“I can tell you 100 percent that without those two fellowships, I would not be here right now. I would not be at Noble. I would not be a principal.”
Last year, Tierionna Pinkston, principal at The Noble Academy (TNA), had a rocky start— it was her first year at TNA and as a principal. She was “terrified” by how different the job was from her other roles and struggling to hit her stride and reconnect to her unique leadership style. Surge Institute’s Black Principals Network 2024 fellowship gave her her “boldness” back.
“The Black Principals Network is why I didn’t quit… that fellowship helped to come back to myself,” Pinkston said.
And even before last year, it was her experience in Surge’s 2022 signature fellowship that pushed her to pursue the principal role in the first place.
Suffice to say, teachers and school staff need to have the opportunity to find excellent professional growth outside our school buildings. And we take that seriously at Noble Schools— whether that’s by providing financial support or ensuring that staff members have time to attend workshops, conferences, and meetings without having to use paid time off. We also recently started hiring for a director of adult learning and development to take staff development to the next level.
We do all this because we believe that when we support our people to grow, it enriches not only their lives but our whole community.
Many Noble employees like Pinkston have had transformational experiences at a wide range of professional development opportunities, from competitive fellowships like Surge Institute and Advance Illinois to attending conferences like Teach for America’s School Leaders of Color and Charter School Growth Fund’s multiple offerings.
Learn more about Pinkston’s experience and the experiences of two other Noble staff members: Pattilyn Beals, Noble’s manager of government & community affairs, and Juan Pablo Esquivel, special education science teacher at Mansueto High School.
Tierionna Pinkston — Surge Institute
Both Surge’s regular fellowship and Black Principals Network helped Tierionna Pinkston at different points in her career. In both, she found the community, support, and knowledge she needed to stride forward.
The Surge Fellowship she did in 2022 set her on the path to becoming a principal. As a fellowship focused on supporting emerging leaders of color in education, it helped her re-center in her work and identity. Without the support of her cohort members, she says she never would have accepted an interim assistant principal position at DRW College Prep.
As she moved into the role, the fellowship supported her development in critical ways. It helped her understand the North Lawndale community and her own story. She said she was able to root herself in her identity as a mother and begin to name and heal from the harm she experienced as a Black woman educator.
“You know, it impacts the way that you show up for yourself and your people.” Pinkston said.
Pinkston (first row on right) with her Surge fellowship cohort in 2022.
Her experience at DRW and Surge solidified her desire to pursue principalship. That’s how she ended up as principal at The Noble Academy in 2023— which is when Surge came in at just the right time again with their Black Principals Network.
Heading into the role was tough for Pinkston. She says she spent most of that first year feeling like things were happening to her instead of actually being able to make decisions as a leader. The Black Principals Network provided the support and community she needed to regain her confidence and set a strong vision and strategy for her school.
One of the moments that stood out to her during the fellowship was when her cohort was focusing on what strengths they bring to their leadership— Pinkston realized she had not been able to actually tap into those strengths at TNA.
“I was operating in a way where I was doing a lot of tasks but they were further away from the things that I’m really good at. And that’s where I get my energy, strength, and stamina.” Pinkston said.
The whole experience helped her clarify what kind of leader she wanted to be and what kind of vision and strategies she wanted to craft for TNA. But the most impactful thing for her was the community she built with her cohort members.
Pinkston's Black Principals Network cohort. Pinkston is in the back row, third from left.
Throughout last year, she struggled to feel like her core strength of strategizing was valued. She said she’s often seen as the person who “always see problems” because of her mindset for driving solutions and direct, straightforward personality. She felt like she had to do the “dance” to not be seen as the “angry Black woman.” But with the Black Principals Network, she finally felt seen.
“Nobody ever asked me to be anything different. Nobody was ever like, ‘Oh, say it this way’ or ‘You’re too bold, you’re too this.’ Nobody was afraid of me. And I think that is fundamentally transformational.” Pinkston said.
Now, she feels like TNA is truly her school this year.
Pattilyn Beals — Power Made Practical
For the last two years, Pattilyn Beals has been learning how to better organize and build parent power through Power Made Practical, a leadership program run through 2541. She attended conferences and monthly online meetings with her team to meet with charter leaders and experienced organizers across the country. Then, this past fall, she was one of four people nationally to get accepted into their specialized immersion program.
As the manager of the government and community affairs (GCA) team, Beals is responsible for not only organizing parents to take advocacy actions but also supporting other organizers to connect parents and community organizations to our schools. Power Made Practical has inherently changed the way she engages with this work, she said.
