Mentor Teachers

Jess Barrett is an English as a New Language (ENL)/ English Language Arts (ELA) teacher and the bilingual coordinator at Manhattan Bridges High School, where she first worked as a Teaching Resident in TR@TC. She loves teaching creative writing alongside critical analysis of literature to ENL students. This will be her thirteenth year teaching and her third year mentoring a Resident. When she’s not teaching and mentoring, Jess loves biking, reading, writing, cooking, and hiking on the weekends with her dog.

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC residents? 

Residents bring their ideas, expertise, questions, and personalities to the classroom, and it’s a joy to grow alongside them. There’s never been a year where I don’t learn as much as they do in the classroom! I like to share in the optimism and vision of new teachers, and I love to help them build their experience and passion as we collaborate throughout the year.

I have been a middle school ICT science teacher on the Lower East Side for the past 7 years. I loop with students in a 2yr cycle, teaching 7th grade general science the first year and 8th grade Living Environment (Regents) the second. I am also the science team leader, supporting all science teachers in our school community. I really love learning through exploration and try to incorporate that into the classroom learning experience as much as possible. I find joy in facilitating the afterschool hydroponics club and staying active in coaching our school’s soccer team. Otherwise, I’m usually traveling and exploring as much as possible...meeting new people and making new memories.

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents? 

 There are so many positive aspects of mentoring. The support and insight that Mentor Teachers can provide are incredibly valuable for newer educators, but there are also benefits to a mentor, the students, and a school community as a whole. Residents also bring unique experiences and current theoretical frameworks to share with classroom teachers and students. With students in mind, having another highly trained and skilled adult in the classroom only benefits them. Lastly, both of our teaching practices are improved upon through reflection and TR@TC feedback cycles.

Reginald Coleman is currently a NYC public school mathematics teacher, which he has been doing for almost 16 years. Personally, he enjoys watching movies and participating in sporting activities. 

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

He enjoys mentoring TR@TC residents because he gets to shape and cultivate future educators in a profession he is so passionate about.

I am a Humanities and Inclusion teacher at Forsyth Satellite Academy, where my focus is on building student engagement and access through increasing restorative/transformative practices, culturally responsive pedagogy, multidisciplinary project-based learning, and coaching basketball. I have found great joy in teaching classes such as Poetry, Short Stories, Journalism, Malcolm X, and Facing Ferguson: Race, Rights & Activism, where the curriculum has bridged students' lives and cultures to academic literacy and processes. I am also a writer and musician under the pen name “Taiyo Na.”

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

Mentoring TRTC residents has been a meaningful and mutually beneficial experience where residents have positively contributed to the school community and helped refine the work of teaching social justice from their own unique lived experiences.

Alia (she/her) teaches 9th and 10th grade Social Studies at the International High School at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, Queens. This school year will be Alia’s 2nd year teaching at IHS LAG, where she also served during her TR@TC Residency. Previously, Alia taught 9th and 10th grade ELA at an international high school in The Bronx for four years. 

Alia is a first-generation American and the daughter of Egyptian immigrants. She grew up in the suburbs of New York, where she was often the only Arabic-speaking student. Her experience as an ENL student and her struggles navigating two cultures inform her empathetic approach to teaching recently arrived immigrants. 

She is passionate about laughing in the classroom, embedding social-emotional practices into daily lessons, and developing culturally responsive curricula that give students the space to explore their identities. After school, you can usually find Alia reading a novel on the 6 train or cuddling with her Mini-Schnauzer Iris.

i graduated from syracuse university with a degree in literature.  i then earned master's degrees in both education and comparative literature. i am certified as both an ELA teacher and a special educator. 

i have been teaching for 14 years in an ICT setting at the same school, a title I school with about 33% of students with disabilities.  i have taught US history and ELA 9,10, and 11.

i am a co-founder and current member of a teacher leadership team called "the committee for culture and character" (CCC).  this committee acts as a voice for the teachers and discusses leadership issues at the school and areas for growth and improvement.  we work together as a decision-making body to reform and improve school policies such as grading, discipline, and curriculum.

i am also the 10th-grade team leader (all academic teachers of the grade) and the crew team leader for the 12th grade.

my hobbies include writing bios without capitalization and mentoring young teachers.

