical education (CTE), workforce development and education-to-employment solutions. Within NLET, Freedman heads MitoWorld, [1] a global web-hub for research and information sharing within the mitochondrial research and clinical communities.

Early life and education

Gordon Freedman grew up in Charlevoix, Michigan and studied at Michigan State University, [2] where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications. [3]

Career

Freedman's first work, while in college, was in Washington, DC starting in 1973 where he was a staff member [4] of the United States Senate Watergate Committee. He completed college, and then returned to Washington as a committee investigator for the U.S House of Representatives Committee on Post Office and Civil Service [5] [6] . In 1978, he was a staff investigator on the Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations during the Koreagate scandal [7] .

After leaving government service, Freedman transitioned into media and production [8] [9] . He worked as a filmmaker and television producer, developing and producing projects that explored social, cultural, and historical issues [10] [11] . [12] His work in film and television contributed to his broader interest in public communication and educational media [13] [14] .

Freedman later moved into education and nonprofit leadership, founding the National Laboratory for Education Transformation, a nonprofit focused on rethinking education systems, workforce readiness, and technology-enabled learning [15] . [16] NLET works with schools, higher education institutions, and workforce organizations to develop strategies and technologies that support students, displaced workers, and lifelong learners [17] .

[18] Following personal health challenges linked to mitochondrial dysfunction, Freedman co-founded MitoWorld, a nonprofit dedicated to mitochondrial biology and related health conditions [19] . [20] MitoWorld’s aim is to establish mitochondrial medicine as a more structured clinical and research field, comparable to cancer or diabetes research [21] . Through MitoWorld, he has supported public education, convened expert communities, and promoted the development of research in the field of mitochondrial science [22] .

In 2022, Freedman began serving as an advisor to GoEducate, Inc., an Austin-based education-to-employment software platform [23] . GoEducate is designed as a cloud-based system that connects learners, colleges, and employers across regional, state, and national levels [24] .

Education Industry

From 1996 to 1999, Freedman served as director for business development at the startup of California State University Monterey Bay. Freedman was vice president of Knowledge Exchange, a media publishing company founded by financier Michael Milken in 1994. [25]

Freedman is the managing director of Knowledge Base, LLC, [26] a consulting firm whose clients included Michigan State University, University of California, O'Reilly Media, Capella University, eCollege and WebCT. He helped to build Prometheus, a course management program at George Washington University, of which he was executive vice president from 2000 until 2002. From 2002 to 2004, he was the acting CEO of Textcentric. [27]

He co-founded the K-8 Charter, International School of Monterey in 2000, and served on its board until 2007. [28] He was the Vice President of Global Education Strategy for educational technology company Blackboard Inc. from 2005 to 2011. From 2008 to 2011, he was the Blackboard Institute's executive director. [26]

In the late 1990's, Freedman transitioned into education policy, innovation and education technology. He was part of the start-up of the California State University, Monterey Bay and was the vice president of the global education strategy at Blackboard Inc., before founding the National Laboratory for Education Transformation (NLET) in 2011, a research and development nonprofit where he continues to serve president and member of the board. [29] [30]

Film and Television

Prior to his work in education, STEM and workforce development, Freedman lived in Los Angeles and worked in the entertainment industry on fact-based dramas and documentaries. Over the course of his career, he produced a number of television films, miniseries and series including To Heal a Nation (1988), Baby M (1988) and the Fox series DEA (1990). Freedman also produced three feature films, Money for Nothing (John Cusak, 1999), To Walk with Lions (Richard Harris, 1999) and A Brief History of Time (1991). Freedman is also an author of non-fiction political books, including Gifts of Deceit (1980) and Winter of Fire (1990).

In 1991, he produced the documentary film adaptation of Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time , which was directed by Errol Morris. [31] The film won a Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.

Journalism and Writing

Freedman became a journalist in Washington, DC. First as a stringer for the Washington Post, then as a Washington Correspondent for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and then as a producer for ABC 20/20 and Nightline .

In 1980, he co-wrote Gifts of Deceit , [32] an account of the Koreagate scandal and the committee's investigations, with Robert Boettcher [33] . [34] In 1990, Freedman co-wrote Winter of Fire [35] with Richard O. Collin, which dealt with US Army general James L. Dozier's kidnapping by the Italian terrorist group the Red Brigades. [36]

He contributed to the volume of Virtual Schools: Planning For Success, published by Teachers College Press in 2005. [37] In the book, Freedman discussed the possible applications of technology within a virtual learning environment. [38]

Government

Freedman worked on Capitol Hill as a researcher and investigator for five years, beginning with the Senate Watergate Committee while still in college. [25] He was also the committee investigator for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Civil Service. [39] and he was a staff investigator on the Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations during the Koreagate scandal. [40]

Writing and Publication

In addition to his policy and media work, Freedman is the author of several nonfiction works. His publications include Gifts of Deceit (1980), which examined Korean influence in American politics, and Winter of Fire (1992), among other essays and commentaries on education and health.

