2026 · Urban Education · with N. Shaabneh et al.

“Kindred in Understanding”

Why culturally sustaining relationships — not generic mentorship — are what help teachers of color get through the hardest stretches of the job.

  • Teachers of color navigating racially hostile moments lean on relationships that affirm their full identity, not just professional advice.
  • Generic "buddy" mentoring programs often miss what's actually needed.
  • Schools can build "kindred" relationships intentionally — it doesn't have to happen by accident.
Episode coming soon
Read the paper →
2024 · Journal of Family Diversity in Education · with S. Coba-Rodriguez & A. Vaughan

“You Don't Need the Words to Be in the Book”

How families in a bilingual literacy program build a sense of ownership over reading — even when they're not yet reading the words themselves.

  • Looking at pictures, telling stories, and talking about a book all count as literacy practices.
  • Bilingual families build "textual agency" through shared experience, not just decoding skills.
  • Family literacy programs work best when they make room for many ways of engaging with a text.
Episode coming soon
Read the paper →
2024 · Teachers College Record · with L. Mawhinney

From a Spark, a Mighty Flame

How small, early relationships — "germinal networks" — help teachers of color become organizers for racial justice, both inside and outside their schools.

  • One mentor or peer early on can be the seed of a whole activist network later.
  • Teachers of color often build change-making networks outside their school building first.
  • Schools that want to retain teachers of color should pay attention to these outside networks, not compete with them.
Episode coming soon
Read the paper →
2023 · Equity & Excellence in Education · with L. Mawhinney

“A Specific Kind of Unicorn-y Teacher”

How being part of activist teacher networks shapes the professional identity of teachers of color — and why they're often seen by colleagues as exceptional rather than representative.

  • Teacher activist networks give teachers of color language for an identity their schools don't always recognize.
  • Being called "exceptional" can be isolating, not just flattering.
  • Networks outside formal school structures often do the identity-affirming work schools don't.
Episode coming soon
Read the paper →
2023 · Harvard Education Press · Book

Critical Network Literacy

A field guide for designing professional development that treats relationships — not just content — as the thing being taught.

  • Most PD focuses on what teachers should know. This book focuses on who they should know.
  • "Critical network literacy" means understanding power, not just connection — some networks help, some quietly exclude.
  • Comes with practical design tools any PD leader can use right away.
Episode coming soon
Find the book →
2011 · Teachers College Press · Book

The Networked Teacher

The book that started it all: how new teachers build the social networks that determine whether they stay in the profession.

  • New teachers who build strong support networks early are far more likely to stay in teaching.
  • Schools can't always provide that support — but they can stop blocking it.
  • Introduced the original "Networked Teacher" framework still used in PD design today.
Episode coming soon
Find the book →

New episodes are on the way

This library is growing — check back soon, or sign up below to get notified when new episodes and summaries are published.

Get notified