How does a teacher take Shakespeare from something “removed from lived experience, reduced to passive reading, and disconnected from collaboration or creativity” and transform it into “a living text—meant to be spoken, embodied, and collaboratively interpreted”?

That was the challenge facing Melissa Ewing, an English teacher at East Hartford High School. Her answer was to go straight to the source—to experience the Bard among peers in the city where he lived, wrote, and worked.

The bridge was a Fund for Teachers fellowship.

This summer, Melissa used a $5,000 grant to participate in Teaching Shakespeare Through Performance, a three-week course in London designed to help educators move Shakespeare beyond a purely academic exercise and toward a dynamic, student-centered experience. Through performance, collaboration, and creative exploration, the fellowship focused on strategies to increase student engagement, confidence, and literacy skills while fostering inclusion and voice in the English classroom.

At Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, Melissa experienced Shakespeare not simply as literature to be studied, but as a participatory and communal art form.

Her days were filled with seminars led by experts on placing Shakespeare in socially conscious contexts, observations of rehearsals and performances on the Globe stage, and hands-on practice performing Shakespearean texts under the guidance of scene directors and voice and movement specialists.

“This fellowship changed not only how I teach Shakespeare, but how I understand learning itself,” Melissa said.

Before the fellowship, Melissa often felt a disconnect between her students’ potential and their ability to access complex texts like Shakespeare. Many of her ninth graders—particularly multilingual learners and students who struggle with traditional reading and writing—would disengage, she said, not because they lacked insight, but because traditional approaches did not always meet their needs.

“Working alongside Globe practitioners and fellow educators, I experienced firsthand what it means to learn through movement, voice, collaboration, and risk-taking,” she said. “I began to see how Shakespeare comes alive not on the page alone, but through the body, through shared space, and through collective interpretation.”

Becoming the Student

In an unexpected plot twist, becoming a student herself proved just as instructive as learning new teaching strategies.

“One of the most unexpected outcomes of my fellowship was how much it transformed my own confidence and identity as both a learner and an educator,” Melissa said.

She arrived in London focused on gathering new tools for her students. What she didn’t anticipate was how much the experience would challenge her personally.

“Participating in rehearsal, performing, and taking creative risks alongside other educators reminded me what it feels like to be vulnerable in the learning process,” she said.

That vulnerability gave Melissa a new perspective on what she asks of her own students. By stepping outside her comfort zone, she experienced firsthand the uncertainty—and ultimately the confidence—that comes from learning through experimentation, collaboration, movement, and performance.

Now, she plans to bring that experience home.

Shakespeare Comes Alive

This fall, Melissa’s students will take part in a new “Shakespeare Comes Alive” unit built around performance-based learning and creative exploration. Rather than encountering Shakespeare solely through close reading and written analysis, students will have opportunities to speak, move, perform, interpret, and collaborate as they make meaning of the text.

Melissa will also share performance-based strategies with colleagues. And parents and community members will be invited to experience the students’ work as audience members during performances and a culminating Final Sharing.

To paraphrase the Bard himself, the world is ultimately her students’ stage and now she has new tools—and a renewed sense of purpose—to help prepare them to step onto it with confidence.

“Students will now have more ways to access meaning, build confidence, and see themselves as capable participants in the learning process,” Melissa said. “I believe they will become more engaged, more willing to participate, and more invested in their own learning.”

Each summer, during what we affectionately call “Fellow Season,” we have the privilege of following Fund for Teachers Fellows as they immerse themselves in self-designed learning experiences around the world. Their journeys are rooted in a simple belief: when teachers are trusted to pursue the learning they need most, students reap the benefits.

This week, we’re highlighting 2026 Fund for Teachers Fellow Kim Shockley, who traveled to Bridgetown, Barbados, to research African Diaspora history at significant heritage sites. Her fellowship centered on themes of resilience, freedom, and cultural identity—knowledge she will transform into meaningful learning experiences for her multilingual students.

Kim’s journey took her beyond textbooks and into the places where history unfolded. At sites including the George Washington House, she examined historical evidence, interpreted exhibits, and reflected on Barbados’ unique connections to colonial history and the African Diaspora. By experiencing these places firsthand, she gained a richer understanding of how place-based learning can help students make meaningful connections between the past and the present.

