Fellows will advocate for improved school attendance and accountability, and support for multilingual learners.
Denver, CO, September 4, 2024— Teach Plus, a national nonprofit that empowers teachers to lead student-centered improvements in educational policy and instructional practice, has selected a diverse group of 12 educators from around Colorado for its 2024-25 Policy Fellowship cohort. In this 9th cohort, Fellows will focus on a range of issues of importance to Colorado’s students including combating chronic absenteeism, improving school accountability, and supporting multilingual learners.
“These Fellows will build on the work of previous cohorts to ensure that all of Colorado’s students, including our many multilingual learners, have access to all the learning opportunities that set them up for success. Our students can’t succeed if they’re not in school. After the passage of the state’s new student formula, which Teach Plus supported and advocated for, we want to make sure that our system is accountable and that these monies are supporting students with the greatest needs,” said Mark Sass, Teach Plus Colorado Executive Director.
“As a Teach Plus Policy Fellow, I want to contribute to policy changes in school accountability that would help guarantee a high quality education that includes life readiness skills for low-income students and multilingual learners across the state of Colorado,” said Margaret Nelson, 2024-25 Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellow and 3rd grade teacher in Pueblo.
The 2024-25 cohort includes urban, suburban, and rural teachers from across the state, from Pueblo to the West Slope and the Denver Metro area. The Fellows teach elementary to high school and all subjects. Included are charter and non-charter teachers, math interventionists, and even a teacher who supports students on an agricultural path. This diverse group shares a deep commitment to ensuring all students have the opportunity to achieve their potential in an education system defined by its commitment to equity, its responsiveness to individual needs, and its ability to prepare students for postsecondary success.
“Throughout the history of education, the most effective teaching practices have relied on building relationships with students. Getting the opportunity to influence policy as an educator means I can bring the ‘boots on the ground’ perspective and help create policy that prioritizes the interaction between the student and the teacher,” said Dustin Bailey, 2024-25 Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellow and high school science teacher in Boulder.
The 2024-25 Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellows are:
- Austin Rogers, Horizon High School, Adams 12 School District
- Dustin Bailey, New Vista High School, Boulder Valley School District
- Hannah Lyons, Crystal River Elementary School, Roaring Fork School District
- Joanne McGuire, Prairie View Middle School, 27J Brighton School District
- Kari Barnett, Grandview High School, Cherry Creek School District
- Katia Necoechea Madriz, Rocky Mountain Prep Fletcher, Aurora Public Schools
- Lindsey Paricio-Moreau, Cherry Creek High School, Cherry Creek School District
- Margaret Nelson, Minnequa Elementary, Pueblo 60
- Mary Lou Clough, Frontier Elementary, Academy School District 20
- Michael Joshi, Boulder High School, Boulder Valley School District
- Sarah Christesen, Peak to Peak Charter School, Boulder Valley School District
- Tianna Tafoya-Stafford, Centennial Elementary School, Harrison School District 2
The 2024-25 Teach Plus Colorado Senior Policy Fellows are:
- Laura Vance, Sand Creek International School, Harrison School District 2
- Madison Stockton, Southmoor Elementary School, Denver Public Schools
- Mary Rose Donahue, Boulder High School, Boulder Valley School District
If interested in interviewing Executive Director Mark Sass or any of the Fellows, please contact Kelly Pearce at kpearce@teachplus.org or 928-925-9236.
About Teach Plus
Teach Plus is dedicated to the mission of empowering excellent, experienced, and diverse teachers to take leadership over key policy and practice issues that advance equity, opportunity, and student success. In pursuing our mission, Teach Plus is guided by our Student Opportunity Mandate: All students should have the opportunity to achieve their potential in an education system defined by its commitment to equity, its responsiveness to individual needs, and its ability to prepare students for postsecondary success. Since 2009, Teach Plus has developed thousands of teacher leaders across the country to exercise their leadership in shaping education policy and improving teaching and learning for students. https://teachplus.org/co/
