The Future of Teaching: Reimagining the Role of Educators in a Post-COVID World

February 22, 2:00 pm ET

The COVID pandemic battered a profession that was already struggling to attract and retain a diverse workforce; months of demands, controversy and personal attacks amidst a polarized electorate are taking a toll. A NEA poll from June 2021 found that a third of teachers were considering leaving the profession earlier than planned and that was before the Omicron surge. Even before COVID there was growing agreement on the need for a shift in how we think about the role of educators. Join us for a series of conversations with educators, system leaders and advocates working to build the future of the profession.

Session 1: Reimagining the Role of Educators in a Post-COVID World

Join us for the first in a series exploring the challenges and possibilities of this moment. Participants will walk away with new ways to think about educator workforce needs coming out of COVID - grounded in the work of districts and organizations at the forefront of making the shift towards a team-based, flexible and inclusive vision of the profession a reality.

Speakers: Carole Basile of Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Andi Fourlis of Mesa Public Schools, Robin Kanaan of KnowledgeWorks, Jack Smith of AASA, The School Sumperintendents Association, and Michael Weinberg of the Thornburg Foundation.
Moderator: Stephanie Banchero, Director of the Education & Economic Mobility, of the Joyce Foundation.

There is no cost to attend this Grantmakers for Education program. Registration closes 15 minutes prior to the program time. Thank you for your patience; we review each registration in advance.

This event is intended for members and other education grantmakers and stakeholders.

About the Presenters

Dr. Carole Basile
Dean, Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College
Arizona State University

Carole G. Basile is the Dean of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College at Arizona State University (ASU).  Prior to joining ASU, Basile was Dean and Professor in the College of Education at the University of Missouri St. Louis (UMSL).  As Dean at ASU, her work has centered on redesigning the education workforce and changing practices in teacher and leadership preparation. She is currently working with education organizations nationally and internationally to design systems and enable organizational change in these areas. She is recognized for her work in math and science education, teacher education, community engagement, and environmental education and has published numerous articles, books, book chapters, and technical papers.  She is serving as Principal Investigator for multi-million dollar projects funded by the Kern Family Foundation and the Department of Education. Her community work is also extensive, as she has actively partnered with many urban school districts, nonprofit community and social service entities, and organizations focused on business, workforce, and economic development. Dr. Basile has 15 years of business experience in the areas of sales, management, and corporate training and human capital development.

Dr. Andi Fourlis
Superintendent
Mesa Public Schools

Dr. Andi Fourlis is the superintendent at Mesa Public Schools. Her career began in 1992 as a teacher in the Washington Elementary School District in Phoenix. She joined the Scottsdale Unified School District in 1996 where she spent 19 years as a teacher, director, executive director and assistant superintendent. In 2015 she joined the Arizona Science Center as the Chief Learning Officer. In 2017 she joined Mesa Public Schools as the assistant superintendent of teaching and learning and later served as deputy superintendent.

Throughout her career she has used strategic thinking to ignite meaningful learning for students and adults. Andi’s education includes a bachelor’s degree in elementary education with a focus on English as a Second Language from Arizona State University, a Master’s degree from Northern Arizona University, and a doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies from Arizona State University. It was during her doctoral work that she truly learned the power of public education and its impact on social justice and social cohesion.

She is a native of Arizona and began her schooling in Mesa Public Schools.

Robin Kanaan
Director, Teaching and Learning
KnowledgeWorks

Prior to joining KnowledgeWorks, Robin was among the first Ohio educators to receive certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Robin’s 23 years of experience as a classroom teacher spanned elementary, middle, and high school in both urban and suburban districts, with a focus on English Language Arts, reading intervention and special education. She gained statewide and national recognition as a Critical Friends Group facilitator for the National School Reform Faculty and was later a key force behind the emergence of the Ohio Center for Essential School Reform, piloting the first models of instructional coaching for the state.

Robin joined KnowledgeWorks in a coaching role supporting Early College and Turnaround schools. In her current role as Director of Teaching and Learning at KnowledgeWorks, Robin is leading work with state partners in South Carolina and Arizona. Igniting change and supporting districts in the hard work of transforming to systems of Personalized Competency-Based Learning is mission critical for Robin and the KnowledgeWorks team, so that equitable outcomes for every child are realized.