Filmography

YearTitleCredited as
1999 To Walk with Lions Co-executive producer
1994Marilyn Monroe: Life After DeathDirector
1994Inferno on US 17Writer
1993 Money for Nothing Executive producer
1992The Making of 'A Brief History of Time'Executive producer
1991 A Brief History of Time Executive producer
1990 DEA Executive producer
1990 The Media Show Self
1988 To Heal a Nation Co-producer
1988Baby MProducer

Bibliography

Books

Books authored or co-authored by Gordon Freedman
YearTitlePublisher
2005Virtual Schools: Planning For Success Teachers College Press
1990 Winter of Fire Penguin Group
1980 Gifts of Deceit Holt, Rinehart and Winston

Selected articles

References

  1. zach (2025-06-18). "MitoWorld Spotlight Video Interview with Dr. Craig Thompson of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center". MitoWorld. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  2. "How a Michigan State student ended up playing a role in Watergate investigations". mlive. 2017-06-17. Retrieved 2022-01-05.
  3. Relations, United States Congress House Committee on International; Organizations, United States Congress House Committee on International Relations Subcommittee on International (1978). Investigation of Korean-American Relations: Report of the Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations, U.S. House of Representatives. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 4.
  4. "What it was like to be 18 and investigating the president during the summer of Watergate". The Washington Post. 2017-06-14. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  5. Sen. Ribicoff, Abraham A. [D-CT (1978-10-13). "S.2640 - 95th Congress (1977-1978): Civil Service Reform Act of 1978". www.congress.gov. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  6. United States: Congress (1976). Final report on violations and abuses of merit principles in Federal employment, together with minority views. George A. Smathers Libraries University of Florida. Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off.
  7. "OPP1101156". www.gatesfoundation.org. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  8. "To Heal a Nation", Wikipedia, 2025-04-27, retrieved 2025-09-13
  9. "20/20 (American TV program)", Wikipedia, 2025-08-19, retrieved 2025-09-13
  10. "Gordon Freedman". Cosmic Frontiers. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  11. "OPP1101156". www.gatesfoundation.org. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  12. "Red Brigades", Wikipedia, 2025-08-18, retrieved 2025-09-13
  13. "Gordon Freedman". MitoWorld. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  14. Balaraman, Anita; Maokosy, Sara; Slaton, LaVonne; Cardona, Rafael; M. Ma- okos, Peter; Gaitan, Nyah (2025-09-09). "Integrating Near-peer Mentoring into California Community Colleges to Build Social Capital". Sustaining Mentoring Communities of Practice. 9 (2). doi:10.62935/d1987u.
  15. "NATIONAL LABORATORY FOR EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION - GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  16. "Curated Support and Technical Assistance for Colleges | California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office". www.cccco.edu. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  17. "The EvoLLLution | Gordon Freedman | President, National Laboratory for Education Transformation". evolllution.com. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  18. "Gordon Freedman - Grads of Life". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  19. "Gordon Freedman - Grads of Life". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  20. zach (2025-05-30). "Interview with Jonathan Brestoff, MD, PhD, MPH, UMDF 2025 Planning Committee member and Master Class co-chair". MitoWorld. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  21. Tennant DrPH, MPH, MD, Forest; Porcelli, Do, MHPE, PhD, Martin J (September 2025). Medications For Treatment of The Inflammation of Arachnoiditis (Report). Tennant Foundation. doi:10.64611/ibsf3134.{{cite report}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  22. zach (2025-06-18). "MitoWorld Spotlight Video Interview with Dr. Craig Thompson of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center". MitoWorld. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  23. "Gordon Freedman - Grads of Life". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  24. "GoEducate | Explore Careers, Build a Resume, & Find Jobs". www.goeducate.com. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  25. 1 2 Council, National Research; Education, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and; Education, Board on Science; Education, Steering Committee for Developing a Digital National Library for Undergraduate Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology (1998-01-29). Developing a Digital National Library for Undergraduate Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology Education: Report of a Workshop. National Academies Press. p. 119. ISBN   978-0-309-05977-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  26. 1 2 Monitor, Workforce (2021-06-01). "In Search of the "Path of Least Resistance to the Most Knowledge for the Most People"". Workforce Monitor. Retrieved 2023-08-14.
  27. "The coming transformation of the textbook - Part". Logos . 16 (4): 197.
  28. Seccombe, Kathleen (12 July 2012). "Carmel Valley nonprofit incubates a tech-heavy dream for education reform". Monterey County Weekly. Retrieved 2023-08-14.
  29. "Artificial Intelligence Could Help Colleges Better Plan What Courses They Should Offer - EdSurge News". EdSurge. 2016-12-08. Retrieved 2023-08-14.
  30. Rubin, Sara (25 February 2016). "Gordon Freedman". Monterey County Weekly. Retrieved 2023-08-14.
  31. Ferguson, Kitty (2011-11-10). Stephen Hawking: A Life Well Lived. Random House. ISBN   978-1-4481-1047-6.
  32. "Gifts of Deceit: Sun Myung Moon, Tong sun Park, and the Korean Scandal". The SHAFR Guide Online. doi:10.1163/2468-1733_shafr_sim200070096 . Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  33. "Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  34. "GIFTS OF DECEIT: Sun Myung Moon, Tongsun Park, and the Korean Scandal". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2022-01-05.
  35. Dozier, Jeff (2018-01-02). "review comments from J Dozier, just a few minor errors". doi: 10.5194/essd-2017-112-rc2 .{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  36. "Nonfiction Book Review: Winter of Fire by Richard O. Collin, Author, Gordon L. Freedman, With Dutton Books $19.95 (0p) ISBN 978-0-525-24880-4". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2022-01-05.
  37. Barbour, Michael (2006-06-01). "Book Reviews" . American Journal of Distance Education. 20 (2): 119–121. doi:10.1207/s15389286ajde2002_6. ISSN   0892-3647.
  38. Barbour, Michael. "Barbour, M. K. (2006). Book review of Virtual schools: Planning for success and Development and management of virtual schools: Issues and trends. American Journal of Distance Education, 20(2), 119-121".{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  39. Lyle, Edward (1978). The Civil Service Commission's Staff and Merit Abuse. U.S. Civil Service Commission. p. 122.
  40. Relations, United States Congress House Committee on International; Organizations, United States Congress House Committee on International Relations Subcommittee on International (1978). Investigation of Korean-American Relations: Report of the Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations, U.S. House of Representatives. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 4.