Beals presenting during another professional development opportunity she had with the Academy of Local Leadership. Beals said this fellowship was also integral to transforming her work with parents. Photo credit: Academy of Local Leadership.
“I feel like, even in the way that I am engaging with the school board or engaging parents in conversations about different things that matter to them, it definitely has provided me with a different perspective and made me recognize the importance of my role. I can’t take lightly that people trust me.” Beals said.
One of the most powerful things she pulled from her experiences with Power Made Practical was a piece of advice from Charlene Mack, the founder & CEO of 2541 and skilled organizer: Don’t hoard power and don’t do for people what they can do for themselves.
“I think, a lot of times, we have a habit of handholding or creating everything for parents, rather than including them in the creation. So, I walked away with a bigger sense of developing spaces for co-creation.” Beals said.
Beals immediately brought that into her work at Noble. This year, she launched the Parent Advocacy Intensive Training (PATI) program. It’s a small group of 10 parents from across the network who are developing their advocacy and leadership skills. The group met every other month this year to talk about what things they want to see in education advocacy and plan for how to achieve it.
“They felt heard, and they are excited about what’s to come.” Beals said after the first couple of sessions wrapped.
By the end of the program this month, participants will share an outreach plan with their school’s principal and parent advocacy representatives to encourage more parents to get involved in educational advocacy.
“I don’t know where it’s gonna go, but I am excited to see what new ideas come out of their plans and what innovative ways they think of to really engage families,” Beals said.
Juan Pablo Esquivel — Latino Policy Forum & Advance Illinois
The Latino Policy Forum’s Multicultural Leadership Academy (MLA) was a great space for Juan Pablo Esquivel to connect with leaders serving Latine and Black communities across the city, as well as build up his confidence.
While attending monthly meetings and longer retreats, Esquivel built relationships with his cohort members and delved into Black & Brown history in Chicago.
“I felt really connected to the city,” Esquivel said.
Esquivel (bottom right corner) doing a team building activity with his cohort members at the Latino Policy Forum.
He also gained a deeper understanding of himself. One of the defining moments of his time with MLA, he said, was when his cohort was led through an activity to re-enact the struggles of their ancestors. For Esquivel, this activity was incredibly “powerful”.
“We got to feel each other’s internal obstacles. It felt like a step forward to healing,” Esquivel said.
He also appreciated the opportunity to dive into Chicago’s history and do his own research for the final project. At the end of the program, he presented with his group on how COVID-19 had increased the number of students in temporary living situations and how that affected schools. They also included a few potential solutions and had the chance to present all this to stakeholders and decision-makers across many different organizations in the city.
“It was powerful stuff to get in front of people that make these decisions and they hear us.” Esquivel said.
Overall, he felt like MLA helped him develop the tools and skills to keep pushing forward, not just in his career but for the changes he wants to see in his community.
“It was a transformational journey. My internal motivation and everything changed,” Esquivel said.
Now, Esquivel is participating in an entirely different professional development opportunity with Advance Illinois. It’s his second year being part of their Educator Advisory Council with 19 other educators across the state, spanning from early childhood to post-secondary. This experience has been just as impactful for him as MLA.
Esquivel at a rally in Springfield with Advance Illinois to advocate for Evidence-Based Funding.
Esquivel with a few of his Advance Illinois council members.
As part of the Council, he has participated in state-wide advocacy efforts— providing testimony to state agencies, crafting letters to legislators, and heading to Springfield to talk with representatives directly. He’s loved the opportunity to advocate for Noble Schools as a Pritzker alum and push for policies that will benefit his students and colleagues.
“The decisions that affect our schools and classrooms are made by people who are not necessarily in the classroom. I’m glad I’m able to bring what I see day to day into those conversations.” Esquivel said.
Both MLA and the Council have helped Esquivel advocate for himself as well.
“I have that confidence to go in any space or room and share my voice and story.” He said.
Thanks to the influence of both programs, he now has a better idea of where he wants to aim for next in his career: becoming a superintendent.
“This is something I’m now convinced I could do down the line,” Esquivel said.
Pinkston, Beals, and Esquivel all wholeheartedly agree that pursuing professional development opportunities outside of your school is critical.
“It’s not just about your professional development. When it’s done well, it’s also your personal development. It increases longevity for you because you feel like somebody cares about you outside of just your day-to-day tasks. It provides needed outside perspective,” Pinkston said, “And you can’t underestimate the value of a community. External PD is the ability to have another community that’s going to help bring you in.”
