We Owe Our Kids Safe Schools

Reflecting on the Tragedy in Uvalde, TX Why haven’t we stopped this already? School should be a place where childhood happens. At its best, it’s where kids discover what excites them. It’s where they make friends and where they start to become their fullest selves. All of this depends on safety. But for too long, … Continued

“Our job is to help bring out the very best in people.”

Leading Educators CEO Chong-Hao Fu on the future of education At this time of rapid change in the world, I spoke with Leading Educators CEO Chong-Hao Fu about what the near future holds for education and the profession of teaching. He reflects on the need for a richer vision of teaching, opportunities to strengthen the … Continued

Celebrating Blackness Beyond Black History Month

LeAnita Garner describes herself in a few ways: learner, caring big sister, mother, wife, daughter of an educator, and a career educator herself. These facets are shaped and enhanced by the power she finds in her Blackness. Within the context of Black History Month, she hopes we can start to change the way we celebrate … Continued

Leading Forward

Former Leading Educators CEO Jonas Chartock says farewell to the board Nearly two years ago, amid what many have called the “racial reckoning” of summer 2020, Leading Educators announced plans to diversify our board of directors. Dr. Jonas Chartock, our founding CEO and a member of the board since inception offered to make the first … Continued

Why I Celebrate Black History

Black history is yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I am Black history. My late mother is Black history, and my children are Black history in the making.   In our home, we lead with our individual and collective power as a people. My children understand that what they do today will impact the Black children who have … Continued

MacKenzie Scott Makes Historic $10 Million Gift to Leading Educators

Today, we are proud to announce that we have accepted a $10 million donation from author MacKenzie Scott, the most significant investment toward our mission ever. This support offers important backing for our rallying belief: every child in this country deserves excellent and equitable teaching. It also says that it’s possible and worthwhile to disrupt … Continued

Who Are We Waiting For?

Owning Dr. King’s Vision for Just Education Every year, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day greets us with commemorations and carefully-worded statements. Organizations host days of service. And people with power quote “I Have A Dream”, even as they counter civil rights. Mere weeks later, we see this ritual play out again for the start of … Continued

Keeping Learning on Track Amid Shutdowns

How Leading Educators Supported Chicago Public Schools During Pandemic Teaching This case study originally appeared in the 2021 Lloyd A. Fry Foundation Annual Report. We have re-published it as originally written with the foundation’s permission. Photography by Roark Johnson. A Chicago teacher of third-grade math saw her students struggling with multiplication. “There was this refrain: … Continued

2021: The Year of the Educator

Despite global uncertainty, real change is taking hold. We’ve seen our fair share of challenging times over a decade of service, but this year was unique. From school re-entry to teaching about racism, 2021 elevated public education as a top issue in the minds of the public. Facing this double-edged opportunity, teachers, families, and advocates … Continued

How Districts Can Advance Equity in Literacy

How OUSD is using curricula and professional learning to deliver on community demands for change One clear lesson stands out from the global pandemic: too many students have long felt the impact of a society in need of change. As classroom walls dissolved overnight, the realities of teaching and learning were laid bare. In Oakland, … Continued