Her fellowship also focused on the people and traditions that continue to shape Barbadian identity today. Kim explored local culture by sharing authentic meals, engaging with community members, viewing public art such as the “Life is Sweet” mural at Hayman’s Market, and visiting the Newton Enslaved Burial Ground, where she reflected on the enduring legacy of those whose lives and stories continue to influence the island’s identity. These experiences deepened her understanding of resilience, remembrance, and community—perspectives she hopes to bring into her classroom.

Beyond history and culture, Kim also explored Barbados’ remarkable natural environment. Visits to tropical gardens and natural habitats provided opportunities to learn about the island’s biodiversity and the relationship between people and place. Together, these experiences paint a more complete picture of Barbados—one that extends beyond historical landmarks to include the landscapes and ecosystems that continue to shape life on the island.

As with every Fund for Teachers fellowship, the journey doesn’t end when the plane lands back home. Kim returned with children’s literature, authentic classroom artifacts, geographic resources, and countless stories that will help bring Barbados into her classroom. More importantly, she returned with fresh perspectives and firsthand experiences that will empower her multilingual learners to celebrate their own heritage, think critically about justice and equality, and recognize the power of their own voices to make a difference.

Kim’s fellowship is a powerful reminder that professional learning is most transformative when it is authentic, immersive, and teacher-driven. By investing in educators’ curiosity, Fund for Teachers helps create classrooms where students don’t just learn about the world—they develop the knowledge, empathy, and confidence to help shape it.

Earlier this month, the National Science Teachers Association hosted its annual conference in Anaheim, CA. In addition to keynote speakers and breakout sessions (one of which was hosted by FFT Fellows Matt Holden and Becky Maynard about their fellowship), special recognition was given to exemplary educators in several categories. And THREE FFT Fellows were among the winners! Congratulations to Becky and Matt, recipients of the 2026 Robert E. Yager Excellence in Teaching Award for excellence and innovation in the field of science education. We are also thrilled for Melissa Kowalski, recipient of the Shell Science Teaching Award which recognizes one outstanding classroom science teacher (K–12) who has had a positive impact on his or her students, school, and community through exemplary classroom science teaching.

 “On our fellowship to Kenya, Matt and I decided to present at NSTA about our collaboration, then we applied for this award and we both got it!” said Becky. “Fund for Teachers does amazing things for educators.” Melissa added, “I’m certain that my experience as a FFT Fellow greatly improved my application for the NSTA award!!”

We are so proud of these FFT Fellows and equally as grateful that they chose to use this platform to tell others about Fund for Teachers!

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Becky Maynard (Framingham High School, MA) and Matt Holden (Fayetteville High School, AR) used their Fund for Teachers fellowship grant to participate in the Global Exploration for Educators Organization Kenya 2025 Expedition, which includes wildlife safaris and immersive cultural experiences with indigenous communities, to create authentic student experiences focused on the cultural significance of environmental conservation.

Melissa Kowalksi (Put-in-Bay Schools, OH) used her Fund for Teachers fellowship grant to document the diverse geological features of Iceland’s untouched wilderness to enhance climate and earth science instruction that excites and engages elementary through high school students.

Here’s a word association game: when you read “revolution,” what comes to mind? For students of Crystal Lamb and Jessica Freed, “Vietnam,” “Cambodia” and “China” didn’t. In fact, scores on their Global History state exam revealed an average of just 34% of students correctly answered questions related to these countries.

“In analyzing these results, we had to consider our own level of knowledge on these topics and how it may act as a barrier to our students’ success—not only on state exams but also in understanding the major economic and political revolutions that shaped the 20th century and continue to influence interactions between world powers today,” wrote Lamb and Freed in their Fund for Teachers grant proposal. “Upon reflection, we noted our limited knowledge on the topic, each revolution learned through the relationship with the United States and their foreign policy objectives of containment. This can also be reflected in the current curriculum we use which is dominated by documents with an American lens, discussions on stopping the spread of communism, and the role of the United States military within the region to promote this foreign policy.”

Last summer, they used a $10,000 Fund for Teachers grant to examine through the lens of art and culture the multifaceted perspectives of political and economic revolutions in China, Vietnam, and Cambodia to develop a culturally responsive curriculum that fosters critical thinking and an appreciation of multiple perspectives.

For two weeks, these FFT Fellows deepened their knowledge by interacting with people and experiencing sites integral to each country’s past (and future): learning about the legacy of Chairman Mao in mausoleums and museums; squeezing into underground tunnels dug by the Vietcong; and walking in Pol Pot’s Cambodian Killing Fields. They also experienced the spirituality of Angor Thom, calligraphy classes in Beijing and resistance at the Hanoi Hilton.

