Teach Plus, a national non-profit that empowers excellent teachers to lead improvements in policy and practice, today announced two additions to its growing team: Dr. Steve Robinson has joined the organization as Senior Policy Fellow. Emily Silberstein joins Teach Plus in a newly created position as VP of Regions. Dr. Robinson will advise on Teach Plus’ federal education policy priorities and help build the organization’s new online curriculum. Ms. Silberstein will work with the regional Executive Directors on setting and executing the strategic vision for the organization’s work at each of its sites.
“Steve and Emily bring deep expertise to their respective roles in our organization. Steve combines a distinguished career as a teacher with policy experience at all levels of government including the White House. Emily has extensive experience in strategy development and staff management,” said Dr. Celine Coggins, Teach Plus Founder and CEO. “We’re excited to welcome both of them to Teach Plus to help grow our work across regions and with teachers nationwide.”
“As a classroom teacher who’s been deeply involved in policy, I admire Teach Plus’ work in supporting teachers to become fluent in the languages of policy and practice,” said Dr. Steve Robinson. “I’m delighted to join the team and help bring the expertise of Teach Plus to a larger audience of teachers who want to influence policies that affect them and their students.”
“I am thrilled to be joining an organization that is leveraging the voice of our most powerful change agents: our teachers,” said Emily Silberstein. “I look forward to assisting the Executive Directors in building and scaling Teach Plus’ current programs and increasing the organization’s presence and impact in each region.”
Steve Robinson, PhD, Senior Policy Fellow
Dr. Steve Robinson recently completed his second year of teaching 11th grade physics at Democracy Prep Charter High School in Harlem, New York. From September 2009 to July 2013, prior to teaching at Democracy Prep, he served in the Executive Office of The President as a Special Assistant on the White House Domestic Policy Council where he focused on K-12 education policy issues.
Dr. Robinson had previously served as Special Advisor to Secretary Arne Duncan; as a member of the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Team; and had advised on education policy development during the 2008 Presidential campaign. Dr. Robinson was Legislative Assistant in the Office of Senator Barack Obama from 2005-2008 where, from September 2005-August 2006, he was an Albert Einstein Distinguished Education Fellow. Prior to this, Dr. Robinson taught middle school and high school in Oregon for eight years. From 1984 to 1991, he was an assistant professor of biology at the University of Massachusetts, where he headed a research lab and taught and mentored undergraduates and graduate students.
Dr. Robinson is a member of the Teacher Advisory Council of the National Academy of Sciences. He holds a degree in Biology from Princeton University, and a PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology from the University of Michigan.
Emily Silberstein, VP of Regions
Emily Silberstein joins Teach Plus from TNTP, where she was a Partner in the Performance Management group. At TNTP, Ms. Silberstein led the development of innovative teacher career pathways and compensation systems by partnering with districts, states, and charter networks. She also led the research team in the development and publication of TNTP’s July 2014 study, Shortchanged: The Hidden Costs of Lockstep Teacher Pay. Previously, as a Partner in TNTP’s New Teacher Effectiveness group, Ms. Silberstein directed strategy, site support, and service delivery related to recruitment, selection, and staffing for TNTP’s Teaching Fellows programs. She joined TNTP in 2008 as a Site Manager for the Prince George’s County Teaching Fellows program.
Prior to TNTP, Ms. Silberstein managed the operations of an online learning community program and state coalition network for the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future (NCTAF). In her capacity as Program Manager, she worked closely with state education leaders, district personnel, and university faculty. Prior to joining NCTAF, she was Education Course Manager at the Heart Rhythm Society. Ms. Silberstein began her career at the Center for Inspired Teaching. She holds a BA in Anthropology from the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio.
About Teach Plus
Teach Plus empowers excellent, experienced teachers to take leadership over key policy and practice issues that affect their students’ success. Teach Plus runs three programs designed to place teacher leaders at the center of improvements in policy and practice: Teaching Policy Fellowship, C2 Initiative, and T3 Initiative. The programs focus on demonstrably effective teachers who want to continue classroom teaching while also expanding their impact as leaders in their schools and in district, state, and national policy. Since its inception in August 2009, Teach Plus has grown to a network of more than 22,000 solutions-oriented teachers across the country. www.teachplus.org
