Brandon Strawn

Experience

• 

  James Madison University

  Sept 2003 - Apr 2008

  Private and Senior Math Tutor

  Provided tutoring in 12 different college-level math courses at JMU’s tutoring centerCoordinated and provided upwards of 10 hours of tutoring sessions a week to private clients

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  Gage Park High School, through Teach For America

  Aug 2008 - Jun 2010

  Algebra and Geometry Teacher

  • One of the 250 finalists (of 25,000 CPS teachers) for a CPS teaching (“DRIVE”) award, Oct 15, 2009• Founded the NLU Service Learning Award-Winning GPHS Tutoring Program; trained and managed 12 HS tutors who instructed 26 ES students, who grew 10% in mastery after each session• Advised the Anime Club to provide students with afterschool opportunity to experience the Japanese art form and improve their reading abilities through viewing foreign films with EnglishCreated the GPHS Tutoring Program, partnering with nearby Talman Elementary School ◦ Facilitated and oversaw monthly 10th grade/5th grade tutoring days ◦ Devised system of quantitative and qualitative data to demonstrate program’s effectiveness ◦ Won National Louis University Award for Service Learning Project with Best Integration of Curriculum, May 2009 Show less

• 

  Lakeside Pride Music Ensembles

  Dec 2008 - now

  Trombonist and Singer!

  • Chair

    May 2023 - now

  • Musician, Volunteer

    Dec 2008 - May 2023
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  Teach For America Summer Institute

  Jun 2009 - Jul 2009

  Faculty Advisor

  Observed and oversaw five freshmen Teach For America corps members, and their 20 studentsProvided daily written and verbal feedback to the corps members on best practices in lesson planning and time management, classroom management and discipline, and effective instruction high school mathematics to underperforming inner-city students

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  Johnson College Prep, Noble Network of Charter Schools

  Aug 2010 - Jun 2011

  Founding Algebra Instructor

  Noble Network Hedgehog Team•Developed, aligned, and adapted CRS-aligned interim math assessments for the Noble Network•Composed and facilitated quarterly PD to network algebra teachers to share best practicesJohnson College PrepCharter School, Grades 9-12, 90% African-American, 8% Latino, 92% Low-income•Created rigorous assessments, unit plans, and lesson plans on a team of 2, resulting in students’ average growth of 2.52 points on their EXPLORE test in one year, from 13.74 to 16.26•Identified upper-level students through disaggregated data midway through the school year; designed and instructed honors geometry course to foster their further development Show less

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  Leadership for Educational Equity

  Jul 2011 - Aug 2011

  Summer Fellow at the Illinois State Board of Education

  Through Teach For America Alumni Policy and Advocacy LeadershipWrote memos and e-bulletins regarding new policies, to schools, districts, and the boardDevised new system to ensure 100% state-wide compliance to highly qualified teacher requirementsAnalyzed data and summarized results to present new No Child Left Behind accountability system to districts, consultants, and the boardResearched and organized school and district data from online report cards for easy dissemination for publicationSummarized over 400 pages of grant reviewers' comments into legally-binding narrative formReviewed grant applications for schools, districts, and companies regarding the allocations of $3 million of Title I School Improvement Grant funds Show less

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  Education Pioneers

  Jun 2012 - Aug 2012

  Summer Fellow at the Illinois State Board of Education

  • Reviewed and critiqued scopes of work among 36 Illinois districts receiving $21.4M in Race to the Top funds• Improved teacher retention rate by writing an RFP for $1.1M to oversee a mentoring program• Facilitated statewide stakeholders meetings with university partners to improve superintendent education programs by presenting data on current practices and suggesting improvement

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  Chicago Academic

  Oct 2012 - Jun 2013

  Tutor

  Tutor of math (pre-algebra through calculus), ACT prep, and whatever else I'm called upon to tutor.

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  Teach For America

  Apr 2013 - Jul 2013

  Corps Member Advisor

  Emmett Till Elementary SchoolsNeighborhood School, Grades K-8, 99.7% African-American, 99.2% Low-income•Fostered strong trust and rapport among 11 first year SPED teachers, instilling collaborative norms and settling conflicts. (100% of teachers reported I was crucial to their development)•Observed, coached, and critiqued lesson plans for 11 teachers daily, noting strengths and areas for growth to obtain their goals. (100% reported feeling ready to enter classroom and 100% still in classroom today) Show less

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  Lighthouse College Prep Academy

  Jul 2013 - Jun 2014

  Director of Teacher Leadership

  Lighthouse College Prep AcademyCharter School, Grades 8-12, 85% African-American, 10% Latino, 90% Low-income•Collaboratively developed school-wide vision, mission, and goals on administrative team•Observed, coached, and evaluated 13 science and social studies teachers in data-driven cycles of inquiry•Improved Indiana biology test passage rate by 14% in 6 months through targeted data analysis, and observation/debrief cycle•Co-planned and taught remedial algebra course, with 92% passage rate on Indiana Algebra Test•Raised ACT scores among participating juniors from 17.6 to 19.0 in five months Show less

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  Chicago Public Schools

  Jul 2014 - Jun 2016

  Lindblom Math & Science AcademySelective Enrollment, Grades 7-12, 70% African-American, 26% Latino, 64% Low-incomeInstructional and Vision Leadership•Supported and developed 15 first-year teachers (20% of the teaching staff) by refining the teacher mentor program, individually supporting leadership capacity among veteran teachers.•Led team of 7 teachers and counselors to develop a clear vision of academic and behavioral support for struggling 7th grade students and to pursue a grade-wise growth mindset curriculum.•Assessed 40 teachers’ effectiveness via REACH by celebrating their strengths and providing actionable feedback to target areas for growth, resulting in a majority of teachers requesting follow-thru coaching and observable improvement in their classroom instruction.•Developed history teacher to lead literacy development of 7th grade teachers, resulting in cross-curricular usage of mentor texts through a data-driven cycle of inquiry to improve student writing abilities.•Oversaw yearlong school-wide deep-dive into proficiency-based learning to improve accuracy and transparency of student grades, resulting in staff-wide acceptance of the revised policy.Operational and Community Leadership•Engaged parents and community leaders to improve selective enrollment application knowledge and aspiration from 15% to 83% via student-led Code.org instruction and mentoring, and parent outreach.•Acquired over $30,000 of additional funding streams by composing multiple grant proposals to augment financial gaps for the school, based on collaborative needs-assessments.•Established and implemented comprehensive processes for mediating student disputes and parental grievances through genuine collaboration, restorative justice, and planned follow-thru.•Facilitated a strategic and teacher-leader collaborative staff selection criteria that resulted in assessment and placement of teachers and support staff at Lindblom Show less

  • Assistant Principal

    Jul 2015 - Jun 2016

  • Resident Principal

    Jul 2014 - Jun 2015
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  University of Chicago Charter School

  Aug 2017 - Jun 2019

  Math Teacher
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  Chicago Public Schools

  Aug 2019 - now

  Mathematics Teacher