Newark Teacher Wins National Award

| Newark Patch

People’s Preparatory Charter School (PPCS) and The New Teacher Project (TNTP) announced that Keith Robinson, a PPCS ninth grade mathematics teacher and Dean of Culture, has won the Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice.  The prize, awarded annually, honors exceptionally effective teachers working in high-poverty public schools.

Robinson is one of just four 2013 Fishman Prize winners nationwide.  The honor includes a $25,000 award and participation in an intensive summer residency that enables winners to engage with one another and to share their expertise with educators across the country.

This week Mayor Cory Booker joined PPCS School Leader Jess Rooney, family members of Robinson, members of the PPCS Board of Trustees, and staff of the Newark Charter School Fund for a surprise presentation to Robinson in his second period math class.

People’s Prep is the youngest school, and first New Jersey school, to have a Fishman Prize recipient.  PPCS opened in fall 2011 with an inaugural class of 95 ninth-grade students.  The school currently includes both a ninth and tenth grade, and will expand by one grade level per year until it grows to a full high school with grades 9-12 in 2014-15.

“Keith is a strong example of the committed, skilled, well-trained teachers we have at People's Prep, in Newark, and across the country working in high-need areas.  All students need smart, hard-working teachers who want to stay in the classroom and develop their practice alongside other teachers and leaders like them,” Rooney said. 

Robinson joined People’s Prep as a founding teacher in 2011.  He began his teaching career eight years ago at Roberto Clemente School (I.S. 195) in Harlem as a Teach for America corps member.  He also taught at Rise Academy in Newark.

In addition to teaching algebra to ninth grade students, Robinson serves on the PPCS leadership team as the Dean of Culture, in which capacity he works to strengthen the school’s discipline and spirit.  He also trains PPCS’s first-year math teachers.

Imali Ariyarathne, seventh-grade teacher at Langston Hughes Academy, stands in front of her students while introducing them to the captivating world of science

Imali Ariyarathne, seventh-grade teacher at Langston Hughes Academy, introduces her students to the captivating world of science.

About TNTP

TNTP is the nation’s leading research, policy, and consulting organization dedicated to transforming America’s public education system, so that every generation thrives.

Today, we work side-by-side with educators, system leaders, and communities across 39 states and over 6,000 districts nationwide to reach ambitious goals for student success.

Yet the possibilities we imagine push far beyond the walls of school and the education field alone. We are catalyzing a movement across sectors to create multiple pathways for young people to achieve academic, economic, and social mobility.

Learn More About TNTP