“I was changed by the opportunity to view history from the perspective of citizens of their country, understanding how viewpoints and perspectives vary greatly,” said Lamb. “I also benefitted from learning art practices from artists practicing in their country.”

Now their students at Bronx Bridges High School are benefitting from the fellowship, as well.

Recently, the teachers took students on a walking tour of Chinatown, where students learned about immigration and history and experienced new foods, with field trips to Vietnamese and Cambodian cafes and restaurants in the works. In Studio Art class, 9–12th grade students were introduced to the traditional calligraphy techniques we studied in Beijing, working with rice paper and natural-hair brushes. To provide authentic and direct instruction, students viewed videos Lamb filmed of their instructor in Beijing. This unit will culminate in the creation and presentation of a mini-museum display, with students from both Lamb and Freed’s classes incorporating artifacts, images, artwork, and propaganda collected throughout the fellowship to analyze how history is shaped by bias and perspective—learning to interpret history not as fixed, but as evolving and contested.

“Using photos from my experience has gotten history students very excited to learn not only about my experience, but to use my images to ground their learning,” added Freed. “I am seeing student interest and engagement grow in this topic as compared with previous years and am excited to see how the museum display projects turn out.”

“As educators, we must recognize that our understanding of history is influenced by dominant narratives, often reflecting the perspectives of those in power,” said Lamb. “By engaging with and interviewing locals, we gained insight into how these events are viewed by governments, historians, those in power, as well as those on the ground. And now this fellowship will continue to open doors for students and us to explore new perspectives and continually push back on biased or silenced narratives.”

As 1.8 billion people across the globe are celebrating Ramadan, students at Lincoln Elementary in Norman, OK recently learned about the celebration from their fellow students who also are Muslim. Their teacher, Diane Wood, informed and inspired their presentation using experiences from her Fund for Teachers fellowship last summer.  

“My fellowship to Spain and Morocco helped me to develop an approach to education that recognizes, respects, and uses students’ backgrounds as meaningful sources for learning,” said Diane. “Culturally responsive teaching fosters a sense of belonging, strengthens confidence, and honors different perspectives. I believe it is essential for creating equitable and effective classrooms and ensuring that every student has the opportunity to thrive.” 

Diane serves as the Gifted Resource Coordinator for school with 270 students – six percent of whom are from North African or Middle Eastern countries. Because one of her responsibilities is enhancing the mandated curriculum with multi-disciplinary content, Diane seized the opportunity to design a fellowship that helped students affirm and appreciate their culture of origin while also developing fluency in other cultures. 

“This fellowship has helped me develop a deeper understanding of how art and architecture are not just aesthetic choices, but also powerful expressions of identity, religion, and social values,” Diane said. “Understanding this shared history of cultural synthesis has been transformative, helping me appreciate the importance of cross-cultural collaboration and the ways in which traditions can enrich one another. I’ve learned to think more critically about cultural appropriation and heritage conservation.” 

So have her students. 

Diane is using Islamic patterns she studied in Spain and Morocco to teach symmetry and tessellations to fifth graders during a geometry unit. Students are analyzing Diane’s photographs of the intricate designs of historic sites such as the Alhambra in Granada to identify lines of symmetry, rotational symmetry, and repeating shapes that form tessellations. They are using rulers, compasses, and grid paper to design their own tessellating geometric tiles. By connecting geometry to real-world art rooted in Islamic tradition, she’s striving to make abstract concepts more concrete and visual, while honoring the mathematical contributions of diverse cultures. 

Last summer with a Fund for Teaches grant, Dr. Shelina Warren and four peers from Dunbar High School in Washington DC embarked on a journey across five states in the Deep South to more effectively teach complex and accurate historical narratives about race, civil rights, and the African American experience. In advance of Martin Luther King Day, we reached out to Shelina to learn more about their experiences and how students are learning differently as a result… 

You saw/experienced/internalized so much history on your fellowship. Is there one moment that stands out above the others? 

One of the most profound moments of the fellowship was standing inside the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, at the exact site where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his life. The emotional weight of being in that space was unexpectedly similar to what I felt days later in Mississippi—standing in the courthouse where Emmett Till’s killers were acquitted and near the river where his body was found. 

In both places, I felt the same question pressing in on me: 
How do we teach students not only what happened, but how people responded—and what those responses demand of us today? 

That question is at the heart of what I was trying to solve through writing and receiving this fellowship. 

And what were you trying to solve? 

