governance Committee
Jessica is devoted to changing how students and teachers experience school. Jessica has been a teacher, an instructional coach, an assistant principal, a principal and the supervisor of six elementary schools. Throughout her career in public education, she has recognized the impact that school and classroom community have on learning. In some schools and classrooms, people are able to show up in ways that allow them to learn and grow. Especially as an assistant principal, she saw the impact that some teachers had on students who otherwise struggled to make it through a whole class period. Some teachers were able to create a space where students felt accepted and wanted to stay, even after the class ended. In her first year as a principal, she heard a presentation by BELONG partners (then Sound Discipline), and felt immediate relief and excitement that the research about trauma and resiliency windows being shared explained so much of what she had seen and intuitively recognized. She invited the same speaker to share this presentation with her staff, and they too wanted to learn more about creating classrooms where children could learn skills and experience safe spaces to practice those skills that would support them to engage in meaningful academic learning. This school became the first schoolwide Demonstration School for BELONG partners.
Jessica has since gone on to co-author the book Learning Together: Organizing Schools for Teacher and Student Learning and articles sharing her belief in the importance of teacher learning systems that intentionally and explicitly attend to creating school and classroom communities that support social emotional teaching and learning. Jessica now works with schools and districts to design and implement teacher and leader learning.
She is thrilled to serve on the BELONG partners board in order to contribute to the shared responsibility we have to work to make school places that meet all students where they are. Because if we are to meet our commitment to ensure that all children learn, then good instruction won’t be enough. While strong instruction is necessary, it’s insufficient. Many students need us to also create learning spaces where they can practice the skills that allow them to engage in learning behaviors. And teachers deserve learning and support to collectively create classrooms where this is simply part of the plan. This is the powerful impact BELONG partners offers.