January 17, 2023 | For immediate release | With questions please contact Karla Cruz Godoy: [email protected]

Big Picture Learning and Internationals Network for Public Schools are proud to announce the sixth cohort of the Deep Learning Equity Fellowship, made up of twenty-one emerging leaders who will dedicate a significant portion of the next eighteen months to addressing issues of educational inequity in their local communities. This cohort joins a group of 75 Equity Fellows already steeped in this important work.

Thus far, through projects undertaken by the first four cohorts, the Deeper Learning Equity Fellows have -- among other things -- identified the emergence of bilingual populations impacted by New York City’s universal Pre-K coverage, signaled the importance of rethinking teacher education programs to equip and prepare new educators for the complexity of preparing students to meet 21st-century challenges and increased awareness of the importance of intersectional identities and self-reflection to reduce burn out for equitable and anti-racist educators during and after COVID-19. 

The Equity Fellows program is supported by nationally recognized mentors – like Linda Darling-Hammond, Christopher Emdin, David Kirkland, Carola Suarez-Orozco and more – help fellows deepen fellows’ theory and practice on their journeys to right educational wrongs. Inevitably, the fellows will face obstacles and barriers in developing and implementing their capstone projects. Equity Fellow Advisers are outstanding alumni of DLEF and are well-positioned to provide guidance, focus, advice, and expertise through the course of the fellowship.

Thanks to the support of The Heinz Endowment, The Grable Foundation, Nellie Mae Education Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Equity Fellows will be convened and supported in a variety of ways throughout their fellowship. “The Heinz Endowments is grateful for the strong leadership and advocacy in education that past Equity Fellow cohorts have provided for the Pittsburgh region. We look forward to supporting this year’s Fellows and note their desire to further amplify those successes across our learning ecosystem,” says Stanley Thompson, Senior Program Director at the Heinz Endowments. 

The Cohort VI Equity Fellows include: Eric Rowe, Denver School Leaders Association; Crystal Davis, James Baldwin School; Danette Campbell-Bell, Greater Rochester Health Foundation; Diana Cornejo-Sanchez, High Tech High; Carlos Cotto, Schenectady City School District; Emily Neff, Trying Together; Shameka Gerald, YELLOW; Rashawn Peterson-Caruthers, Getting Smart; Derek Jones, New Visions for Public Schools; Simona Simpson-Thomas, Freedom Dreams; Kelly Ocasio, Amplify Equity; Jay Abeyta Jr., Boys & Girls Club of Generational Empowerment (BGCGE); Keoni Dang, Spokane Public Schools District; Lisa Pickett, Pittsburgh Public Schools; Ruth Whalen Crockett, New Teachers Collaborative; James Fogarty, A+ Schools Pittsburgh; Natombi Simpson, Hamilton County Educational Service Center; Sasha Douglas, Capitol Region Education Council Schools (CREC); Esohe Osai, School of Education at the University of Pittsburgh.

The Deep Learning Equity Fellows is a cohort-based leadership program that aims to develop, strengthen, and sustain a group of diverse and exceptional leaders who will influence the policies and practices that expand access to Deep Learning in public education across the country. www.equityfellows.org

It is Big Picture Learning’s vision that all students live lives of their own design, supported by caring mentors and equitable opportunities to achieve their greatest potential. Today, hundreds of BPL network schools in the United States and around the world work together to activate the power of schools, systems, and education in their own communities and beyond through student-directed, real-world education. www.bigpicture.org