Dr. Jack Smith
Former Superintendent , Partnership Lead, ASU and AASA (National Superintendent’s Association
Montgomery County Public Schools

A dedicated and lifelong educator, Dr. Jack Smith has worked as a teacher, principal, curriculum director, local superintendent of schools, and for the Maryland State Department of Education. In each of these roles, he worked tirelessly to provide all students, regardless of background, with options and choices upon graduation. His expertise includes facilitating collaboration with school boards on behalf of students and communities, creating strong fiscal and operational systems at the district level, and promoting effective teaching and leadership in school buildings.

Jack’s career began as a teacher in Richland, Washington in 1980. He served there as Activities Director, Assistant Principal and Principal before relocating to Tokyo, Japan, to work as a principal at an international school. He returned to the United States in 1998 and joined Calvert County Public Schools (Maryland), where he served in numerous leadership roles and as Superintendent of Schools for seven years.

Jack joined the Maryland State Department of Education as the Chief Academic Officer for the Office of Teaching and Learning in August 2013. In September 2015, he was asked to be Interim State Superintendent. In these roles, he worked closely with the State Board of Education, local school systems, parents, businesses, teacher associations, institutes of higher education, and government agencies at both the state and national level to ensure high-quality teaching and learning for all students. He then served as Superintendent of Montgomery County Public for the next five years, overseeing a multi-billion-dollar budget, and guiding the school system through the COVID-19 pandemic as well as other complex and difficult situations. Additionally, he worked with staff to develop the Be Well 365 system to support student wellbeing. He also designed and implemented an equity and achievement framework to increase access and opportunity and support learning for historically underserved populations.

Jack has been recognized with many awards and honors, including being named Maryland Superintendent of the Year in 2013 and receiving the 2010 Charge Agent Award from the Maryland State Department of Education’s Division of College and Career Readiness. He is a member of Leadership Maryland’s Class of 2011, and he has served on a variety of volunteer boards.

A graduate of Eastern Washington University, with a Bachelor’s degree in English and Communications and a Master’s degree in School Administration, Jack received his Ph.D. in Instructional Leadership for Changing Populations from Notre Dame of Maryland University.

Michael Weinberg
Education Policy Officer
Thornburg Foundation

As the Education Policy Officer at the Thornburg Foundation, Michael Weinberg works to create a more equitable, high performing K-12 educational system in New Mexico. Previously, as the program evaluation manager for New Mexico’s Legislative Finance Committee, Michael identified opportunities to improve outcomes across the birth to college education continuum. Michael spent the first fourteen years of his career in the education trenches, as a teacher, literacy coach, and principal of a PreK-8 school. Michael earned his doctoral degree from the University of New Mexico in educational leadership, his master’s from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and his bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College. In 2019, the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce honored Michael with the “Excellence in Education” award for helping create a stand-alone early childhood department in New Mexico. What excites Michael most about his current role is the ability to combine his experiences in policy-making with his passion for improving the lives of children.

Stephanie Banchero
Director of the Education & Economic Mobility
Joyce Foundation

Stephanie Banchero is the Director of the Education & Economic Mobility program at the Joyce Foundation which aims to close race- and income-based gaps in post-secondary attainment and economic mobility. Stephanie directly manages investments focused on policies that ensure students, especially students of color and those from underserved communities, have effective, diverse teachers and principals. Stephanie co-chairs the Chicago Forefront Human Capital funders group and the Illinois education funders COVID-recovery group.

Before coming to Joyce, Stephanie was national education reporter for the Wall Street Journal and, before that, spent 13 years covering K-12 education for the Chicago Tribune. Her nationally recognized reporting has received first-place awards from the National Education Writers Association and the Missouri School of Journalism. She also received the Harry Chapin Media Award and an honorable mention from the Casey Journalism Center on Children and Families. She was awarded a prestigious one-year Knight Fellowship in journalism at Stanford University.

Stephanie holds a bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Utah and a master’s degree in Journalism from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She is a past president of the National Education Writers Association and is a member of the Spencer Education Journalism Fellowship Board. Stephanie is a Top Chef aspirant and die-hard Utah Jazz fan.