6th Issue No images? Click here Teach Plus Mississippi HeadlinesTeach Plus Mississippi entered 2023 with new leadership opportunities for teachers in the Magnolia State. We entered January with a new addition to our team and our first cohort of Delta Change Agents. We also had our second in-person meeting with our Policy Fellows. Lastly, four of our SEL Change Agents from Jackson Public Schools have accepted opportunities to continue the work they started during the 2021-22 school year. We’re very excited about what’s in store in the new year! Teach Plus Launches the Delta Change Agent NetworkJanuary 14th marked the official Kickoff for the Delta Change Agent Network. Nine teachers from school districts across the Mississippi Delta will work with their principals and colleagues to identify a problem of practice within their school community, then develop a plan of action to solve the problem. Introducing our 2023-24 Delta Change Agents!Langley Dunn, West Tallahatchie School District Monique Johnson, Leflore Legacy Academy Kambria Jones, West Tallahatchie School District Brandon Kincaid, MS Achievement School District (Yazoo City Region) Roselyn McDaniel, MS Achievement School District (Humphreys County Region) Florina Moreno, Leflore Legacy Academy Cleotha Taylor, MS Achievement School District (Yazoo City Region) Tijuana Thompson, MS Achievement School District (Yazoo City Region) Teach Plus Mississippi is happy to announce that Lauren Huddleston has joined our team as our Mississippi Education Leadership Coach. She joins us with over 20 years of experience in education as an educator, administrator, and coach. Over the past six years, she has trained and developed over 200 teachers in content, pedagogy, and leadership with a literacy emphasis across and within multiple districts, charters, and nonprofits. Mississippi Program UpdatesOn January 21st, Teach Plus Policy Fellows met at the Eagle Ridge Conference Center in Raymond for our first in-person Mid-Year Retreat. The retreat allowed our teacher leaders to work on advocacy campaigns related to their policy goals. We were joined by Teach Plus New Mexico Executive Director Hope Morales, who shared her advocacy experiences and lessons learned from our sister state. Hope also helped our Fellows practice the Consultancy Protocol, a process through which teachers can constructively think through dilemmas they may face in their school communities. Meet Our 2022-23 Policy FellowsAdraine Reed, Hinds County School District Adraine Reed is a 3rd-grade teacher and ELA team leader at Gary Road Intermediate School in Byram. She focuses on differentiating education for students in reading, writing, and language arts while implementing technology and the characteristics of lifelong learners. She serves as Chair of the Educational Technology Department and a Mentor Teacher. Adraine was named teacher of the month numerous times at Gary Road Intermediate and a two-time Making Connections Conference Presenter (2019 & 2022). She earned her BS in Elementary Education (K-3) from Jackson State University and is obtaining her MEd in Curriculum Instruction with an emphasis on Education Technology from Belhaven University. Jack Fredericks, West Tallahatchie School District Jack Fredericks is an 11th and 12th-grade ELA and AP English Literature teacher at West Tallahatchie High School in Webb. He focuses on digital literacy and college readiness to foster a strong commitment to academic excellence among his students. Jack was named the recipient of the Mississippi Teacher Corps’ Academic Excellence Award (2019 Cohort). John began his teaching career in Mississippi as a part of the Mississippi Teacher Corps in 2019 and serves as the Executive Acting Director of the Mississippi Delta Equitable Education Project. He earned his BA in English from the University of Mississippi, his MA in English from the University of Nevada, Reno, and his MA in Teaching from the University of Mississippi. Teacher VoicesSenior Policy Fellow Crystal Jackson and Executive Director Sanford Johnson were featured in a Christian Science Monitor column, Reading, writing, and paychecks. What's a teacher worth? The column focused on the ongoing efforts in many states, including Mississippi, to raise teacher pay. “I think the more voices you have speaking out about something and the more attention you have within the state, the more it just becomes like, ‘Oh, we have to do this.’” — Mississippi Policy Fellow Crystal Jackson “It’s the No. 1 issue. In the conversations that we have with teachers and the conversations we have with people who, you know, are aspiring teachers, a lot of teachers have said that they no longer see the profession as being something that’s sustainable,” — Mississippi Executive Director Sanford Johnson
Alumni SpotlightMicayla Tatum Micayla Tatum was a 2021 Policy Fellow and a 2022 Senior Policy Fellow. She is now the Director of Early Childhood Policy at Mississippi First, where she develops and encourages the implementation of the policy agenda for early childhood within the state. “I learned great communication and relationship-building skills that show up in my work each day. A lot of my work centers around the ability to connect people to research-based ideas. Teach Plus helped build my skill set so that I could feel comfortable connecting with people who do not share the same ideologies and learn to build common ground with those people.” Upcoming Events & OpportunitiesTeacher Retirement U Webinar on Feb. 28th Teach Plus MS is working with The Equity Institute to host the second Teacher Retirement U webinar on Tuesday, February 28th @6pm. This event is to help Mississippi teachers better understand their retirement benefits. All Fellowship alums and MS Teacher Network Members can register by clicking our Teacher Retirement U Registration Link. Looking forward to seeing you at this incredibly informative event. Register for this event here. About Teach PlusThe mission of Teach Plus is to empower excellent, experienced, and diverse teachers to take leadership over key policy and practice issues that advance equity, opportunity, and student success. Since 2009, Teach Plus has developed thousands of teacher leaders across the country to shape education policy and improve teaching and learning, to create an education system driven by access and excellence for all. Want to be involved? Join Our Network or Nominate Teachers to join by visiting our website at teachplus.org/MS or click below: For more information about the Policy Fellowship, please email Teach Plus Mississippi Executive Director Sanford Johnson at sjohnson@teachplus.org. Monthly |