I first came across the term “teacherpreneur” in 2008 when I taught high school social studies at Billerica High School.  Two years later EdWeek ran this intriguing articleproclaiming a “New Age” in teaching, learning, and leading.   This new knowledge began to impact how I viewed myself, my colleagues, the education profession, and  teaching in general . The central questions asked what were we doing to improve the school, student learning, innovate, and create.   That year I went on a rampage of fund raising.  I applied for and was awarded a mini grant from local businesses, developed a cookbook with my Psychology

class and raised money for the local food bank, and joined two online donor sites (see below) to raise money for a projector.  The mini grant, focused on Globalizing the US History Survey, led to the development of a much needed global studies course, and my appearance on a local radio broadcast to promote global perspectives in education. The lesson is simple, teacher action can impact policy.  This is the essence of a teacherpreneur.

Barnett Berry, founder and president of the Center for Teaching Quality in Hillsborough, NC,  recognizes the need for  dynamic individuals in a profession that is in  a state of flux.   The concept of the “Teacherpreneur” (not necessarily based in profit motive) is centered on empowering teachers to impact policy.  Berry notes “that 21^st century teaching and learning will require three things that aren’t currently on many reform agendas:

1. Teachers who are more skilled in the science and art of teaching than ever before
2. Teachers who embrace their roles as leaders of school improvement
3. Teachers who have and use a strong collective voice to ensure that the needs of all their students are adaptively met

The difference between teacherpreneurs  and teacher leadership, and the related practice of socializing an idea, is that a teacherpreneur acts first and doesn’t wait to be involved.  This behavior, of course, manifests in a variety of ways, but the common factor is based in the idea that a teacher’s identity and context transcends the silo of individual classrooms and the constraints of traditional expectations.

As a start, or continuation, down your path of teacherpreneurship, explore these websites as an introduction to what teachers can do to impact teaching and learning.

Donors Choose is an online charity that makes it easy for anyone to help students in need. It grew out of a Bronx high school where teachers experienced first-hand the scarcity of learning materials in our public schools. Submit your project now!

Adopt-A-Classroom increases opportunity for student success by empowering teachers with community partners and funds to purchase resources for the classroom.

Teachers Pay Teachers is an online marketplace where teachers buy and sell original downloadable educational materials, hard goods and used educational resources

StudentsFirst a grassroots movement designed to mobilize parents, teachers, students, administrators, and citizens throughout country, and to channel their energy to produce meaningful results on both the local and national level.

iEARN is a non-profit organization made up of over 30,000 schools and youth organizations in more than 130 countries. iEARN empowers teachers and young people to work together online using the Internet and other new communications technologies. Over 2,000,000 students each day are engaged in collaborative project work worldwide.

Kickstarter is a funding platform for creative projects. Every project is independently crafted, put to all-or-nothing funding,
and supported by friends, fans, and the public in return for rewards.

The State of Tech is a bi-weekly podcast covering educational technology.  The show is designed for anyone in education (from teachers to principals to technology directors) wanting to explore how technology can be used to improve teaching and learning.

Berry frames the vision of a 21^st century teacher, around the ability to innovate and “reward educators  who develop their pedagogical talent, spread and “sell” their expertise, and find innovative solutions to challenges facing their students…[and to promote] creativity  in a sector that has been woefully lacking.”  Below, these three educators have elevated the standards for teaching and embody the spirit of teacherpreneurship.  Check out what they have done:

Zachary Turner:  A special education teacher at Kelly Middle School in Connecticut, started his own photography company, “Nothing But Awesome  Prints.” Turner states, “My passion for photography has allowed me to create new innovative lesson plans to enhance student involvement and achievement. Working with photographs of people and places from around the globe provides students with stimulating, challenging, and creative learning opportunities. Teachers with secondary career commitments can utilize their creative abilities inside their classrooms improving their overall teaching performance.”

Ken Uhde:  Uhde has been a Social Studies teacher at the middle and high school levels for  over10 years. He started to develop his website Go Social Studies Go, for his Michigan students and the world, around the potential of open educational resources. One review states “I think this is or will be one of the best social studies sites ever. Truly shows your passion for Social Studies. Thanks for sharing it with the world.”

Jeremy Greene: Greene teaches freshmen world history and WHAP at Chelmsford High School, Chelmsford, MA, where he is also the International Relations adviser. He is a consistent contributor to “World History Connected”, online discussions for NCSS around teaching history, and will soon have an article on George Mason’s teachinghistory website.

How important are standards and evaluation in the teaching profession? Berry suggests that the field will “secure the respect it deserves when teacher unions are transformed into professional guilds –  focusing first and foremost on teaching and learning and expecting all members to meet performance standards.”   Part of those performance standards should be teacher directed

professional development that utilizes technology to design an approved PD pathway that requires the sharing and/or production of an idea, article, practice etc,  as opposed to passively sitting in a room and making sure the attendance sheet was signed.  One possibility regarding standards (this is typically a very unpopular sentiment) involves restructuring teachers’ work schedule to include the summer.  This time could be devoted to school, district initiatives, training, etc.  I have come to find it very odd that the profession has this ending period where, theoretically, a professional could be away from their career for 8 weeks every year.  As a teacher, I came to believe that those 8 weeks were too long to be disengaged, so I intentionally got involved in PD, fellowships, training… something to keep me sharp.  But this was not officially recognized or supported by my school. With a change in schedule and rethinking of teacher development and evaluation, that too would need to change.

Meenoo Rami, an English Teacher at the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia started #engchat as a way for teachers around the world to “share, reflect, and question their daily practice in the classroom.” Every Monday night from 7-8 pm EST, a teacher “ brings a new perspective , ideas, and questions to the forum.”  This teacher for teacher model of PD should not be the exception but rather be fully embedded in every school’s culture. However, whether a school promotes this or not, isn’t the point.  As a professional educator, you, the teacher, should be active, proactive, and reactive to the contemporary and future world of teaching, learning, and leading. There is simply no excuse not to be.