North Central College Teach First

2024 marks 16 years of Teach First and we now have over 200 graduates of the program teaching throughout the United States.

2024 also marks 10 years of Cardinal First - NC's program for first-gen college students of any major, from their first day at NC through graduation.

We are transitioning Teach First to a new format - that of our 20+ other First-gen Academic Groups facilitated by faculty mentors and will be sunsetting the Teach First social media effective June 14.

We will continue to do posts about our Teach First alumni (including first day of school pics of teachers in their classrooms) and first-gen education majors on our North Central Cardinal First social media (Instagram ) - and we hope you'll follow us on those channels.

So proud of our 2024 Teach First Graduates! Go change the world one classroom at a time!

Last week Thursday, we celebrated and recognized our 2024 graduates at the Teach First Annual Banquet! A big thank you to all the alums and education faculty who were in attendance to celebrate with us! 🎓🎊

One week from today - the solar eclipse that won't happen again until 2044!

Hundreds of schools are closing for next month's total eclipse The eclipse will completely engulf several major cities in darkness.

Teach First participant Paige Arendt '24 from Carol Stream, IL, is student teaching a 3rd grade dual language classroom at Hermes Elementary school in East Aurora School District 131. Ms. Arendt is majoring in elementary education and will graduate in May!

Teach First Participant Thomas Loeb '24 from Naperville, IL, is student teaching music classes at Oswego East High School in School District 308. Mr. Loeb is an instrumental music education major and will graduate in May!

Teach First participant Heidi Gomez '24, from Warrenville, IL, is student teaching a 3rd grade classroom at Fearn Elementary School in West Aurora School District 129. Ms. Gomez is an elementary education major with a minor in ELL and she will graduate in May!

It's finally Friday! It's always great seeing our Teach First participants and Dunham Scholars for their semesterly breakout meetings that took place today and yesterday. Thank you to Dr. Lindsay Wexler for her words of encouragement and helpful information to keep our first-gen education majors on track.

So excited to celebrate our 2024 graduates commencement weekend! Save the date for our Cardinal First Graduation Recognition & Pinning Ceremony on Friday, May 3 from 4:30-5:30pm. Families invited. Details to follow.

Celebrating our December 2023 Teach First graduates.

December 2023 Graduate Spotlight: 🎓
Dominika Szczepaniak earned her bachelor's degree with majors in Chinese and Secondary Education. 👏 For Spring 2024, she will be working as a substitute teacher with Naperville Community Unit School District 203 and looking for a full-time Mandarin Chinese and ELL teaching position for 2024-25. Congrats Dominika! 🎈

Celebrating our December 2023 Teach First graduates this week!

December 2023 Graduate Spotlight: Gurveen Lally completed her bachelor's degree with a major in elementary education. She's
accepted a position as a flexible support teacher at Campanelli Elementary School in Schaumburg. Congrats Gurveen!

As many schools head into winter break this week, a special "Thank you!" to all the teachers who have worked so hard in 2023. We hope you use the time off to rest & recharge for 2024! 🔋

Yesterday was the October Teach First breakout meeting and we were so excited to have Dr. Lindsay Wexler, faculty mentor for Teach First, join us at the meeting! We enjoyed the cozy, rainy fall day with apples with caramel and peanut butter. You know what they say about an apple a day...

Teach First 2023-24 Leadership Team Spotlight: Mia Giometti '26 is a History & Secondary Education Major from Addison, IL. She will hold the position of Communications Chair - responsible for monthly meting reminder emails and meeting attendance.
A reason why she decided to become a teacher is because it is something she has always been passionate about. She says it is very rewarding when she sees the students' growth througout the year.

Treated our fall student teachers to Smoothie King! It was so great to catch up and check in with Gurveen Lally '23 (Elementary Education) and Dominika Szczepaniak '23 (Chinese & Secondary Education). We look forward to celebrating your graduation this coming December.

Teach First 2023-24 Leadership Team Spotlight: Juan Castro '24 is a History/Social Science & Secondary Education major from DeKalb, IL. He will hold the position of Community Service Chair - planning and communicating monthly volunteer opportunities with DuPage PADS.
A reason why he decided to become a teacher is because he wants to be a role model for low-income students and English learners. He also believes that it is important for students to become excited when asking questions about society's past, in hopes that they leave his classroom more civically engaged each day.

Teach First 2023-24 Leadership Team Spotlight: Nicole Perez '24 is an Elementary Education Major from Hoffman Estates, IL. She will hold the position of Development Chair - creating professional and team building development activities.
A reason why she decided to become a teacher is because she enjoys working with kids and with her skills of being bilingual, she would like to provide them a safe place. She also enjoys making a difference inside and outside the classroom with her students.

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Hannah Estoll '21 is a 1st grade teacher in Indian Prairie School District 204. Her advice for the beginning of the school year is to ask for help when yo need it and don't stop until you get the help that you need.
Good luck with the school year!

A lovely day for the first Teach First meeting of the year! We were so excited to welcome back all of our participants and gather for fellowship Bingo, lunch, and program updates.

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Megan Biehl '21 is a 2nd grade teacher in Woodridge School Distrcit 68. Her advice for the beginning of the school year is to take time to build positive relationships and make school fun, it helps make the learning more effective.
Good luck with the school year! CelebrateFirstgen

Teach First alum on his first day of school! Mike Schwartz '12 is an Elementary Band Director in Deerfield Public Schools District 109. His advice for the beginning of school is to prioritize relationships a the start of the year. "Us teachers get swamped with so many things at the beginning of the year, but taking the time to develop relationships will be so beneficial for both you and your students long-term."
Good luck with the school year!

Teach First participant Gurveen Lally '23, from Schaumberg, IL, is student teaching a 3rd grade class at Campanelli Elementary School in School District 54. Ms. Lally is an elementary education major and will graduate this December!

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Julia DeGuzman '23 is a 1st grade teacher in Joliet School District 88. Her advice for the beginning of the school year is to remember to have fun and don't be scared to ask questions.
Good luck with the school year!

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Morgan (Rowe'13) Brown is a K-4 STEM teacher in Ottawa Elementary School District 141. Her advice for the beginning of the school year is to take the time to teach procedures. It will pay off in the long run.
Good luck with school this year!

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Amy Ayyad '22 is a 2nd grade teacher in Naperville School District 203. Her advice for the beginning of the school year is to plan for the unexpected and don't stress too much if things don't go the way you plan. Lean to just live in the moment with your students, be flexible and don't forget to have fun!
Good luck with school this year!

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Emily Padilla '10 is a K-5 EL teacher in Naperville School District 203. Her advice for the start of the school year is to give yourself grace and make time for self-care.
Good luck with school this year!

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Ashley (Larak '15) Dunlap is a 5th grade teacher at Sterling School District 5. Her advice for the beginning of school would be making sure to take the time to set routines that have clear guidance, expectations, and to have the students do lots of practice with routines.
Good like with school this year!

Teach First alumna on her first day of school! Lexi Pagel '22 is a 2nd grade teacher in St. Charles School District 303. Her advice for the beginning of the school year is to give yourself grace transitioning back into a routine, and don't forget to do what makes you happy.
Good luck with school this year!

Teach First alumnai on her first day of school! Ashlyn Shrepfer '12 (L) is a Curriculum Coordinator for the Addison School District 4. Good luck with school this year!

Congratulations to Faith Brouwer '23 (History & Social Studies) on your recent graduation! Ms. Brouwer has accepted a teaching position as a Social Studies teacher at Proviso East High School.