Byron Sanders is a visionary leader at the intersection of healthcare innovation, education, and community equity. As the Founder and CEO of Arete Health, he is driving systemic change to expand access to preventive care and community-centered health solutions.
 

Under his leadership, Arete is reshaping how individuals and communities experience wellness by focusing on proactive, whole-person care and upstream interventions that reduce long-term disparities.

A newly elected Trustee of the Dallas Independent School District, Byron brings a powerful blend of healthcare, education, and systems leadership to public service. His work emphasizes the critical link between health, well-being, and academic success, advocating for policies that treat health equity as foundational to educational equity.

Before founding Arete Health, Byron served as President & CEO of Big Thought, a nationally recognized organization addressing opportunity gaps through social-emotional learning and creative education. He also played a key role in scaling Group Excellence, one of Texas’s fastest-growing education companies, which has impacted over 250,000 students.

Byron’s leadership has earned recognition from the Dallas Business Journal’s Most Admired CEO Award, the NCAA Legends and Legacy Award, and the CASEL O’Brien Award for Excellence in Social-Emotional Learning. He is a Presidential Leadership Scholar and a recipient of honors from the Dallas Foundation, NAACP, and 40 Under 40.

A passionate advocate for integrated solutions to public health, education, and economic mobility, Byron also serves on the boards of the Dallas College Foundation, the Dallas Regional Chamber, Getting Smart, and as a Trustee of the University of Tulsa.

At his core, Byron believes that healthier communities begin with healthier systems and that healthcare innovation must be rooted in equity, access, and the lived realities of those it seeks to serve.
 

He lives in Dallas with his wife, Celeste, and their two children.