Instruction at MTR revolves around a set of "maturities," or skills, attributes, and understandings that MTR expects all of its teachers to demonstrate effectiveness in. The very first maturity, out of the nearly 60, is "Students as Image Bearers"; clearly, it is foundational to what...
Students in Ms. Paredes' classroom “Oh, pobrecita Ely, she doesn’t understand you.” Her classmates would tell me since day one. She would look up at me with her big, brown eyes and nod. “Ely has to go to the bathroom!” Her classmates would scream out loud...
Madeleine Gibson (Class of 2020) received this note from her mentor, Rory Hatchel (Class of 2014) on the first day of her lead teach in their 11th grade English classroom at Kingsbury High School. Many positive experiences have already defined my MTR experience thus far, but...
Rebekah Kennedy's residency placement classroom As I take a step back to reflect on the past four months, I am reminded of why I made the move to Memphis, Tennessee to join MTR. In Acts 20:24 Paul states, “But I do not account my life of...
Olivia (far left) and her friends at a Levitt Shell concert shortly after move-in. This summer, I did something radical. I moved from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, where I have lived all 22 years of my life (except during my college years), to Memphis, Tennessee. I moved to...
Welcome back. Since May 2015, we’ve experienced transforming growth. We aren’t residents anymore. We are butt-kicking teachers who have completed our commitment to the Memphis Teacher Residency seeking to provide students with equitable education independent of their ZIP code, just like we began 4 years...
Thank you for nominating me to do this! I appreciate your trust in me, it really means a lot! When I was told I had to do this speech, I immediately googled “how do I write a commencement speech” and all sources told me to...
It’s May 13, 2018, and I’m walking across a stage, receiving my Bachelor of Science in History Education. I’m thrilled to be finished with college, to have met this massive accomplishment of graduating with a bachelor’s degree. But while the rest of my friends who...
I still remember the first lesson plan I ever wrote. I was coming to the Memphis Teacher Residency selection weekend, planning to teach an eighth grade grammar mini lesson on different types of sentences. I knew nothing. I had no background in education, had...
In last week’s Black History Month commentary by Michael Peterson II, the first line referenced the monumental Supreme Court case of Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1897) which created what would become known as the “separate but equal” doctrine. This ill-informed case laid the devastating foundation of...
