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To build empathy, even our littlest students need relevant literature
Colorado
•Mar. 26, 2024Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellowship
Training teachers as advocates so teachers and students thrive in Colorado.
Teach Plus Colorado invites teachers to apply for the Colorado Policy Fellowship, a prestigious paid leadership opportunity designed for exceptional Colorado educators. The fellowship deepens participants’ understanding of education policy and amplifies their influence in shaping decisions that impact students, schools, and the teaching profession across the state. Through this program, we support and empower educators to advocate for their students by developing targeted policy recommendations that strengthen Colorado’s education system.
What is the Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellowship?
The Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellowship is a prestigious, year-long, paid leadership opportunity for educators who want to deepen their understanding of education policy and use their classroom expertise to influence decisions that impact students and schools across Colorado.
Program Details:
- Fellows expand their influence without leaving the classroom, beginning in June 2026 and concluding in June 2027.
- Fellows participate in in-person training sessions and monthly virtual sessions, receiving hands-on learning through expert-led modules and direct engagement with key stakeholders, including legislators, the Colorado State Board of Education, and the Colorado Department of Education.
- No prior policy experience is required.
- Fellows receive a $1,500 stipend for their full participation and commitment to the program.
What does Teach Plus do?
Teach Plus Colorado began in 2016 to bring teacher leadership and voice to Colorado’s education policy and practice landscape, advancing opportunity for students statewide.
Our goal is that by 2030, every student in Colorado will have access to and meaningful engagement in at least one postsecondary workforce opportunity, including industry-recognized credentials, college credit, or work-based learning, putting them on a path to long-term economic mobility.
We believe we can advance student opportunity by expanding access to Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) opportunities, closing foundational and readiness gaps, and building and sustaining the educator workforce.
- We recruit and select outstanding educators committed to advancing policies that expand student opportunities.
- We develop and coach teacher leaders to shape education policy in their districts and statewide, increasing their professional impact.
- We connect and empower teacher leaders as change agents—moving policy into practice by expanding access to student opportunity, closing readiness gaps, and strengthening the educator workforce.
Teach Plus also trains teachers to understand education policy as a lever for student success. Fellows build skills in community organizing, writing op-eds, speaking with the media, providing public testimony, conducting research, and more. professional development sessions on best practices in distributed leadership (and supporting your teacher leader), and an implementation stipend for their schools. If you are interested in learning more about this, please indicate your interest using this form.
How does it work?
Teach Plus recruits and selects Colorado Policy Fellows from across the state to participate in a collaborative cohort experience. Fellows become part of a growing movement of teacher leaders and help mobilize their peers around the issues most impacting the teaching profession in Colorado. Teach Plus also works closely with key stakeholders and policymakers to ensure teacher voices are included in important policy conversations.
Our Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellows have:
- Advocated for HB24-1448, helping pass a new school finance formula that increases equitable funding for students across Colorado.
- Engaged on SB25-315 with the Colorado Department of Education to secure equitable funding for Postsecondary Workforce (PWR) programs, expanding access to college credit, industry-recognized credentials, and work-based learning for all students.
- Advocated for HB24-1448, helping pass a new school finance formula that increases equitable funding for students across Colorado.
- Engaged on SB25-315 with the Colorado Department of Education to secure equitable funding for Postsecondary Workforce (PWR) programs, expanding access to college credit, industry-recognized credentials, and work-based learning for all students.
- Partnered in the Teacher-Informed Solutions in Performance Evaluation (TISPE) initiative, providing teacher-led insights that shaped statewide teacher performance evaluation policies and guidance.
- Established the Colorado Commissioner’s Teach Cabinet, advancing policies on student mental health and the Teacher Degree Apprenticeship Program.
- Influenced policy through testimony, steering committees, and direct engagement with state lawmakers, school board officials, and national policymakers.
- Produced research and policy briefs on high-quality schools, mentorship, and educator shortages, informing state-level decision-making.
- Amplified teacher voice in the public sphere through op-eds in The Colorado Sun, The Gazette, and Chalkbeat Colorado.
- Researched and published policy briefs on education issues that include chronic absenteeism, postsecondary workforce readiness, sustaining and expanding the special educator workforce, and the importance of mentorship.
Qualifications
Teach Plus seeks exceptional teacher leaders who reflect the cultural, linguistic, and geographic diversity of Colorado. Ideal candidates demonstrate the following characteristics and qualities:
- Strong communication skills – ability to clearly and persuasively articulate ideas in both written and oral form
- Critical thinking and problem-solving – capable of identifying key challenges and developing effective, long-term solutions
- Systems-level thinking – able to understand and analyze how policies, structures, and practices intersect across classrooms, schools, and the broader education system
- Vision and advocacy – able to champion a compelling future for their students, schools, or state education policy
- Commitment to growth – dedicated to continuous professional learning, self-reflection, and embracing challenges as opportunities
- Adaptability – flexible when navigating changes in priorities, policies, or the broader educational landscape
- Collaborative mindset – values differing perspectives and seeks to understand, rather than simply refute, opposing viewpoints
Applicants must also:
- Be a current teacher of record (PK–12) with at least two full years of teaching experience by June 2026
- Have a proven track record of success teaching students in Colorado public or charter schools
- Be ready to dedicate time and energy to learning about policy and advocating for changes that impact their students — while continuing to teach full time
Know someone who is interested in policy advocacy? Please share this link! Interested? Email Dr. Jamita Horton at jhorton@teachplus.org
Application Process
Part 1- Online application (due by April 10, 2026)
The written application asks you to complete general demographic information, short responses and provide contact information for two professional references (letters of reference are not required, but can be included.)
Part 2- Interview (April 27-29, 2026)
You will be notified if you have been invited to participate in a virtual interview.
Part 3–Selection (early May)
You will be notified if you have been selected to join the 26-27 Cohort of the Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellowship. If accepted, you will commit to attending the kickoff in June 2026.
Interested in joining?
Start your application below to become a Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellow.
Know a teacher leader?
Nominate a teacher who wants to achieve change in their schools and in the broader education system.
Meet our Teacher Leaders
Get to know the Teach Plus Colorado Policy Fellowship teachers.
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