About This Workshop: Profiled Educators
JoEllen Ambrose Workshop
7: Controversial Public Policy Issues
JoEllen Ambrose, who has taught social studies for 23 years, currently
teaches the ninth-grade U.S. government course and the senior-level law
course at Champlin Park High School in Champlin, Minnesota. While at Champlin
Park, she has been a department chair, worked on several curriculum committees,
supervised student teachers, and developed a mock trial team. Previously,
she taught political science and geography at a local junior high school
and was co-director of the Minnesota Center for Community Legal Education
at the Hamline University School of Law. JoEllen Ambrose holds a Bachelor
of Science degree with high honors in secondary social studies education
from the College of Education at the University of Minnesota and a Juris
Doctor (magna cum laude) degree from the William Mitchell College of Law
in Minnesota.
Kristen Borges Workshop
1: Freedom of Religion
Kristen Borges has been a social studies teacher at Southwest High School
in Minneapolis, Minnesota, since 1996. She team-teaches arts and humanities
civics with an English teacher and has created an arts-infused interdisciplinary
curriculum. She also teaches the senior level International Baccalaureate
History of the Americas course, which focuses on the history of Latin
America. She has also coached the speech team. Prior to coming to Southwest,
Kristen Borges taught for a year and a half at other Minnesota high schools.
Kristen Borges holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Providence
College in Rhode Island, and a Master of Arts in teaching social studies
from Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts.
Alice Chandler Workshop
5: Patriotism and Foreign Policy
Alice Chandler has been a social studies and special education teacher
at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C., since 1994.
She holds a Master of Arts in special education from the University of
the District of Columbia, a Bachelor of Arts with a major in sociology
and a minor in history from Howard University in Washington, D.C., and
has done graduate work in American history at Howard University. For a
number of years, Alice Chandler worked on the Integrated Curriculum Development
Project at Ellington, developing social studies lessons for a Smithsonian
Institution-developed curriculum. She is also an affiliate of the National
Writing Project.
Matt Johnson Workshop
4: Constitutional Convention
Workshop
8: Rights and Responsibilities of Students
Matt Johnson is chair of the department of social studies and teaches
AP U. S. government, AP comparative government, U.S. government, law,
and economics, D.C. history, and global perspectives to students at Benjamin
Banneker Senior High School in Washington, D.C. Students in his law class
have won the District of Columbia Mock Trial Championship for seven of
the past nine years. In addition to his course load, he has served as
senior class sponsor, coordinator of Congressional internships, law club
sponsor, stock market club sponsor, and outdoors club sponsor as well
as coached varsity softball, boys JV basketball, and varsity cross country.
Prior to teaching, Matt Johnson interned at some political think tanks
in Washington, D.C., and was a legislative librarian at a law firm. Matt
Johnson earned a Bachelor of Science in political science from Ripon College
in Wisconsin and a Master’s degree in political science at George
Washington University in the District of Columbia.
Leslie Martin Workshop
3: Public Policy and the Federal Budget
Leslie Martin teaches the two-semester, ninth-grade freshman seminar course
on economic, legal, and political systems at West Forsyth High School
in Clemmons, North Carolina, where she has taught since 1998. Prior to
1998, she worked in industry—as a senior consultant at Competitive
Solutions, Inc., in Raleigh, North Carolina; assistant vice president
at Integon Insurance Corp., in Winston-Salem, North Carolina; and an associate
at Eli Lilly and Co., in Indianapolis, Indiana. Leslie Martin holds a
Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Stanford University, a Masters
of Business Administration from Duke University, and a Master of Education
degree from Wake Forest University’s Master Teacher Fellow Program.
In February 2002, she was named Outstanding High School Social Studies
Teacher of the Year by the North Carolina Social Studies Council. She
is a National Board of Professional Teaching Standards Certified Teacher.
Bill Mittlefehldt Workshop
6: Civic Engagement
Bill Mittlefehldt has worked at Anoka High School in Anoka, Minnesota,
since 1973 teaching civics, economics, geography, American history, law,
futuristics, psychology, Western civilization, community service, applied
problem solving, environmental issues, and quality training. Prior to
Anoka, he taught for several years in Riverside, Illinois. Bill Mittlefehldt
has made numerous professional presentations at conferences and has published
several articles about his service learning experiences in Anoka. He also
has been recognized with many awards, including having been twice nominated
for Minnesota Teacher of the Year. In the summer of 2000, Bill Mittlefehldt
and his daughter paddled for 65 days from Duluth to New York City, a distance
of 1,650 miles, to gather stories of civic and sustainable collaboration.
Bill Mittlefehldt holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Lawrence
University in Wisconsin, an Master of Arts in religious studies and a
Master of Divinity degree from the Chicago Theological Seminary, and a
Master of Arts in curriculum and instructional systems from the College
of Education at the University of Minnesota.
Jose E. Velazquez Workshop
2: Electoral Politics
Jose E. Velazquez teaches in the social studies department at University
High School of the Humanities in Newark, New Jersey. Born in Puerto Rico
and raised in Harlem in New York City, Jose Velazquez has
worked for the Newark Public Schools since 1987. Since 1997, he has taught
United States History, African-American Studies, Latino Studies, Sociology,
and Law in Action at University High School. He holds a Bachelor of Arts
degree in history from Columbia University in New York, and has completed
certification programs in bilingual education at Kern College, master
teaching at the Princeton Center for Leadership Training, and critical
thinking at Montclair State University, all in New Jersey. Jose Velazquez also has been a cab driver, journalist, student organizer,
actor, and neighborhood youth counselor.
Back to the Top |
