We are so proud of all of our alumni accomplishments! If you are an IRT alum and would like to share your news in an upcoming post or if you are an alumni author and would like to have your book posted on our alumni publications page, please reach out!
Omar Galárraga, IRT ’00 Congratulations to Omar recently awarded tenure and is the Professor of Health Services, Policy and Practice, and Director of the International Health Institute at Brown University.
Ezra Sergent-Leventhal, IRT ’20 Post Secondary Navigator, City Colleges of Chicago
I have long known I wanted to work in education specifically working in a career that is geared towards access and equity. After graduating college, I began working at a college access non-profit and a few years later applied to be an associate with the IRT and earned my Master’s in Higher Education. I became interested in working at the community college level after taking a course titled, “The Comprehensive Community College” taught by Northwestern sociology professor James Rosenbaum.
In my culture names have meanings that oftentimes become what you strive to do within your life or, in some cases, who you become. My name, Ogechi, means “in God’s timing”. Outside of religion and spiritual belief, my name reflects what we all know: we cannot control when or how things happen in our lives. I have been intentional in living up to my name by letting go, leaning into uncertainty, and taking things day-by-day. My PhD journey is one that very much follows this idea. I first applied to doctoral programs in 2015 when I was a 5th grade teacher. At that time, I did not know why I wanted to pursue a doctorate only that I should. I was running from a challenging work environment into what I thought was the obvious next step after reviewing a master’s degree. Thankfully, I was unanimously rejected from every school I applied to. Though I was heartbroken, I was given time to figure out what I wanted, what I was passionate about, why I cared, and what I wanted to do when I left the classroom. It was in those years that I truly developed and understood my “why”. Then, in 2020, during a global pandemic, I applied again. This time, I was accepted into two universities: one that I wanted and the one that I needed.
Rachel’s poetry collection, BLACK BALLAD, published by Bull City Press will be available in Summer 2022. You can preorder a copy or find out more about the author and the collection on Rachel’s website.
Yasmin Elgoharry, IRT ‘14, ’20 Yasmin is a recipient of the University of Connecticut’s (UCONN) Neag School 2022 Alumni Board Scholarship. Yasmin is a doctoral student at UCONN in Leading, Learning & Educational Policy with a concentration in higher education racial justice and decolonization.
Teaching during the pandemic has not been an easy feat. With more demands than ever, educators have had to face challenges like never before.
As I write this article, I cannot help but think about all the planning, grading, calls, make-up work, data analysis, meetings, etc. I need to prepare for the upcoming week. The immense expectations placed on teachers has left many, including myself, overwhelmed and disillusioned. However, my students deserve the absolute best, and so I show up every day and give it my 110%. As I reflect on how I am surviving this school year, I am reminded about the importance of making sure I am filling my cup in some way every day. While I understand the structural educational inequities that currently exist need to be transformed in order to ensure teacher sustainability long-term, finding ways on a day to day basis to help me stay afloat are just as critical.
Institute for Recruitment of Teachers 
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