Before the fellowship, my students could name incidents of racial violence—Martin Luther King, Jr., George Floyd, Breonna Taylor—but they struggled to articulate: 

• How people responded in those moments; 

• Why those responses mattered; and, 

• What choices they themselves are inheriting today 

A pre-survey I administered at the start of my Emmett Till unit confirmed this gap: 

• While students expressed strong emotional reactions to racial violence, many lacked confidence in explaining historical responses beyond protests or anger. 

• More than 80% of students indicated that primary sources, real locations, and personal narratives helped them understand people’s choices more than textbooks alone. 

• Nearly all students said they believe their responsibility today is to speak up when we see injustice, but many were unsure how to do so meaningfully. 

The fellowship helped me realize that place-based learning—standing where history happened—is essential to bridging that gap. 

How is your fellowship’s place-based learning informing students in the various classes you teach? 

I am currently teaching a mini-unit on Emmett Till grounded directly in the fellowship experience, which specifically features high school curriculum activities and resources I received from the Emmett Till Interpretive Center and Facing History & Ourselves. Students are engaging with: 

• Photos and videos I captured at the Emmett Till Interpretive Center, courthouse, barn, and river as primary sources; 

• Documentary clips and insights shared by scholar Ben Saulsberry; 

• Comparative inquiry connecting Emmett Till’s murder to Dr. King’s assassination and contemporary racial violence; and, 

• Structured discussions centered on the essential question: 
  As we pursue racial justice today, what can be learned from the choices people have made in response to racial violence in the past? 

“Seeing the real places where Emmett Till’s story happened made it feel real in a way textbooks never did. It made me think about what I would have done then—and what I should do now.” — Dunbar High School Law & Public Policy student 

Alongside this unit, I am developing: 

• A student-created video project modeled after the National Civil Rights Museum introductory film, highlighting the legacy of our Law & Public Policy Academy 

• Podcast episodes that weave together fellowship sites, including an on-location sound bite recorded outside Dooky Chase’s Restaurant—a historic civil rights strategy space 

• A classroom Matter of Law panel series inspired by the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, where students examine court cases and consider legal vs. moral justice 

With two decades of teaching and a Ph.D. in Urban Leadership, is there anything new that you learned on this fellowship? 

Visiting Dr. King’s childhood home, final resting place, and the King Center in Atlanta helped me more fully understand the arc of his life—not just his death. Seeing where he was raised, where his ideas were nurtured, and where his legacy is preserved allowed me to teach him not only as a martyr, but as a strategist, organizer, and human being. 

At the National Civil Rights Museum, I also learned the origins of the phrase Speaking Truth to Power through Bayard Rustin’s work. That learning reshaped how I frame activism for students—helping them see that justice requires both legal change and personal transformation. 

One quote from Studio BE in New Orleans captured this tension perfectly: 
“How do you look terror in the face and still muster the courage to love?” 

That question now anchors my classroom. Love, I tell my students, is not passive—it is a deliberate act of resistance, one Dr. King embodied fully. 

I’m extending our fellowship’s beyond my students and me through: 

• Podcast episodes shared with families and the community 

• Ongoing conversations with colleagues about replicating place-based learning locally 

• An upcoming Humanities Circle presentation where I will share my Emmett Till unit and fellowship-based strategies 

The recent CBS Sunday Morning update about preserving the Emmett Till barn—and Shonda Rhimes’ continued support—only reaffirmed why access to these sites matters. Memory is fragile. Place helps protect it. 

At the heart of this fellowship is the belief that guides my work: So that others may learn. This experience strengthened my commitment to teaching truthfully, lovingly, and courageously, and to helping students understand that their responses to injustice matter. 

Four Native American tribes once inhabited the territory that now comprises Tulsa, OK, where students of Rachel Langley and Jesse Wren attend school. Additionally, one-third of their students are descendants of Tribal Peoples. But how does one teach elementary students about complex topics such as land rights and Tribal sovereignty? Jesse and Rachel chose to learn from a community (and state) that’s made great strides to reclaim their own indigenous heritage – Hawaii. 

The Fellow team wrote in their 2025 grant proposal: “Late in the 20th Century, Hawaii began a ‘Cultural Renaissance’ with a focus on preserving what had been lost. This Hawaiian story parallels the history of Oklahoma…By using the stories of others, students will be able to make connections and draw comparisons that will allow them to make decisions that will impact their own community. As Tulsa tries to reconnect to its roots in Native culture, students can use the examples from Hawaii to deepen their understanding of what it means to preserve culture without losing its authenticity.” 

