John Francis Moss was a British journalist and educational clerk. His first job was as an apprentice printer in Rotherham; he then became chief reporter at the Sheffield Daily Telegraph. He left his journalism career to become the first Clerk to the Sheffield School Board, a post he held for 30 years. He was appointed as a result of the 1870 Education Act, which created compulsory education in England and Wales for children aged between 5 and 13. He toured around Europe observing educational practice, and published "Notes on National Education in Continental Europe" to record his findings. He was given the unofficial title of the "Father of Education in Sheffield" as a result of his work. He died aged 62.