Chanmi Chun

Chanmi Chun – @MrsChun
Chanmi has been living out her childhood dream to be an educator for the past 19 years. She began her journey as an educator at a northside elementary school in the Chicago Public School District in 1998. During her 17 years in CPS, she has worked with English Language Learners (newcomer, refugee, and bilingual), Special Education, at-risk, and high-achieving/gifted and talented students. She has been a classroom teacher, reading specialist, literacy coach, and teacher librarian. In 2014, she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. She was a 6th Grade ELA/SS and 7th/8th grade Minecraft elective in the Union School District. She is currently an Instructional ToSA, mentoring Year 1 teachers through the Silicon Valley/Santa Cruz New Teacher Project Induction Program, and providing instructional support to veteran/experienced teachers in USD. Chanmi is also certified as a Leading Edge Digital Educator.
Chanmi has challenged herself to move her teaching practice forward over the course of her career to prepare her students for a future of possibilities that have yet to be imagined. She has always believed in empowering students to gain ownership of their learning by building their voice and sense of agency. She hopes to promote a mindset of lifelong learning by encouraging her students and colleagues to be creators and critical thinkers, who can act as change agents in their local and global communities.
Another integral part of Chanmi’s life is that she is a mother to two amazing daughters and a wife to a devoted Cleveland Cavaliers and Browns fan. Her other passions in life are music/singing and issues of social justice. She is also a Cubs fan (this has to be the year, right?) and a foodie that will try almost anything if it’s prepared and seasoned well. Chanmi also believes in the power of community of learners, which is why she started developing and expanding her PLN through Twitter. Feel free to connect with her @mrschun, and she would be happy to discuss and share ideas and resources.
Jennifer Bade

Jennifer Bade
Jennifer is 4th grade math teacher at an elementary school in Chicago, Illinois.
A career change from the corporate world 17 years ago sparked a chain of events that landed her in a profession she fell in love with. Every morning she asks herself 3 questions: What am I teaching? What am I learning? What am I creating? Gaining and sharing knowledge are her passion.
Jennifer has taught all content areas from Kindergarten through Fifth grade in both self-contained and departmentalized settings. Her areas of expertise include professional development design and implementation, new teacher and student teacher mentoring, and EL and Math curricula consultation. She currently serves as a district P-5 Math Facilitator and Chicago Public Schools Professional Learning Leader in partnership with Erikson Institute. Her specialized knowledge, interest, and experience in arts integration, multicultural content integration, and instructional approaches for language and literacy development for ELs have kept teaching and learning fresh and exciting for her. The students’ imaginations and talents serve as the greatest motivation of all.
Jennifer lives with her husband and 15 year old son on the northside of Chicago. They are lifelong Cubs fans and lovers of urban living. She would rather be outside than in and enjoys anything that involves interacting with art and nature.
Michelle Krumholz

Michelle KrumHolz
After working in the corporate sector for several years, Michelle decided her true calling was teaching. That was a good decision because 19 years later, she’s still teaching at a Chicago elementary school in one of the most ethnically diverse neighborhoods in the country. During her tenure, she has worked with English Language Learners (newcomer, refugee, and bilingual) who represent countries all over the world. Throughout her career, she has been a self-contained classroom teacher and departmentalized, teaching all four core subjects, and coding. She also served as NGSS teacher leader working in conjunction with DePaul University. Her current position is English Language Learner Resource teacher K-3. Beyond the classroom, she has served in-school leadership roles to move the school forward in the areas of technology, literacy, and reading/math interventions for at-risk students.
Michelle has challenged herself to continuously improve her teaching practices. She describes herself as having 19 1st years of teaching, as she’s always learning and trying new strategies. She has always worked to empower students by creating opportunities to share their voice and own their learning. She actively strives to promote a growth mindset so students feel safe to take risks and have the skills to learn from their mistakes.
Michelle lives with her husband of 24 years, her son, a freshman in high school, and her daughter when she’s home from college. During her free time you can find her reading, on a bike, or cheering on her son at one of his volleyball or baseball games. You can reach out to her anytime @evolvededucator.