What that meant for Rachel and Jesse was researching Hawaiian traditions and history while experiencing that unique ecosystem to create interdisciplinary projects exploring cultural preservation of Oklahoma’s Native American communities. 

“Convincing our selection committee of a teacher’s need to learn in tropical sites like Hawaii is a tough sell,” said Karen Eckhoff, Fund for Teachers executive director. “These teachers made it clear that, for them, Hawaii wasn’t a vacation, but a necessary destination to deepen students’ cultural competency, awareness and appreciation.” 

Rachel felt this, both in the writing and pursuit of their fellowship. 

“Planning an educational experience to a tourist destination is difficult,” she said. “Even with the research we did prior to our adventure, we found that many itinerary spots had been westernized. (One person used the term “Disney-d.”) I soon discovered that my best experiences came from the people I met along the way. Once we explained that we were teachers looking at what it means to reclaim indigenous culture, people were more than willing to share their history, struggles, and stories.” 

Instead of staying at a resort, Jesse and Rachel stayed in private residences. They avoided tourist sites in favor of learning led by Indigenous Hawaiian and Pacific Islander people. Exploring Hawaii’s Plantation Village offered insight into the lives of diverse Indigenous groups who contributed to Hawaii’s sugar industry from 1850–1950 and provided a lens for discussing themes like cultural adaptation, labor history, and social equity. Service learning came in the form of volunteering at the He’eia Fishpond, a cultural site lost to large corporate farming practices for sugar and pineapple and now being reclaimed as a touchstone of Hawaiian heritage.  

“Volunteering with Paepae o He’eia to restore the ancient He’eia Fishpond was transformative,” said Jesse. “The hands-on work tied to cultural preservation deepened my understanding of ecological and Indigenous restoration. Another powerful moment came from sailing with a Native Hawaiian family, where we prepared food, heard oral legends, and joined a sunset ceremony. Both experiences showed that true learning begins with respect, relationships, and community-rooted knowledge.”

Rachel and Jesse are now intent on translating their experiential learning to students in multiple ways, starting with their 120-acre school campus. Collaborating with an Ohio classroom through the National Air and Space Museum’s Teacher Innovator Institute, students are applying the design cycle to reimagine their own school grounds as spaces for inquiry, collaboration, and cultural storytelling. The school in Ohio is contributing ecological expertise, and our school is sharing Indigenous perspectives on honoring the land. “Through data collection, podcasting, and cross-campus consulting, students are becoming both designers and stewards while discovering that outdoor learning is not just about science. It’s about identity, belonging, and respect for the places we inhabit,” said Jesse. 

“This exchange continues the spirit of our Hawaiian fellowship,” continued Jesse, “connecting young people to the land and to one another through creativity, cultural understanding, and hands-on environmental learning. It also demonstrates how lessons rooted in Indigenous wisdom can shape not just classrooms, but the way future generations imagine and care for their world.” 

Many teachers are already into their first weeks of school; however, FFT Fellow Prince Johnson (Food and Finance High School – New York, NY) is still being a student on his fellowship in Japan. We caught up with him mid-fellowship to hear about how he is observing Tokyo’s urbanization, Kyoto’s cultural landscapes, and Hiroshima’s history to create lessons connecting Japan’s geography and history and foster students’ global awareness and critical thinking.

Q: You are packing so much into your fellowship traversing Japan. Can you get a sense yet of the biggest takeaway from this experience?

A: My greatest takeaway has been the power of place-based learning to illuminate complex global issues. Standing in Hiroshima during the Peace Ceremony deepened my understanding of resilience, reconciliation, and the human cost of conflict. Experiencing Osaka’s energy, Kyoto’s preservation of tradition, and Tokyo’s blending of innovation and history reinforced the importance of cultural context in teaching global history and human geography. These moments will directly inform how I help students connect historical events to present-day challenges and opportunities.

Q: What inspired you to apply for a Fund for Teachers grant to make this happen?

A: I first applied for a Fund for Teachers fellowship in 2009, when I traveled to Indonesia to explore cultural, historical, and educational connections that I could bring back to my students. That experience profoundly shaped my approach to teaching—showing me the power of immersive, self-designed professional learning. When I applied again, I was drawn to the opportunity to design an experience that was entirely tailored to my students’ needs, my school’s context, and my own professional growth. I sought FFT because it allows teachers to be the architects of their own learning, rooted in purpose and possibility.

