Your SFTR Newsletter is Back! There have been a lot of exciting changes within the San Francisco Teacher Residency. In an effort to keep SFTR staff, alumni, residents, and our supporters involved and in touch with all SFTR matters, we are bringing back our quarterly newsletter. We are using this issue as an opportunity to celebrate our residents, alumni, and staff who are dedicated to teaching for excellence and equity in the beautiful city of San Francisco.

WINTER/SPRING 2015 - ISSUE NO. 5 Get to Know Your SFTR Staff // SFTR Graduates: Where Are They Now?

Words of Wisdom // Join the Conversation // From The Director’s Desk

!Q: What does teaching for excellence & equity mean to you? !A: Excellence doesn't precede equity, it follows it. So teaching for excellence means first addressing inequity wherever we see it - whether it's at the level of changing the participation structures in a classroom, creating opportunities for families who don't have the job flexibility or transportation to get to parent teacher conferences on pre-set days, or at the city and state levels, doing things like creating needs based school funding schemes.

!

Q: What does teaching for excellence & equity mean to you? !A: Teaching for excellence and equity means offering the highest caliber of learning and support for students in an effort to change hearts, minds, and lives and impact communities.

Loran Simon, Esq. Assistant Director of Recruitment, Admissions, & Community Partnerships

!

!

Jonathan Osler Director !Q: What does teaching for excellence &

equity mean to you? !A: When we prioritize students’ needs over our own comfort, we are working towards equity.

Hometown: Cambridge, MA

Currently Resides In: Oakland

Formerly Worked As: A High School Co-Principal Favorite Part of SF: The centrality of art in resistance and activism

Hometown: San Francisco

Currently Resides In: San Francisco

Formerly Worked As: Deputy Attorney General Favorite Part of SF: The Giants!!

Hometown: New York City, NY Currently Resides In: Berkeley

Formerly Worked As: Teacher & Teacher Educator Favorite Part of SF: Balance of grass, water, glass and concrete

Amy Millikan Director of Clinical Teacher Education

GET TO KNOW YOUR SFTR STAFF

Meet the 2014-2015 Residents!

Mayra Alvarado Linzy Bingcang Morgan Brunell Ashli Duncan Ebinehita Elimian Christian Flores Multiple Subjects Math Biology Multiple Subjects Multiple Subjects Multiple Subjects

Rebecca Garcia Cameron Holmes Justina Lau Ana Rosa Maldonado Maria Martinez Michael McClure Multiple Subjects Math Multiple Subjects Social Studies Math Multiple Subjects

Matthew Merrill Alma Nunez Mike Oliva Xander Piper Sonia Ramirez Anna Roberds Math Math Physics Multiple Subjects Multiple Subjects Math

Jenny Situ Adrian Tamayo Leah Thomas Tracy Truong Francesca Zambrano Biology Math Biology Multiple Subjects Biology

SFTR Graduates: Where Are They Now?

SFTR GRAD PLACEMENT !AP Gianinni

Bessie Carmichael

Bret Harte Elementary

Burton HS

BVHM K-8

Carver Elementary

Cesar Chavez Elementary

Cleveland Elementary

El Dorado Elementary

ER Taylor Elementary

Everett MS

Flynn Elementary

Francis Scott Key Elementary

Glen Park Elementary

James Lick MS

John Muir Elementary

Jose Ortega Elementary

June Jordan School for Equity

Junipero Serra Elementary

Lakeshore Elementary

Lincoln

Lincoln HS

Marshall HS

Mission HS

MLK MS

O’Connell HS

Roosevelt MS

SF Community School

SF International

Starr King Elementary

Tenderloin Elementary

Vistacion Valley MS Wallenberg HS

George Washington HS

Webster Elementary

OUR MISSION BY JONATHAN OSLER, DIRECTOR By the end of this school year, The San Francisco Teacher Residency will have prepared over 100 new teachers to serve in high-needs schools and subject areas in our community. As someone who believes deeply in the potential for our schools to be catalysts for social change, it thrills me to see and to know so many effective and

equity centered new educators. SFTR graduates are teaching in over 30 schools in San Francisco Unified, and are teaching close to 10% of the students in the district.  We are also thrilled to be able to celebrate our 87% teacher retention rate, which is significantly stronger than national and local averages.  Now in our fifth year, we have also begun realizing another important goal of

our program which is to have SFTR graduates serving as a mentor teachers for new residents. 

