Take Five with Katie Both: Special Education Teacher at Coonley Elementary

Take Five is a series that highlights members of the CPS community who are going above and beyond for our students. All throughout the 2024–25 school year, we will be spotlighting our amazing CPS teachers! If you know a teacher who is making a difference, nominate them to be featured here.

Meet Katie Both, the primary cluster program teacher at Coonley Elementary School in Chicago’s North Center neighborhood. An alumnus of CPS’ Belding Elementary and Muchin College Prep, she is in her seventh year as an educator and her third year at Coonley.

Ms. Both credits her interest in education to the tremendous influence and kindness of one of her own CPS teachers, Ms. Jaina Fisher, who still teaches at Belding! Ms. Both has learning disabilities that weren’t diagnosed until she was in college, and Ms. Fisher was the first teacher who took extra time to help her close the gap in her learning without making her feel singled out for not being academically on par with her peers.

Ms. Both knew from an early age that she wanted to be a teacher, but she faced a dilemma when it was time for college. She was awarded the prestigious Posse Scholarship, which was an opportunity too big to pass up. The only problem was that the school she was set to attend did not have an education program! 

Undeterred, Ms. Both joined Teach for America after graduating from college and was assigned to Chicago’s Dulles School of Excellence, where she remained for the next four years. She was drawn to Coonley by its cluster programs, which allow educators to teach the same group of students for multiple years. Ms. Both now leads a cluster classroom for children in grades K–2. 

“Ms. Both has done an incredible job since coming to Coonley,” said Principal Brennen Humphrey. “You walk into her room and know that her students are cared for and held to high expectations for learning. Her advocacy, teaching, and leadership all demonstrate her commitment to the rightful presence of students with disabilities in ALL spaces within a school."

Learn more about this exceptional teacher below!

What do you find rewarding about being a special education teacher?

Helping CPS students like my younger self. I struggled a lot when I was in school, and actually repeated first grade. Because my learning disabilities weren’t formally diagnosed until I got to college, I didn’t receive any special education services growing up. Even though I didn’t have a formal diagnosis, my teachers (like Ms. Fisher) worked hard to modify the curriculum for me and help me learn, which I am grateful for to this day. 

How do you think your own experience impacts your role as a teacher?

I definitely think my experience in school helps me connect with my students. For example, I memorized a certain number of words when I was a student, but I never truly learned phonics, which is typical for students with learning disabilities who don’t receive special education services. So, I actually learned phonics alongside my first group of students, and I think it created a bond because we were learning together. 

What has been your greatest professional accomplishment so far?

When I got to Coonley, there was no primary cluster program at the school. Cluster programs are designed for students who need a significantly modified curriculum for all main subject areas, as well as social-emotional and life skills programming, and I felt strongly that we needed this level of support in the early grades. Fortunately, in partnership with my school’s leadership, I was able to get the primary cluster program started. I’m very grateful and proud, and I’ve definitely found my niche! I know this is what I am supposed to be doing.

What are you most passionate about in your work?

I'm obsessed with language and anything to do with speech and AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) devices. My kiddos may come in with zero words, and it’s so exciting to see how much vocabulary they learn over the course of a single year. 

My students are learning how to protest, ask for help, and vocalize their needs and wants. These skills connect strongly to social-emotional learning, which has always been near and dear to me. The other day, I had a student come up to me and tell me that he was overwhelmed, and I was able to help him take a break. That was huge for him, and I was so proud!

What do you like doing when you’re not teaching?

I am very involved in Chicago’s queer community! My wonderful fiance and I also love to take our dogs to different parks around Illinois. We have a Goldendoodle named Jamie, a pit-collie named Jojo, and two cats. They’re perfect!