Member Directory

Halle Quezada Rasmussen teaches bilingual third-graders in Chicago Public Schools. She lives in Chicago's West Ridge neighborhood with her husband and two children.

Lisa Thyer teaches English at Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in Palos Hills, Illinois. She is a 2020-2021 Teach Plus Illinois Policy Fellow.

Elizabeth Lund is a freelance writer and radical educator based in the Chicago area. She is the team lead at Tallgrass Sudbury School in Riverside, IL, and advocates for self-directed education and youth rights.

Dr. Carlos Azcoitia, professor emeritus in educational leadership at National Louis University, has been a teacher, principal, network chief and deputy chief of education in Chicago Public Schools. He also served as a member of the Chicago Board of Education. Dr. Azcoitia left central office to found a comprehensive community school in Chicago's Little Village neighborhood, Spry Elementary/Spry Community Links High School. Spry is the first Chicago school to house preK through 12th grade programming in one building.

Krissy has served schools in multiple Chicago neighborhoods over the past 15 years as a teacher, literacy coach and Resident Principal and now Principal. As an instructional leader serving culturally and linguistically diverse student populations, she became a leader in creating curriculum and assessments aligned to the Common Core State Standards at the district level.As a literacy coach, she served a pivotal role in increasing student achievement by coaching teachers, implementing balanced literacy, and working with families to create a culture of high expectations and a love of reading and learning. Krissy has created strong leadership teams at two schools that used data to develop and monitor student progress, resulting in outstanding student growth and more invested staff. She also developed literacy outreach programs at multiple schools to support and invest families in their children’s education. Krissy holds a B.A. in Journalism from Indiana University, a M.A. in Teaching fromDominican University, a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction from National Louis University and she earned her school leadership licensure from DePaul University. Krissy achieved National Board Certification in 2009. Now in her sixth year as principal of Christopher House Elementary School, Krissy is proud to be leading the development of an outstanding whole-child focused school that prepares children for success and happiness in life.

Mo Buti offers her decades of experience in educational advocacy and instructional expertise to people with autism and their families. After a long career as a special education administrator in Chicago Public Schools, Mo served as director of program development for Neumann Family Services, a leading agency that fosters choice and independence for people with disabilities while helping them integrate into the heart of their communities. You can learn more about Mo at https://www.aiepautism.com.

Jenny Ludwig is an editor and writer living in Chicago. She has two school-aged children who attend CPS and her husband is a CPS high school teacher.

Ashley McCall serves as a 3rd grade bilingual English/Language Arts teacher at César Chávez Multicultural Arts Center on the south west side of Chicago and a teacher representative on the Chávez Local School Council. Follow her on Twitter at @ashlm_12.

Victor Idowu is a math instructor at Percy L. Julian High School in Chicago Public Schools and a 2019-20 Teach Plus Illinois Policy Fellow.