2021
Annual Report

During the 2020–2021 school year, Allison Hardy taught in a large metropolitan public high school in Nashville, Tennessee. She taught virtually in 2020 and both virtually and in-person in 2021. As a second-year teacher who was still getting her bearings in the classroom, these shifts presented a major challenge. With the switch to virtual learning, she didn’t know how to do group work online or how to navigate getting students to talk. Allison came to the realization that she needed a coach to support her in developing these skills. To help fill this gap, she requested a grant from Knowles to cover the cost of participating in the Knowles Coaching Partnership Program, a program that partners Knowles Teaching Fellows with Senior Fellow coaches for one academic year. Allison met with her coach Ian Caldwell once a week for eight weeks via Zoom. Ian helped her work through how to assign effective group work and how to transition from virtual back to in-person learning. 

In the spring of 2020, Maggie Radack struggled to keep her physical science students engaged. With the quick switch to virtual learning precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, there was little opportunity for hands-on learning. As the pandemic continued and Maggie learned at least the fall semester of the 2020–2021 school year would be virtual too, she realized she needed to make some changes to increase engagement. With 54% of the students at her school being eligible for free or reduced lunch, Maggie didn’t want to put financial strain on their families by asking them to purchase lab supplies. Instead, she requested funding from Knowles to purchase lab kits for all 100 of the physical science students at her school, including those in the class of a colleague. 

Despite having several years of teaching experience under her belt, the 2020–2021 school year was Rebecca Guarino’s first year teaching at Manhattan Village Academy (MVA). MVA is the only Title 1 school in District 2 in Manhattan; it serves a diverse student body that commutes in from all neighborhoods across New York City. For the majority of the school year, other than a brief period in the winter during which the school was fully remote, MVA practiced a hybrid model, where students were able to opt in for in-person learning. Having to teach a handful of students in-person on a daily basis, while also being responsible for teaching more than 20 students virtually created a high stress environment for Rebecca and her colleagues. During these stressful times, she met with her principal to discuss teacher sustainability and wellness. They saw that the staff was feeling burnt out and weary of teaching so they sought out ways to create space for mindfulness and wellness. 

As science teachers, 2017 Knowles Teaching Fellows Erin Capra, Jody DeAraujo, Lucas Risinger and Erin Smith recognized the need to teach climate science without causing more harm to their students, who had already experienced trauma as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, they recognized the need to develop multidisciplinary lessons that incorporate real-world phenomena while engaging students in outdoor, experiential learning—all while maintaining a sense of hope. Seeking to develop the skills needed to teach in this way, the group planned a three-day professional development retreat and successfully requested funding from Knowles. In April 2021, they traveled to the Oregon coast, where they practiced the skills they aim to foster in their students, including nature-based data collection and analysis, and community circles. On day one, they practiced authentic data collection techniques, including creating sit-spot journals and engaging in phenology, as shared by Erin Capra and Erin Smith. That evening, they held a community circle to gain experience with restorative justice. On day two, they selected a surveying location, where they captured data for a citizen science project on sea star wasting syndrome. On day three, they analyzed data, developed curricula and engaged in a final community circle.