January 2022 IL Newsblast No images? Click here Celebrating Wins!Over winter break, 2021-2022 Teaching Policy Fellow Bethea Lane's three beautiful daughters got a chance to be pictured with State Representative Anna Moeller (left) and Elgin Math and Science School Board President Kerin Kelly(center)! Bethea later had the opportunity to meet with Representative Moeller about how #RacismFreeSchools can impact so many students and professionals in our state. Read more about how you can help Prevent Racial Harassment in Schools below, from Josh. From Teach Plus Illinois Dear Teachers, When one of our fellowships met (virtually) last night, at least three teachers were sick with Covid. In another program, two of four senior fellows have Covid. In our Chicago programs, teachers were out of work for four days, trying to get protections as Omicron spreads. There’s no getting around it -- this is just really hard right now, and even more so if you’re a parent with young kids. For many of us, now is the hardest part yet of the pandemic. Kristen Ciciora, in the practice corner (below), has some suggestions for how to manage the stress during this time. Despite the Omicron surge, January still marks the beginning of the Illinois legislative session and the formulation of next year’s budget. There are two immediate opportunities to take actions -- one to improve teacher diversity through scholarships for educators of color, and another to create Racism Free Schools.
With all the pressures happening right now, I’m reminded of some great advice I received from my therapist during a really stressful time: “You don’t have to go for the gold all the time. Sometimes, bronze is good. Sometimes, just finishing is enough.” Hopefully you can give yourself the permission to choose which things to prioritize and which things you can let slide. When things are this tough, sometimes just finishing is enough. Stay safe, Josh Senior Executive Director The Practice Corner Dear Teachers, Coming back from winter break, many teachers are more stressed than they've been throughout the entire pandemic. Teachers are feeling extremely burnt out. If you are feeling like every ounce of your mental energy is going towards just barely getting by, you are not alone. No amount of meditation, coffee, or self-care podcasts are going to be the long-term fix for this widespread issue. Edsurge and the We Are Teachers Blog each talk about toxic positivity and how hollow calls for self-care are actually more detrimental to teachers' mental health (hello gaslighting). Both of these articles talk about ways to take care of yourself when you are feeling close to burnout. Practicing “emotional agility,” where we label and process complex emotions methodically, can help teachers pinpoint more precise causes of distress and help the brain develop concrete next steps instead of being paralyzed and overwhelmed. If you are not currently seeing a therapist, they are a great resource that can help you through these thought exercises. Another tip was to prune all but the absolute necessary components of your job and not feel guilty about doing beyond that this year. We need amazing educators to stay in the profession, and you can't do that if you deplete all of your reserves and are trying to run on fumes for a second pandemic school year. Please take care of yourself and reach out if you need support or if you've found some sustaining mental health practices that you'd like to share. Warmly, Kristen Senior Director of Instructional Practice OpportunitiesJoin ECE Policy Fellows for Teacher Voice House Meetings Governor Pritzker established the Illinois Commission on Equitable Early Childhood Education and Care Funding which released these recommendations in March of 2021:
Although parent and provider input is sought in decision making, educator voice is often left out. As these recommendations come to fruition, it is important that educators with experience and expertise have a seat at the table. Please join Teach Plus Educators for a virtual house meeting to learn about the current state of this work and our plans to ensure educator voices are heard as Illinois creates new equitable systems for ECE. Register for one of the following virtual house meetings:
If you have any questions, please reach out to Sinthu Ramalingam, the Early Childhood Education Policy Manager(sramalingam@teachplus.org). We can't wait to see you there! Educator Recognition Opportunity! Presidential Awards for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, the nation’s highest honors for K-12 science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) teaching, has kicked off its annual nomination drive for K-sixth-grade teachers. Please consider nominating a teacher or promoting the program within your school and community. The pandemic has shown us that so many teachers across the country are dedicated to giving students access to high-quality, STEM education. Now, more than ever, it’s important to recognize teachers for their incredible hard work. Winners will receive the following:
The application deadline is Feb. 6, 2022. To learn more about the program and past awardees from Illinois or across the nation, visit www.paemst.org. Illinois Seeks Stakeholder Engagement in Birth to Five Action Councils Illinois is redesigning the Early Childhood Education and Care system by organizing 39 statewide Birth to Five Action Councils with the goals of:
Teach Plus Illinois is inviting early childhood educators to become active stakeholders in this system. Please join us for one of our Teacher Voice House Meetings, and the Birth to Five Action Council Launch events. The Partnership for Resilience is Hiring! The Partnership for Resilience (P4R) is an independent not for profit organization that helps school districts and educators build Trauma-responsive schools through professional development, community-based and public/private partnerships that pursue cross- disciplinary efforts between education, medical, behavior and public health systems. It is seeking a Program Manager and Program Director for the REACH Initiative, a new, grant funded project that uses technology and Train the Trainer methods to support any public school or public school district in Illinois to earn a Trauma-Responsive School Designation. Good Reads Teach Plus Illinois Teaching Policy Fellow Alum Corey Winchester wrote an article, "Educators Are Tired. It’s Time to Dream New Possibilities Into Our Schools." The article is part of the guide "Survival Mode: Educators Reflect on a Tough 2021 and Brace for the Future," published in EdSurge."I’m in my 12th year as a public school educator, and I cannot recall a time in my career when I felt this much fatigue. The compounding realities of the COVID-19 pandemic and the onslaught of police brutality and anti-Blackness in the wake of the Trump presidency have made being a teacher tiring in many ways. I feel like I have been teaching like my life depends on it for the last two years."Read the entire piece here. Respect the Mic: Celebrating 20 Years of Poetry from a Chicagoland High SchoolFor Chicago's Oak Park and River Forest High School's Spoken Word Club, there is one phrase that reigns supreme: Respect the Mic. It's been the club's call to arms since its inception in 1999. As its founder Peter Kahn says, "It's a call of pride and history and tradition and hope." Preview and purchase the book here! 2019-2020 Teaching Policy Fellow alumna Maria Gandara was mentioned in an article for Chalkbeat Chicago that addresses the recent CPS school closing amid the surge of cases of Covid-19. "Maria Gandara, a special education teacher at Edwards Elementary in the Archer Heights neighborhood, said she is supporting the union’s resolution as well — but would not have any appetite for a return to virtual learning that stretches past Jan. 18. She said 10 teachers and 14 support staff members were absent at the school Tuesday, with administrators stepping in to cover some classrooms. Students attendance is down markedly as well, Gandara said. “It’s all hands on deck,” she said. “It’s not chaos — we are still running as smoothly as possible given what we have to work with.” Read the full article here. Alumni Spotlight Teach Plus Illinois congratulates 2020-2021 Teaching Policy Fellow Irene Post, on publishing new research with The Learning Agency. You can read the article "A Case for Teaching with Cognates." Irene also worked on two research products with Teach Plus: Strengthening the Pipeline (co-author) and Barriers to Bridges (focus group facilitator). Congratulations, Irene! If you are an alum of any of our Teacher Leadership programs (K-12 Policy Fellowship, ECE Policy Fellowship, Change Agent Fellowship, or partnered school) please share your good news with us. Promotions, and other celebrations of note may be emailed to cjameau@teachplus.org. |