Q: This summer, alone, you have completed the Goethe-Institut Deutschland fellowship and the NYU Steinhardt fellowship in Paris – in addition to being asked to join the NYCPS Climate Education Leadership team. Clearly, you strive to grow and enrich your teaching practice. What makes Fund for Teachers unique from all of your other professional development opportunities?

A: While I am deeply honored by the recognition I have received throughout my career, FFT is different because it is not an award for past accomplishments—it is an investment in future impact. Many honors acknowledge what has already been achieved, but FFT asks: What will you do next? It empowers teachers to dream big, to take risks, and to bring back something truly unique to their students and communities. It’s deeply personal, profoundly student-centered, and built on the belief that teachers are innovators, not just implementers.

Prince actively posts on Instagram @mrjonsoncte. And (you heard it here first), he was just named 2025 New York History Teacher of the Year by The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

Students at Life Learning Academy are disconnected – literally and figuratively. Many of the students live on campus, located on Treasure Island in the San Francisco Bay. Also, students arrive after experiencing life traumas, often involving the juvenile justice system, and not finding success in traditional school settings.

Kevin Hicks arrived at Life Learning Academy with his own unique trajectory, including growing food at a commune in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, founding a rowing studio gym, and working as laboratory scientist at the United States Department of Agriculture.

The common denominator between students and teacher? According to Kevin, meaningful connections, worldly lived experiences, and adventure — the same components of a Fund for Teachers fellowship.

Last summer with a $5,000 Fund for Teachers grant, Kevin participated in the Marine Conservation program hosted by Global Vision International in Puerto Morelos, Mexico, to support the management and conservation of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. Working alongside national and international non-profits and government organizations, Kevin collected data, participated in coral nursery and management and joined beach clean-ups in the Mexico Caribbean Marine Biosphere Reserve, which is one of the largest ecosystems globally, and the largest national marine biosphere reserve in the Caribbean.

Afterwards, he studied Spanish with a tutor in Quintana Roo, improving fluency to better teach one-third of his students who are Spanish speaking.

“I got to see ‘Science as a human endeavor,’” said Kevin. “As humans, we have limited capacity. It made most sense to train us to be able to identify selected target species [such as sea turtles]. This way we focused on specific species that provide crucial data.”

Kevin relies on a similar targeted approach when teaching his “Earth Optimism in Action” ecology class, focusing on specific issues that provide opportunities for collaboration and change.

“My students choose a local environmental issue for which I supply 1-2 resources for them to contact for more information,” explained Kevin. “As the name of the class implies, they are empowered to take action and reach out to local organizations for more information. Their final project will be an ‘Action Plan’ with the help of the local agency to address the issue at hand. My fellowship will be used as my example for their final project.”

Through this class (and his fellowship), Kevin models more than environmental stewardship and hands-on science. He exemplifies for his students Life in Action.

“As an educator, it is my responsibility to be a role model, and I would like to be a role model of a global citizen who takes action in the world for the things that I care about,” he said. “I deeply care about our natural environment, and particularly the oceans’ health. I want to show my students, by my actions not just my words, that their actions matter.”

Fund for Teachers, one of the nation’s leading organizations supporting preK-12 educators, is proud to announce its 2025 grant recipients. This summer, 357 teachers will leverage $1.625 million into experiential learning in 79 countries on 6 continents.

These educators comprise Fund for Teachers’ 25^th cohort of FFT Fellows. Since 2001, Fund for Teachers has invested $39 million in 10,225 public, private and charter school teachers from across the United States.

Fund for Teachers annually invites teachers to propose solutions that address learning gaps for themselves and their students. Teachers are trusted with the freedom to determine what and where they want to learn and, after a thorough review process, individual teachers are awarded up to $5,000 and teams of two or more up to $10,000 to pursue customized professional development during the summer.

Fund for Teachers annually invites teachers to propose solutions that address learning gaps for themselves and their students. Teachers are trusted with the freedom to determine what and where they want to learn and, after a thorough review process, individual teachers are awarded up to $5,000 and teams of two or more up to $10,000 to pursue customized professional development during the summer.

“Teachers are at the heart of shaping not only students’ academic trajectories, but often also their social and emotional well-being,” said Karen Eckhoff, Executive Director. “Fund for Teachers believes this high calling merits validation and support, which we provide by funding fellowships that ultimately inspire teachers’ enthusiasm for student engagement and extend their longevity in the profession.”

