WE SEE THE TEACHER IN YOU.
GYO-IL MULTI-YEAR LEGISLATIVE REPORT
GYO-IL’s growth is due to sustained investment from Illinois and our centralized administration of the GYO grant, which includes collaborating with our consortia to support local candidates.
Centering Community in Teaching
Recruiting and training teacher candidates to lead in hard-to-staff schools in communities across Illinois
Providing individuals with comprehensive supports and a strong peer network to become classroom teachers
Addressing systemic challenges that adversely impact underrepresented populations in pursuing teacher licensure
Linking community-based organizations, universities, and school districts to strengthen local schools
What our Graduates say
Latrell Walton
GYO GRADUATE, 2020
I wanted to have this financial support but I also wanted to have this space where I could actually learn more about being a teacher, having the support of someone who is a person of color. …So GYO was just this one place I knew was going to have my back in terms of supporting me going forward with what I wanted to do as a career.
Samantha Sartin
GYO GRADUATE, 2015
Grow Your Own Teachers was a transformative experience for me. They transformed my entire vision of teaching. And the GYO mission is powerful…getting more African Americans and Latinos into teacher prep programs and then growing the pool of teachers who look like students.
Mayra Bravo Gonzalez
GYO Graduate, 2010 & GYO IL Board Member
Grow Your Own’s financial support was great, but even with that, I don’t know if I would have made it without the support from the GYO monthly meetings and the guidance I got. I know for a fact that I am changing lives as a teacher, and even more so because of my culture and how I treat students. I can see the pride in my class when I speak in Spanish.
