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Finding Her Roots

Last summer, Thuy Nguyen and teammate Thu-Hang Tran-Peou (Mather Elementary School – Dorchester, MA) used a $10,000 Fund for Teachers grant to navigate across Vietnam’s three regions—Ha Noi in the North, Hoi An and Hue in the Central, and Ho Chi Minh City in the South — to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Saigon’s fall….

Reflections on Our Founding

Cassidy Swinney (Jackson Academy – Jackson, MS) is currently on her fellowship studying American Transcendentalism in Concord and Boston–– Walden Pond, Emerson House, Thoreau archives, historical societies. This fall she plans to redesign an American Literature curriculum connecting Thoreau’s civil disobedience and Transcendentalist philosophy to modern social justice activism through primary sources, photographs, and authentic…

Help Shape the Future of FFT: Apply for the Educator Advisory Council

At Fund for Teachers, we believe teachers know best what they—and their students—need to succeed. We also believe that teachers are uniquely positioned to help us build stronger programs, deepen our impact, and better support educators across the country. That’s why we created the Educator Advisory Council (EAC), and why we’re inviting current classroom teachers…

‘Follow the Learning’ Fellows Named

May 28, 2026 — Dottie Engler ‘Follow the Learning Fellowship’ 2026 Recipients NamedJennifer Li and Amanda Savage, Henderson K-12 Inclusion School, Boston Public Schools Each year, Fund for Teachers names its “Follow the Learning” Fellow(s) in honor of longtime Board member and advocate Dottie Engler. Throughout her distinguished career, Dottie served as Director of Special…

Science Super Stars

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…

Talk About a Revolution

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…

History in Color

The Fellow team of Rayna Walters, Garrett Griffin and Kurt Zimmerman (New Haven, CT) used a $10,000 Fund for Teachers grant to deepen their scholarship and student conversations about the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. But as they shared in this NPR interview, the slave trade is only a facet of Black history, not its genesis. And…

Celebrating Our Fellows

SPRING 2026 UPDATE Spring ushers in a season of recognition for educators, which gives us the opportunity to do a little humble bragging by saying “We knew them first.” Join us in celebrating these FFT Fellows and, please, let us know about exciting updates in your careers and classrooms!

Ramadan Mubarak

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…

So That Others May Learn

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…

Reaching Out to Rural Teachers

After 25 years of investing in educators—totaling $39 million in fellowships—one thing has become clear: Our grant recipients are our strongest ambassadors. When a teacher encourages a fellow teacher to apply, it just hits differently. This holds especially true for our Rural Teacher initiative*. Inspired by our recent work to expand awareness of Fund for…

Commonalities Among Indigenous Cultures

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…

Postcard from Japan

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…

Looking Back to Move Forward

Students of Washington D.C.’s Dunbar High School walk in the footsteps of trailblazers such as the first Black graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, the first Black U.S. Senator elected by a popular vote, and the head academic researcher on Brown v. The Board of Education. Established in 1870 as the Preparatory High School for Colored…

Get to Know Us!

Who are the 354 teachers awarded 2025 Fund for Teachers grants? This infographic provides a snapshot. You can learn more about this 25th cohort of FFT Fellows here and don’t forget to follow their learning on our Facebook and Instagram pages!

Embracing, Not Erasing, Vietnamese Heritage

“I remember setting foot on my first Boston snow in February 1992,” said FFT Fellow Thu-Hang Tran-Peou describing her arrival from Vietnam as a young girl. “It was my first encounter with tuyết (snow)—a word I had read, wrote, and pondered before but had never known. The coldness, the fragility of the white cluster melting…

The FFT Community Factor

Integral to our work is the collaboration of our community partners – foundations, nonprofits and organizations that share our commitment to teachers and their students. Through their partnership on Fellow selection, funding and local support, these valued stakeholders extend Fund for Teachers’ impact across the country in rural and urban schools. We are grateful that…

Life in Action

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…