Once upon a time, an elementary school librarian became a Fund for Teachers Fellow, and her fairy tale dreams became a reality. It really did feel like a whirlwind fairy tale. Back in January of 2023, a friend of mine reached out to me about working together on a FFT grant. I was hesitant at first, because life felt very busy at the time, but after only a little convincing I agreed. However, the application’s due date was around the corner, so we got to work right away!

Hailey Wansick and I are both librarians, but she is a librarian at a high school, and I’m at an elementary school. We decided on fairy tales, because fairy tales and their lessons are for everyone. They have spanned hundreds of years, and they continue to enchant generations as retellings and fractured fairy tales are consistently being published today. After some research, we decided to focus on England, Germany, and France. We wanted to create a deeper understanding of fairy tale origins and their importance, promote excitement for and interest in reading, and enhance our library collections. We wanted to learn more about fairy tale pioneers like Madame d’Aulnoy, Charles Perrault, and the Brothers Grimm. When I got the email that said our proposal had been selected, and I was officially a Fellow, I ran to my principal’s office with tears in my eyes! 

A few months later, Hailey and I flew into France, ready to start our adventure. Over the following two weeks, we traveled from France to Germany and then to England. We walked the streets of Paris and the Gardens of Versailles. We visited towns along the Fairy Tale Route in Germany. One of our favorite stops was GRIMMWELT Kassel in Kassel, Germany. GRIMMWELT Kassel is a Brothers Grimm museum. We learned so much about the Brothers Grimm, their inspirations, and their life works. Our last stop was England. Before the trip, I had been in contact with the University of Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries as well as the British Library. We were able to go through the process of acquiring library cards and gained access to their special collections. Being able to see and touch rare fairy tale books was this librarian’s dream come true!  My fellowship made me realize I have so much more to learn about fairy tales! I still feel this way. There is such a rich and extensive history surrounding fairy tales. 
After I got back home it was time to work on bringing the magic to my students. Fairy Tale Week was born. I collaborated with my specials team on making Fairy Tale Week a reality. Students would have fairy tale-themed lessons in all of their specials classes: music, PE, art, STEM, and library. We would have a dress-up day on the Friday of that week, because who doesn’t want to dress up like a fairy tale character or creature? In November 2023 we had our first Fairy Tale Week, and it was a magical success. Students drew castles, dragons, and king and queen portraits. They played fairy tale games, and created their own fractured fairy tales. They participated in a musical storytelling and a Disney sing-a-long. They also competed in fairy tale STEM-related challenges.

The week had been like a dream, but as I read stories to all of my classes that week, I realized many of my students were unfamiliar with the original fairy tales. To address this gap, this year I spent more time reading classic fairy tales to all of my students in preparation for Fairy Tale Week. Our second annual Fairy Tale Week was in January 2025, and it was once again filled with fairy tale-themed lessons in all of the specials classes. Fairy Tale Friday was especially fun! Classes gathered in the gym for enrichment during specials, where they heard the story of Rumplestiltskin, played a kingdom-defending game, and showed off their wonderful costumes. Both Fairy Tale Weeks wouldn’t have been as magical without my team. With my whole team on board, we were able to create a special week for all of our students! Recently, I have had teachers express a desire to have additional grades collaborate with us in the future. It will be interesting to see how Fairy Tale Week evolves. 

I’m so grateful to have been awarded this grant and to be able to call myself a Fund for Teachers Fellow. This experience has created in me a lifelong interest in fairy tales and a desire to share them with my students. I was able to present, along with Hailey Wansick, about our fellowship at the 2024 Oklahoma Library Association conference as well as during an Oklahoma School Librarians (OKSL) Learning Module over the summer. It was an honor to share with others about this special professional development opportunity and encourage them to apply! People often ask me what my favorite fairy tale is, and I have such a difficult time answering this question, because I know I have so many more fairy tales to read and discover! However, if I have to choose, Little Red Riding Hood is a forever favorite. National Tell a Fairy Tale Day is on February 26th, and I encourage everyone to take this opportunity to share with others a tale as old as time! 

The town of Roseburg, Oregon has a few notable distinctions – the subject of the Johnny Cash song “Lumberjack” and home to a pack of feral angora goats that predicted weather in the 1980s – but a diverse demographic is not among them. The county seat is 91% white and the students at Roseburg High School mirror that statistic. In this homogeneous milieu, social studies teacher (and Roseburg native) Ashley Painter was tasked with crafting Music History and Native American Studies courses, she used Fund for Teachers to orchestrate it. 

