Chicago, IL, November 6, 2014 — Teach Plus, a national non-profit that puts teacher leaders at the center of improvement at all levels of the education system, has announced that Joshua Kaufmann has joined the organization as Executive Director in Chicago. Mr. Kaufmann will lead the Teach Plus Chicago Teaching Policy Fellowship program and oversee the organization’s policy and teacher leadership work in the city. He joins Teach Plus from the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), where he most recently served as the Senior Manager for Early College Initiatives.
“Josh understands the diverse needs of Chicago’s students and teachers and knows the city’s policy landscape when it comes to such key issues as teacher preparation and evaluation. I’m thrilled to welcome him to our strong and growing team,” said Dr. Celine Coggins, CEO of Teach Plus.
“We have an untapped reservoir of teacher leaders serving students throughout Chicago. I am very excited to join Teach Plus which helps to bring the voices of these teachers to the larger conversation about education and the school system in our city,” said Mr. Kaufmann. “When Chicago’s teachers help shape policies, students, teachers, parents and the entire Chicagoland community benefit.”
Mr. Kaufmann brings over 14 years of experience in education to his position at Teach Plus. He began his career as an English, ESL, and drama teacher in New York City and Namibia, before moving back to his native Chicago and joining Chicago Public Schools (CPS) as an administrator. He most recently served as CPS’ Senior Manager for Early College Initiatives, where he expanded opportunities for students to earn college credit while still in high school and helped grow access to college courses by over 700% in three years. His previous roles at CPS included evaluating the effectiveness of professional development and the 8th grade algebra initiative; and developing data teams and protocols at 26 CPS high schools. Mr. Kaufmann holds a BA in theater from the University of Iowa and an MA in public administration from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University.
About Teach Plus
Teach Plus aims to improve outcomes for urban children by ensuring that a greater proportion of students have access to effective, experienced teachers. Teach Plus runs three programs designed to place teacher leaders at the center of reform: Teaching Policy Fellows, the Core Collaborative (C2), and T3: Turnaround Teacher Teams. 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 19,000 solutions-oriented teachers in six major cities across the country. www.teachplus.org