The SFTR Movement by the numbers 100 New teachers for SFUSD !87% Retention rate !35 Schools in SFUSD currently employ SFTR Grads

Each

pin

poin

t on

the

map

mar

ks a

sch

ool i

n SF

USD

whe

re a

t le

ast

one

SFT

R g

radu

ate

is c

urre

ntly

em

ploy

ed.

Words of Wisdom

What’s the best advice you have received as a teacher? !When you aren’t happy with the way your class is going, pick the one thing that is bothering you the most and work on that. Once you’ve tackled it, you can move on to the next dilemma. As a teacher, I can always think of a million things I want to be doing better, so it helps me to remember to focus on one goal at a time, and to embrace the notion that I’ll always be working on improving at something. I’ve been working in education for almost 20 years now, and I’m still learning, and hopefully still getting better.

Alumni Spotlight: Name: Bryan Olney !Cohort: 4

What advice would you give to current residents? “It may be tough to do at the time, but mentally thank your most challenging students this year. They will teach you so much about what students need to learn and what constitutes a safe classroom. This is a great year to go through the ringer - you have help, and you have the time to reflect and improve your practice”

Being apart of the SFTR family means joining a community of professionals who are not only dedicated to improving San Francisco’s public schools, but who are excited to help you do the same. For the first installment of “Words of Wisdom” we turn to Laura Hodder, lead resident supervisor, BTSA coach for 2nd year teachers, and an instructor for Science Curriculum & Instruction at USF.

What advice would you give to current residents? !Embrace the joy of your chosen profession. Sometimes we get bogged down with the workload, the grading, or the significant traumas that we see our students experiencing. But what an honor it is to spend every day with a group of strong, imaginative, thoughtful students. They make us laugh, smile, and ponder their perspectives; I’d make appreciating them a top priority.

Why do you believe in the teacher residency model? !When I envision the best way to learn something, I think about deliberate practice (like Michael Jordan and his 10,000 hours on the court); individualization, and deep, meaningful feedback. I think the residency model offers all of these things. Residents have so many opportunities to practice, practice, practice – with personalized feedback from cooperating teachers, supervisors, and university instructors who are intimately familiar with the resident’s classroom context. And lastly, let’s not forget the power of the cohort. When I see our residents working closely with one another, I know that we aren’t just developing strong teachers; we’re also developing a strong community committed to the children of San Francisco.

Current Position: Biology, Biotech & Physiology Teacher at Thurgood Marshall Academic High School

@sfteacherresidency@SFTRtweet facebook.com/sfteacherresidency

JOIN THE CONVERSATION, TAG YOUR PHOTOS, & STAY UP TO DATE ON ALL

SFTR NEWS!

From The Director’s Desk! Our work with teachers could not happen

without an outstanding cadre of coaches,

university partners and faculty members,

colleagues in the district and at the teachers

union, and the extraordinary SFTR staff. I

thank them for their excellent service to the students of San

Francisco.  We are also grateful to the financial partners and

foundations who support our important work.

In this edition of the SFTR newsletter, we share snippets of

the amazing things that are taking place in the classrooms where

our residents, graduates, and staff are working. Even if the SFTR

Times was 100 pages long, there still wouldn't be enough space to

capture all of the amazing things that our teachers are involved

with. So stay tuned for lots more celebrating to come in the

months ahead.

!In gratitude, Jonathan

Thank you to our partner organizations