TLAC’s Advocacy Partnerships: Lessons from our 2026 Panel Discussion

by Brittany Hargrove, Director of Advocacy and Partnerships at Teach Like a Champion

In the month of June, Teach Like a Champion hosted an Advocacy Partner Panel, a convening of all our advocacy partners to engage in reflection, celebration of impact, and sharing of ideas (To learn more about our advocacy partnerships check out our previous posts here and here). The purpose was simple: to pull our partners close and learn from their experiences, so we can better anticipate and respond to the challenges they, and other organizations doing this necessary work, face in their support of new and novice teachers. The conversation was centered on a question we’re always grappling with, “How can we best support new and novice teachers and leaders so they can thrive in the profession, positively impacting their school communities for as long as possible?”

At Teach Like a Champion, we believe that any contemplation of a more just and prosperous society requires our schools to be radically better. We believe that every child, no matter where they live or what circumstances they must navigate, deserves exceptional teaching so they can realistically pursue their hopes, aspirations, and dreams. This is why we study teaching – to codify replicable teaching techniques and share them with as many educators as possible so more classrooms, in more communities, become places where children can reach their potential and thrive.

Over the past few years, our partnerships team has been working alongside and learning from organizations, who are leveraging limited resources to inspire more effective teaching by nurturing, training, and helping advance the careers of exceptional educators around the world. These partnerships have been part of our team’s commitment to advocating for, supporting, and learning from organizations that ensure new and novice educators are positioned to impact and thrive in the school communities they serve. Our advocacy partners have been an incredible resource in helping us understand the realities and needs of educators entering the field, especially those serving communities that have been historically under-served. You can learn a bit more about each of these wonderful organizations below, but we wanted to share a few important insights we learned when we brought these amazing leaders together to solicit their feedback and seek their counsel on some pressing questions we hoped they could help us begin to answer.

Here are the key insights we gathered from how our advocacy partners are supporting new and novice teachers and leaders:

1. Apprenticeships Accelerate Development: Apprenticeships accelerate development when novice teachers are paired with expert practitioners, provided regular observation/feedback cycles, and have clearly defined goals for their growth.
2. Relational and Adaptive Skills are Critical: Relational and adaptive skills are critical to building classrooms where students feel seen, safe, and valued.
3. Nurturing and Supportive Conditions Must Be Intentionally Shaped: Nurturing and supportive conditions protect and sustain teachers when built with intention.

Apprenticeships Accelerate Development 

We asked panelists to name the most pressing problem facing new and novice teachers and school leaders that need to flourish. Their answers were energizing, the educators they work with are deeply committed, and the opportunity is to match that commitment with deliberate apprenticeship into the actual moves, routines, and decisions that make classrooms and school campuses thrive. Raymie Fernandez from the National Fellowship for Black and Latino Male Educators framed the goal beautifully as closing the gap between aspiration and apprenticeship. Teachers and leaders flourish when they get models, timely feedback, and real chances to practice the work.

Our partners at Jamaica Peace Corps, Susan Walden and Kishelle Williamson, shared how they are creating ongoing cycles of coaching and feedback so that support continues well past a workshop or professional development. Dr. Heather Cunningham at Chatham University is cultivating one the most important instincts a teacher can have: leading with relationships. Many new secondary teachers arrive loving their content, and Chatham helps them discover that the work begins with loving the kids, anchoring senior education majors’ capstone research in relationship building so they practice connecting with students and reflect on what works. 

Relational and Adaptive Skills are Critical

When we asked which skills are becoming most essential, content knowledge was a given, and panelists were excited to talk about everything that brings it to life. S. Neal Currie, founder of Teach Brother Teach,  described teaching as a fundamentally human endeavor, where the highest leverage skills are relationship building, cultural responsiveness, reflection, and helping students think critically. Students learn best, he reminded us, when they feel seen, valued, and connected. 

Our Jamaica Peace Corps partners described a similar blend for today’s classrooms: digital literacy, social emotional skills, student centered methods, and the habit of belonging to a community of practice where teachers learn from one another. Dr. Cunningham (Chatham University) offered a reframe we loved, shifting from the term classroom management to creating a productive classroom environment. It is a move toward building the kind of predictable, trusting space where students buy in because they know their teacher believes in their success. 

Nurturing and Supportive Conditions Must Be Intentionally Shaped

When the conversation turned to keeping educators well, panelists shared an empowering insight: the conditions that protect and sustain teachers are things we can intentionally build. Raymie Fernandez from the National Fellowship for Black and Latino Male Educators named five that resonated across the virtual room: clarity of priorities, embedded collaboration, strong adult systems, belonging paired with accountability, and proximity to see their own impact. His aspiration, beautifully put, is to help educators move from survival to disciplined sustainability, doing the work they love, over time. 

Gabrielle Mahesh and Codi Canton from Shanti Bhavan shared that they are working toward a shared instructional language so that teachers can focus their energy with clear, consistent expectations. Gabby and Codi also named the power of showcasing internal video in showing teachers their growth to combat burnout. Teachers having an opportunity to see their own students and colleagues apply techniques in their own community has been immensely powerful and inspiring. S. Neal Currie reminded us that alongside strong structures like fair compensation and manageable workloads, the everyday culture of an organization is often what helps educators thrive: relationships, belonging, a genuine sense of purpose, and recognition that is authentic, specific, and timely. Small sincere appreciation, he noted, often means even more than a formal reward. 

Key Takeaways for Our Learning

Panels like this one are a gift, and not only because of what gets said. They remind us why we do this advocacy partnership work in the first place. We believe that every child, no matter where they live or what they’ve been handed in life, deserves teaching that is not simply good, but radically better.

Here are a few commitments we’re carrying with us into the next school year:

1. Deepening our focus on relational and adaptive skills. We’ll continue studying the moments of connection and responsiveness we notice in classroom video.
2. Expanding apprenticeship opportunities. We’re kicking another school year with our wonderful cohort of TLAC Fellows here, and we’re excited to launch a new cohort experience for special educators and educators who work with multilingual learners called Inclusive Educators Cohort (announcement coming soon!),  a space to learn and grow together, and to uplift and honor the work they’re already doing.
3. Continuing to host panels like this one, so we can keep learning directly from the educators doing this work every day.

To everyone who shared their wisdom with us, thank you. We came in hoping to learn from your expertise, and we left inspired, with a clearer picture of the work ahead and a deep sense of gratitude for the partners we get to do it alongside.

Interested in learning more about our advocacy work or becoming a partner? Please reach out to us using this link.