In May of 2023, a diverse group of six kindergarten teachers from across the United States were selected from a national pool of talented and committed kindergarten teachers to participate in the RJEM Teaching Fellowship. The RJEM Teaching Fellowship is a one-year professional development, mentoring, and research opportunity intended to support kindergarten teachers who are committed to racial justice in early math education.

Representing different racialized and gendered groups, geosociopolitical contexts as well as years of experience and levels of expertise, the six RJEM Teaching Fellows have demonstrated strong commitments to racial justice, personal and professional growth, and working collaboratively. Racial justice work requires commitment, courage, patience, and humility. Thus, the RJEM Local Planning Committee intentionally put together a cohort of teachers who have demonstrated these characteristics and who will support each others’ learning.

At the RJEM Teaching Fellowship Summer Orientation held in June of 2023, the Fellows spent two days at the Erikson Institute in Chicago getting to know each other and the many others who will support their experience (mentors, members of the Local Planning Committee, and members of the national RJEM Advisory Committee).

Fellows also learned more about the structure of the Fellowship and engaged with foundational critical theories (e.g., positionality, white supremacy, antiblackness, systemic oppression) and resources (e.g., Applying RJEM to the Classroom, and How to Have Hard Conversations) that will support their learning in the upcoming academic year.

During the fellowship year and through individual mentoring, group seminars, and a self-selected Action Research Project, RJEM Teaching Fellows will be supported, motivated, and challenged to engage in self-reflection, develop a robust understanding of early math education that fosters racial justice, and implement pedagogical practices that honor the humanity of all children along with their families and communities, especially those who have been historically dehumanized in the United States.

We are excited for the amazing work that the RJEM Fellows will develop throughout the course of the fellowship and look forward to sharing our learning and experiences with you in the months ahead. Stay tuned.