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

being a teacher is very much a part of my identity and being a mentor allows me to contribute to that community.

it feels meaningful to help another person who has the same passions and goals as i do.

it allows me to continually refine my practice and be introduced to new ideas, perspectives, and techniques. 

it is a great benefit to my school students to have another caring adult to support them.

i genuinely enjoy the collaborative process and the friendships that i have formed with former residents.

Maegan has been an NYC Department of Education Special Education teacher for seven years and has 15 years of overall experience in both public and nonprofit educational settings. This school year marks her 5th year at The Young Women’s Leadership School of East Harlem, a Title 1 public school with an excellent track record of academic and college success. She is passionate about her work because she knows firsthand how education can open doors to new opportunities as a first-generation college Latina graduate from East Harlem. She considers herself a versatile Educator that has served in multiple Special Education settings such as ICT, Self-contained, and Resource/SETSS in numerous subjects from grades 6-10. Her focus areas are building literacy skills through a blend of resource-based programs and activities and developing students’ executive functioning skills to address any barriers to their learning. Maegan is also a part-time Learning Specialist and Special Education Advocate at a nonprofit and supports families in East Harlem to get support and resources for their children with learning disabilities. In her free time, she enjoys community service, cooking, exploring the city, and spending time with her family. 

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

I enjoy mentoring TR@TC teaching residents because it is an enriching experience to equip other teachers with the skills and knowledge they need to make a lifelong impact in the lives of their future students. As an alumna of another well-known teaching fellowship in NYC where recent graduates are thrown into the classroom as teachers, I know far too well how this lack of preparation or “sink or swim” culture can negatively impact students’ learning and teachers’ ability to sustain a teaching career without burnout. I want to support my residents with pedagogical skills that will lead them to the best results and practical skills to help them grow in confidence as a teacher and flourish as a professional long-term.

Vincent Pham is a humanities teacher at International High School at Prospect Heights, where he has taught 11th grade Looking for an Argument, 11th grade US History, and 12th grade US Government and Economics to recently arrived immigrant students. As the son of Vietnamese refugees escaping from the consequences of American imperialism, Vincent grew up navigating the tensions of his family's trauma as well as adapting to the "hidden curriculum" of the American public education system. Through transformative, joyful relationships with educators, Vincent obtained opportunities he could never have imagined, such as internships and fellowships to study abroad. Based on this context, Vincent wishes to support his students with their own aspirations. In his spare time, Vincent enjoys traveling (he has been to 30 countries!), YouTubing different cooking videos, playing competitive card games with his partner, and going on extremely long walks around the city.

Rosie Frascella just finished their 14th year teaching in NYC public schools.  They are a core member of the NY Collective of Radical Educators (NYCoRE), a member of the Movement of Rank and File Educators (MORE-UFT), and a member of Black Lives Matter at Schools NYC. When they are not teaching and organizing, Rosie loves to sing karaoke, dance like nobody's watching, and chill out with their fierce child, Niki Malaya.

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

Mentoring TR@TC residents helps me continue to learn and grow as an educator. My residents help me see our classroom, school, and students with a fresh perspective. My students and I benefit from the extra ideas, questions, and love that TR@TC residents bring to our community.

MS Science teacher for 12 years. Currently, teach 8th grade Science at Lower Manhattan Community Middle School. Also Head of the Science Department and in charge of everything tech. I'm a big NY sports fan, but I follow the Yankees the most. I love listening to music (big country music fan) and enjoy the occasional karaoke session.

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

This will be my 4th time being a mentor for TR@TC. Mentoring TR@TC residents has allowed me to be much more reflective about my own pedagogy as I work with them to find their voice in the classroom and learn more about their own practice.

Sunisa Nuonsy is a Lao-American refugee and teacher based in Brooklyn, NY. She has taught ELA at International High School at Prospect Heights for 8 years. She previously worked a career writing obituaries in Sacramento, CA. Sunisa holds a BA in English from Sacramento State, an MS in TESOL from LIU Brooklyn, and a Ph.D. student in Urban Education at the CUNY Graduate Center. In her leisure time, she likes to relax with fitness, cooking, and music. 

What do you like about mentoring TR@TC teaching residents?

My favorite part about mentoring TR@TC residents is the support that we both get. I graduated from my master's program through a cohort model and see how powerful it is for the residents to have that experience. I’ve also appreciated the space to connect and learn with other pedagogues at the mentor PDs.