I’m a certified high school teacher who’s been around for a while, teaching English, History, Law, Special Education, and leading my schools in Student Success and Literacy Work. I LOVE – and I cannot stress this enough, but ABSOLUTELY LOVE education and teaching. I genuinely believe education is the most effective tool to address many of the challenges we experience and level the playing field for all families. My desire to make a positive impact however was regularly trumped by the fact that I was one person in a class of 30 and could not do everything I wanted without cloning myself. In conversation with my colleagues, I knew this was not an isolated experience – and thus in an effort to incite change, we developed Step Up Academy of Learning.

Step Up Academy began with literally ONE student many many years ago – student zero we call him! He kindled within us the idea that we can make an impact and be actors of change in a system where there are too many children and not enough support. We were empowered to step up from passive complaining and wishful thinking to develop an academy, a team and programs that center student success in ways that we know will benefit their growth and development.

Our name Step Up Academy is reflective of our belief in the Growth Mindset. This is a theory developed by Dr.Carol Dweck that can make a WORLD OF DIFFERENCE when it comes to learning and success. Here’s an image from one of our Learning Centers that perfectly illustrates the different thoughts that run through someone with a fixed vs. growth mindset.