“My $5,000 grant funded a road-trip focusing on historic sites in America’s South and Midwest that highlight Civil Rights, Native American, and musical history,” said Ashley. “While my motivation for this fellowship came from a passionate and emotional appreciation for these cultures and historical content areas, there are also several new standards in Oregon that this project helped several courses meet.” 

On the road, she toured the Greenwood Rising Museum & Black Wall Street History Center in Tulsa when documenting country music. She walked around Whitney Plantation and Congo Square while seeking out jazz history in New Orleans.

She crossed the Alabama River on the Edmund Pettus Bridge and toured the National Memorial for Peace and Justice. She stopped at the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and Medgar Evers’ home while following the Mississippi Blues Trail and visited the Delta Blues Museum and the legendary Crossroads in Clarksdale, Mississippi.

In Georgia, she sat at a lunch counter sit-in simulator at Atlanta’s Museum for Civil and Human Rights when researching the roots of rock and roll. And in Tennessee, she stood reverently outside the Lorraine Hotel after touring the Blues Hall of Fame and Sun Records (recording studio of such icons as BB King and Elvis Presley) in Memphis before taking the stage at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and making a pilgrimage to the Woolworth’s on 5th.  

Ashley rounded out the odyssey with visits to The Museum at Bethel Woods and Max Yasgur’s Farm, the site of the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum; Detroit, the Home of Motown; and Chicago’s DuSable Black History Museum, Ida B. Wells House, Monument to the Great Northern Migration, and Chess Records. 

Artifacts and experiences gathered on her 10,000 mile/six-week journey now inform the majority of her Music History course, which focuses on US history from the mid-1800s through the 1990s and how music reflected and influenced current events of the day. So far this semester, students have been decoding spirituals. Ashley learned about Underground Railroad codes embedded in quilts and spirituals at Slave Haven in Memphis, where she sang “Swing Low Sweet Chariot” with the other visitors, and was led to a small compartment under the house where people seeking their freedom hid more than 150 years ago. 

“I aim for my emotion and experience to be funneled through my teaching to inspire my students to move beyond being knowledgeable, and to work for change in how they treat others and inspire other people to do the same, to travel and move beyond our state that so few of them have left, to find interest in other cultures and histories, and to yearn for knowledge throughout their lives,” said Ashley. “I believe my example of being a life-long learner, an empathetic change-seeker, and a risk-taker through this fellowship encourages my students to do the same throughout their lives, as well.” 

Three years ago, Ariana Sanders (Cincinnati) used a $5,000 Fund for Teachers grant to participate in the Witness Tree Institute’s immersive educator experience in Ghana, where she explored the impact of colonization, as well as how Africans protect their natural resources. Her goal was to inform the development of learning objectives and course modules for Ethnic Studies to be offered not just at her school, Wyoming High School, but to ALL of Ohio’s high school teachers. 

“I cannot count the ways in which this fellowship was an influential time for me,” said Ariana. “It felt like an inspired experience literally from the second the plane landed — I felt more connected to my roots as a biracial person. The Witness Tree Program really allowed me to go into areas where it is NOT touristy, talk to many professors, participate in cultural activities (food, dancing, games, etc.) It is hard to put into words what that means or how much I see that impacting my soft skills — understanding others, appreciating differences…we all clearly need more of that!” 

_{Caption: Standing in Slave River, where captured men, women and children slaves bathed for the last time before they went to the auction; Ariana’s conference nametag and presentation session.}

That connection and cultural immersion informed learning standards and curriculum for a new official course offering in the Ohio Social Studies program called Religion, Gender, and Ethnic Studies, which Ariana presented at the National Council of Social Studies’ national conference. 

Additionally, Ariana sits on the advisory board for Boston University’s Teaching Africa Teacher (TAT) Certificate Program, which supports pre-service and in-service K-12 teachers and higher education instructors interested in engaging with Africa in their classrooms. As part of this opportunity, Ariana crafted an additional curriculum titled W.E.B. DuBois & Ghana: As told through 3 primary sources – which you can access here. 

“I’ve kept up with colleagues from my fellowship in Ghana, so those relationships, as well as peers through the TAT board, give me a space to advance higher education African studies and be in touch with people who are also working to ensure Africa is represented in more social studies classes. I feel like I am the biggest cheerleader for Fund for Teachers.” 

W.E.B. DuBois said, “It is the trained, living human soul, cultivated and strengthened by long study and thought, that breathes the real breath of life into boys and girls and makes them human, whether they be black or white, Greek, Russian or American.” He would be proud of the impact Ariana is making, as are we.