Chicago, IL ―Teach Plus Illinois has named six demonstrably-effective Chicago-area teachers to the 15-person Illinois Policy Fellowship 2017-2018 cohort. During the nine-month program, the Fellows in Chicago and across the state will work on issues such as school discipline, the teacher pipeline, and the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The program empowers teachers to magnify the impact they have in their classrooms through personal interactions with education leaders and opportunities to advocate for policies that will better serve teachers and students in Illinois.
“This past year, Teach Plus teachers’ advocacy helped to move forward a new funding formula for Illinois schools and ensured that the state’s plan for the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act includes recommendations from educators,” said Josh Kaufmann, Executive Director of Teach Plus Illinois. “We’re looking forward to another exciting and impactful year ahead. Our new Fellows represent the diversity and expertise of our great Chicago educators, and we’re thrilled to have them work on improving education for all Illinois students.”
“I have always been a passionate advocate for my students, and for all students in Chicago,” said La’Tia Taylor, kindergarten teacher at Hendricks Community Academy. “As a current teacher and Teach Plus Fellow, I look forward to using my voice to positively influence policies that affect the learning experiences of my students and my teaching practices.”
The new Fellows teach at both traditional public schools and charter schools in Chicago Public Schools. They have received distinctions for their instructions and leadership and two among the six new Fellows are National Board Certified teachers. The new cohort will continue through June 2018.
The Chicago are Teaching Policy Fellows are:
Mackenzie Beisser, CICS West Belden
Devin Evans, Butler College Prep High School
Lisa Love, Hawthorne Scholastic Academy
Amanda Kirshner, Prescott Elementary School
Keishonda Simms, William H. Ryder Math & Science Specialty School
La’Tia Taylor, Hendricks Community Academy
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 programs are designed to place highly effective teachers at the center of improvements in schools as leaders of their peers and outside schools influencing policy decisions that affect their classrooms. The programs develop excellent teachers into leaders who achieve change and mobilize others in their school, district, state, and across the nation to bring change to scale. Since its inception in August 2007, Teach Plus has grown to a network of more than 26,000 solutions-oriented teachers across the country. www.teachplus.org
