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THE PHILADELPHIA WRITING PROJECT

Leadership

    The Philadelphia Writing Project is sustained through the collaboration of educators and members of the community at large who recognize the value of learning opportunities for students. While the work of the site is carried out by a diverse network of teachers, three groups have emerged over time to provide leadership and direction.

    Executive Leadership Team

    Amy Stornaiuolo , Ph.D., Faculty Director

    Jen McLaughlin Cahill, Ph.D., Director

    Amanda Schear, PhilWP Scholar

    Barrett Rosser, Postdoctoral Scholar, University of Pennsylvania, Graduate School of Education

    Kemba Howard, Administrative Coordinator

    Advisory Board

    Co-Chairs
         Dr. Angela Crawford, Advisory Board Co-Chair, Assistant Principal, Martin Luther King High School and Dr. Dina Portnoy, Educational Consultant

    Advisory Board Members 

    • Amanda Schear - Doctoral Student in Literacy Studies, PhilWP Scholar at Penn GSE
    • Ansharaye Hines - Assistant Director of Young Programs, Center for Black Male Educator Development
    • Awilda Balbuena - Principal, Gloria Casarez Elementary School
    • Dr. Amy Stornaiuolo - Associate Professor in Literacy Studies, Faculty Director of the Philadelphia Writing Project at Penn GSE
    • Dr. Angela Crawford - Advisory Board Co-Chair, Assistant Principal, Martin Luther King High School
    • Dr. Barrett Rosser - Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Penn GSE
    • Dr. Claudia Gentile - Evaluation Consultant, NORC at the University of Chicago
    • Dr. Diane Santori - Academic Faculty, West Chester University
    • Dr. Diane Waff - Director Emerita of the Philadelphia Writing Project at Penn GSE
    • Dr. Dina Portnoy - Educational Consultant
    • Dr. Ed Brockenbrough - Associate Professor at Penn GSE
    • Dr. Jen McLaughlin Cahill - Lecturer of Educational Practice in Literacy Studies, Director of the Philadelphia Writing Project at Penn GSE
    • Dr. Jessica Thomas - Assistant Principal, Abraham Lincoln High School
    • Dr. Nicole Mirra - Associate Professor, Rutgers University
    • Dr. Noah Tennant - Assistant Superintendent School District of Philadelphia
    • Dr. Susan Lytle - Professor Emerita, Founder of the Philadelphia Writing Project at Penn GSE
    • Kemba Howard - Administrative Coordinator, Philadelphia Writing Project and Literacy Studies at Penn GSE
    • Miriam Harris - Financial Administrator, Penn GSE Business Office
    • Njemele (Tamala) Anderson - Teacher, Science Leadership Academy Beeber
    • Ron Houston - Technology Administrator, School District of Philadelphia
    • Sam Reed - U School - Leadership Team
    • Tamara Anderson - Activist, Former Teacher
    • Tasha Russell - Technology Teacher, Overbrook High School
    • Trey Smith - Teacher, K-8 Digital Literacy and Citizenship, Marian Anderson Neighborhood Academy, Adjunct Instructor, Penn GSE

    About the Directors

    Amy Stornaiuolo, Ph.D., Faculty Director
    Dr. Stornaiuolo is the Faculty Director of the Philadelphia Writing Project and an associate professor in the Literacy Studies Program at Penn GSE. With an explicit focus on designing equitable and humanizing conditions for learning, Dr. Stornaiuolo centers her work around building sustainable, long-term partnerships, collaborating with communities and partners to enact meaningful change for educational justice, and designing and engaging in participatory and innovative digital methodologies. A former writing teacher in four-year and community colleges in California and member of the Bay Area Writing Project, her research has focused on how people use digital technologies to write, communicate, and participate in the world. Some of her projects have explored the integration of digital technologies in schools, school makerspaces, the development of online composing tools and student-facing analytics, adolescents’ digital and data practices, and teachers’ facilitation of literature discussions online. Read more about Dr. Stornaiuolo on her Penn GSE faculty page.

    Jen McLaughlin Cahill, Ph.D., Director
    Dr. McLaughlin Cahill (she/her/hers) is the Director of the Philadelphia Writing Project and Lecturer of Educational Practice in the Literacy Studies Program at Penn GSE. She is committed to reimagining schools as ethical spaces of creativity, inquiry, and growth for all students inclusive of race, ethnicity, culture, ability, socioeconomic status, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, and beyond. Her research interests include sociocultural approaches to literacy development, critical literacy, and queer-inclusive pedagogies. As a long-time middle and high school teacher in NYC, Dr. McLaughlin Cahill authored literacy curricula at every grade level. She was devoted to a collaborative community of practice and professional development, spending several summers learning at the Reading and Writing Project at Teachers College, and gathering colleagues to present their innovative, research-based literacy practices at local and national education conferences. Read more about Dr. McLaughlin Cahill on her Penn GSE faculty page.