AutomatED: Using AI to Save Time and Reduce Burnout in Your Classroom
Teachers are already reclaiming hours of their week with Otto Zhen’s AI strategies—join him for a hands-on session to build tools and prompts that fit your classroom, with time to engage around ethics and environmental impact.
Facilitated by:
Otto Zhen (GC-NWI ‘22)
Otto Zhen is a 4th‑year CPS high school math educator and TFA alum who has been creating education technology since high school, from a language‑learning mobile app to a collaborative virtual whiteboard tool he later refined during his studies at Stanford. In addition to teaching, he leads AI professional development for other teacher and is also building Echieve, an edtech venture creating automation tools that help math teachers streamline their preparation and focus more on students and teaching.
This event is part of our Teacher Learning Labs series
Alumni-Led. Practice-Focused. Community-Centered.
Teach For America alumni and corps members are invited to a new Teacher Learning Lab Series—monthly, in-person evening gatherings created for the TFA educator community.
Each lab is led by experienced TFA alumni educators who are seeing strong results in their classrooms and schools. These sessions are designed to be hands-on and collaborative, with practical strategies, honest conversation, and space to learn with and from one another.
Schools as Safe Harbors: Supporting Students and Families in Crisis
Join Brittnay Connor for a conversational, community-centered lab using her school as a real-world model to share practical strategies for coordinating supports—like food pantries, medical care, and safe passage—to better support families in crisis.
Facilitated by:
Brittnay Connor (Dallas-Fort Worth ‘16)
Brittnay Connor is an instructional coach, Teach Plus Change Agent and Research Fellow, and award-winning bilingual educator. At José de Diego Community Academy, she leads initiatives in biliteracy and holistic community support, managing wraparound services such as food and medical care for families. A former Fulbright scholar and dual-language expert, Brittnay was recognized as the 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year for both East Dallas and Geneva Heights IB World School.
This event is part of our Teacher Learning Labs series
Alumni-Led. Practice-Focused. Community-Centered.
Teach For America alumni and corps members are invited to a new Teacher Learning Lab Series—monthly, in-person evening gatherings created for the TFA educator community.
Each lab is led by experienced TFA alumni educators who are seeing strong results in their classrooms and schools. These sessions are designed to be hands-on and collaborative, with practical strategies, honest conversation, and space to learn with and from one another.
Play Beyond K: Reclaiming Joy Through Developmentally Responsive Learningin Elementary Schools
Join Brittanei for a joyful, hands-on lab for elementary educators that breaks down what play-based learning actually looks like beyond kindergarten—and how purposeful play can deepen learning, boost engagement, and make the classroom a more joyful place for both students and teachers.
Facilitated by:
Brittanei Cain (GC-NWI ‘20)
Brittanei is a passionate educator and learning designer dedicated to bringing joy and curiosity back into the classroom. She creates playful, student-centered experiences that foster connection and growth. A 2020 TFA Greater Chicago-Northwest Indiana alum, she teaches second grade on Chicago’s West Side.
This event is part of our Teacher Learning Labs series
Alumni-Led. Practice-Focused. Community-Centered.
Teach For America alumni and corps members are invited to a new Teacher Learning Lab Series—monthly, in-person evening gatherings created for the TFA educator community.
Each lab is led by experienced TFA alumni educators who are seeing strong results in their classrooms and schools. These sessions are designed to be hands-on and collaborative, with practical strategies, honest conversation, and space to learn with and from one another.
Sustainable Self-care Starter Kit: Tips and Tricks for Educators and Youth Workers
Join Monique Smith and Anna Campbell for a nourishing evening centered on sustainable self-care, shared wisdom, and community—designed to support educators and youth workers doing deeply meaningful work.
Facilitated by:
Monique Smith (GC-NWI ‘14)
Monique Smith is a Gary, Indiana native and Teach For America alumna with over a decade of experience working alongside underrepresented communities in Chicago Public Schools. She currently serves in school leadership at Piccolo School of Excellence in West Humboldt Park, where her work centers on strengthening educators and school systems through holistic practices that respond to the realities of toxic stress experienced by many students and communities. Monique has shared her expertise with audiences at EducationWeek, DePaul University, and Google, and earned her master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Clark Atlanta University. Beyond education, she is also an aspiring filmmaker—bringing creativity and storytelling into all aspects of her work.
Anna Campbell (GC-NWI ‘12)
Anna Campbell is the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support Lead at Piccolo School of Excellence in Chicago's West Humboldt Park neighborhood. Her thirteen-year career in education began as a 2012 Teach for America Corps Member, followed by seven years teaching lower elementary and serving as a Reading Interventionist in Chicago Public Schools. Anna is passionate about creating school-wide systems that dismantle barriers to student success and center each child's whole self. She holds a Master's in Public School Building Leadership from Teachers College Columbia University (2025) and remains driven by her commitment to building equitable education systems that serve the individual needs of students, families, and communities.
This event is part of our Teacher Learning Labs series
Alumni-Led. Practice-Focused. Community-Centered.
Teach For America alumni and corps members are invited to a new Teacher Learning Lab Series—monthly, in-person evening gatherings created for the TFA educator community.
Each lab is led by experienced TFA alumni educators who are seeing strong results in their classrooms and schools. These sessions are designed to be hands-on and collaborative, with practical strategies, honest conversation, and space to learn with and from one another.
Insatiable Learning in High School: Designing Engaging Classroom Experiences
Join Brittanee Rolle for a hands-on lab for high school educators focused on designing engaging learning experiences that spark curiosity, build connection, and become school experiences students never forget.
Facilitated by:
Brittanee Rolle (GC-NWI ‘14)
Brittanee Rolle is a 2014 TFA Alumni with 12 years of classroom experience. For the greater part of those years, she has spent them joyously teaching English to high school students on the South Side of Chicago, in the Roseland community. She has been awarded grants from National Geographic, Fund for Teachers, Chicago Beyond and a local literary author. Her focus on rigorous instruction coupled with culturally relevant teaching strategies made her a recipient of numerous awards honoring her expertise.
This event is part of our Teacher Learning Labs series
Alumni-Led. Practice-Focused. Community-Centered.
Teach For America alumni and corps members are invited to a new Teacher Learning Lab Series—monthly, in-person evening gatherings created for the TFA educator community.
Each lab is led by experienced TFA alumni educators who are seeing strong results in their classrooms and schools. These sessions are designed to be hands-on and collaborative, with practical strategies, honest conversation, and space to learn with and from one another.
Join Kids First Chicago’s (K1C) Curriculum Design Team!
K1C, in partnership with Chicago Public Schools (CPS), is establishing a team of current parents, teachers, and students to co-design and co-develop a series of family-friendly resources on Skyline, the district's universal PK-12th grade curriculum.
BACKGROUND In 2021, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) launched Skyline, the district’s first-ever universal PK-12 curriculum with digital resources across six content areas: English language arts, math, science, social science, and two world languages (Spanish and French). The goal behind Skyline is to engage all 322,000 CPS students with high-quality instructional resources.
WHY IT MATTERS CPS and K1C believe that a shared understanding of Skyline will foster strong partnerships between educators and families, which will help accelerate students’ learning and improve family-teacher collaboration.
Event One
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Event Two
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.