After over two decades of work as a social studies teacher, a teacher leader and coordinator of a small school within Berkeley High School, I returned to UC Berkeley to complete a doctorate with the Leadership for Educational Equity Program. I currently work with the GSE’s College and Career Academy Support Network (CCASN) as the coordinator of public programs helping schools and districts develop professional communities of practice organized around career pathways, or the Linked Learning approach to secondary school reform. I am also a lecturer for the Leadership for Educational Equity Program (LEEP) in the GSE.
I started my undergraduate degree at UC Santa Cruz, continued through several community colleges, and completed my BA at 34 at New College of California. In addition to teaching high school, I have been an early childhood education teacher, electronic technician, secretary, stripper in the printing industry, graphic designer, and editor. I received my teaching credential from San Francisco State University and my Masters Degree in Urban Education from UC Berkeley. Within secondary education I have been a mentor teacher, a school-wide professional development coordinator, a department chair in social studies, a Peer Assistance and Review teacher on special assignment, and a small school lead teacher. Part of my work for CCASN is as a Linked Learning coach supporting districts, sites, lead teachers and pathways to transform instructional practices so that all students are prepared for both college and career.
I believe schools have historically recreated social inequities and that it takes a conscious, creative and collaborative effort to turn them instead into places that challenge inequity. Schools should be part of the communities they serve, places where people can access information and skills to unlock their individual potential and contribute to improving the life of the community. My research interests include College and Career Academies, Linked Learning, the effect of these strategies on the working conditions of teachers and teacher leaders, and on equitable outcomes for students in schools. I am interested in the site and district-level supports that could contribute to sustainable teacher leadership in equity-centered school reform, and in research on equity and discipline practices in schools, culturally relevant instructional practices, and professional development practices that support teachers in transforming instruction to improve equitable outcomes for students.
