Importance of Collaboration

Looking back over my career, I would not be half as successful if it were not for working with extremely smart and passionate people. Whether it was acting as a mentor for a student teacher, leading and working with staff to facilitate professional development sessions, or sharing resources to improve student learning, collaboration and working close with my colleagues and friends has left me humbled, empowered, and ultimately, successful in the field of education. Because of an amazing cadre of professionals, we were able to accomplish what no other public or charter school was able to achieve: graduate 95% of entering freshmen four years later and of that, over 90% of those students were accepted to post-secondary institutions. In my classroom, collaborating with students, parents, community members, and colleagues, allowed me to leverage student learning towards high school graduation and college readiness. On a national scale, my promotion to work with the Alternative High School Initiative was due largely to my colleagues and friends. Additionally, collaboration with a national network of youth development organizations, key stakeholders, superintendents, program officers, directors, curriculum specialists, principals, and educators, have made our initiatives key to building network and school capacity. On every level of my career, collaboration has been the key to positive student outcomes.