Chicago Public Schools Educators Return to School After Summer Learning, Adventures and Fun

CHICAGO – Chicago Public Schools (CPS) educators returned to school earlier this week in preparation for the first day of classes on August 26. While many teachers may ask students the quintessential first-day-query `what did you do over summer vacation?’ students might want to pose that same question to their teachers and principals. The answer varies but often reflects educators’ quest for learning and summer experiences, from U.S. adventures to traveling as far as Ghana, Guatemala, and other countries to develop or hone their multicultural skills and competencies to enhance student learning. Many CPS educators were awarded fellowships, took on meaningful physical challenges, persisted with their educational goals, or even tricky home improvement projects this summer.

“We want to thank our school leaders, educators and staff for all of their hard work before a single student steps foot in a classroom,” said CPS CEO Pedro Martinez. “Their extraordinary efforts and stance make a huge impact on the dreams, visions, and daily experiences of students across the District.”

Principals, teachers and support staff will be applying what they learned and experienced this summer in formal and informal settings with colleagues and students. Some experiences are as follows:

Adventures abroad:
New Field Primary School Educator Angela Papa received a Fund for Teachers Grant to spend a month in San Pedro La Laguna, Guatemala, a small town known for its Spanish language schools and hiking trails near the popular tourist destination of Lake Atitlán. During the week, Papa’s mornings were spent volunteering at a nonprofit organization, Somos Hijos del Lago, and her afternoons were spent attending Spanish class.

“It was such a beautiful experience, living in a small town where everyone knows each other and becoming accustomed to another pace of life,” said Papa. “It was also extraordinary to volunteer at a center for children with disabilities and partner with the public schools as well, teaching introductory lessons on disability and inclusion.”

Papa, the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) Lead at New Field, stayed with a couple and their three friendly adult children, practicing her Spanish with them and even learning a few new vegetarian dishes. Papa was also able to enjoy several cultural events, workshops, and explored some of the picturesque trails.

Adventures Stateside:
Avalon Park Elementary School Principal Takeshi White-James achieved a healthy balance during her summer. She spent time with school colleagues at the UnboundEd Leadership Institute Convention in Denver where they worked on continuing student achievement gains in reading and math.

“One of the main things our group learned at the convention was that CPS is far ahead of other districts in terms of structures, systems, and protocols,” said White-James. “We’ve surpassed some other districts in academic gains in reading and math. This progress is due to CPS’s commitment to staying ahead of the curve and to Avalon Park. Avalon Park’s proactive approach in developing school-wide systems and structures, including tiered student tasks aligned with rigorous curriculum standards, ensures that the students continue to excel and achieve great heights.”

Also, perhaps most importantly, White-James crossed an important task off her personal bucket list. She recreated family photos with her son, Kyle, a University of Chicago student, including some in New York City.

“I recreated all the pictures with my son from when he was eight years old,” said White-James. “Now that he’s 21, we were able to revisit all the places we took him to recreate the photos. It was the highlight of our trip.”

Fellowship Recipients:
Dozens of CPS educators apply for and and are awarded fellowships each year and that included Disney II Magnet School History Teacher Eli Pupovac who spent a part of his summer in our nation’s Capitol participating in the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation’s summer programing at Georgetown University. Pupovac, a CPS teacher since 2014, previously applied for the highly-selective fellowship several times, finally breaking through.

The fellowship provides recipients a scholarship to earn a master’s degree in U.S. History.

“The fellowship is one of the greatest professional experiences I’ve ever had. I was able to dig deep into a variety of topics,” said Pupovac.“Now I get to take courses on various topics in U.S. History that I want to take, which I’m excited about.”

Pupovac is particularly interested in the Trial of the Chicago Seven, which arose from the protests in Chicago during the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

“I have a family member whose mother was a juror in the trial of the Chicago Seven. Her mother wrote a journal during the trial and it was found after her death,” said Pupovac. “I have this great contact, and I’m going to write something about it.”

Meanwhile, Jamieson Elementary School Kindergarten Teacher Virginia Valdez earned a week-long opportunity to study and visit the White House, an honor that her students predicted surely meant a meeting with the president.

“I had to tell them probably not,” Valdez said. “Nevertheless, they’re going to be excited that I was there.”

Valdez, who has taught kindergarten at Jamieson for 15 years, is returning with lessons for both her current kindergarten class and the first graders who cheered her on last year when she learned she earned the week-long immersive experience through the White House Historical Association. The experience will enhance her existing references and lessons on the White House and hopefully make this iconic American symbol more real and relatable to her young scholars. The only kindergarten teacher in the nation to participate in the competitive program, Valdez said her summer experience also reflects the mindset of so many of her fellow teachers.

“We are also learners,” Valdez said. “We are students. We should continue to grow with our knowledge in our areas of interest. In my case, it was the White House.”

Thalia Moore, a middle school math teacher at Michael Faraday School, spent the summer doing what she does best, teaching. Moore spent the summer chaperoning a group of teenagers on a camping trip to Saratoga, Wyoming for a nonprofit organization.  Moore spent the summer exploring the area and helping teens try new things like zip lining, water rafting, stargazing, horseback riding, and tasting new foods - all amid spectacular views.

“There were many lessons learned on this adventure but one that I will always keep close to me is that kids are listening even when it seems they are not. I would have numerous chats with my group before they tried something new and many times I felt as if I was talking to myself,” Moore said. “It wasn’t until I read their reflections at the end that I realized they were listening. I’m empowered and excited for my new group of students at Michael Faraday as we prepare for the start of a new school year.“

Closer to Home:
Ashley Amidei, a physics and chemistry teacher at Bronzeville Scholastic Institute High School, spent her summer preparing for the new school year. Amidei participated in a Quantum Science Academy Program at the University of Chicago, where she worked with a research group that uses spectroscopy, or the absorption and emission of light and other radiation, to observe the behavior of molecules. These spectroscopies use ultrafast lasers that excite the electrons to different energy states within the molecules.

“It was incredible to work in a research lab at this prestigious university with researchers exploring quantum science with these spectacular lasers,” Amidei said. “I’m excited to share what I’ve learned with my students. It’s crucial to expose students to quantum science, which can provide them with many incredible opportunities.”

Amidei will use her lab work and research to expose her eleventh-grade physics classes to quantum science and make her curriculum available to other teachers.

Jodi Weiss, a teacher and reading specialist at Sullivan High School, decided the time had come to tackle her kitchen cabinets with her daughter Bri.

“I tried to show my daughter that we can do anything when we put our minds to it. There are many steps to the process and we had to be methodical about it, from picking the paint to taping everything off to taking off the cabinets,” said the wannabe home improvement guru.” It was fun and satisfying to complete this together.”

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About Chicago Public Schools (CPS)

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is dedicated to providing a high-quality education to all students, beginning with the District’s free full-day preschool programming for four-year-old scholars and continuing through neighborhood, magnet and selective-enrollment elementary schools that provide a rigorous K-8 education with schools that specialize in the fine arts, world language and culture, dual language, STEM, International Baccalaureate (IB), classical programs, and more. The rising District-wide freshmen-on-track and high school graduation rates reflect the hard work of the CPS community, including families, staff, and students across 635 schools. CPS celebrates the diversity of its more than 322,000 students who cite 182 home languages. Learn more about CPS at www.cps.edu and connect with CPS on Facebook,X , Instagram, and LinkedIn.