Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.

Marian Wright Edelman

When I was in college, I wanted to grow up and become Marian Wright Edelman. Her book, The Measure of Our Success, had a profound impact on me and helped launch me on a career committed to equity, kids and schools. True shero of mine.

Yesterday, I asked a group of my colleagues at Gateway why they became educators, and while each answer was different, they all included commitment to individual empowerment and social change.

These past weeks have been hard for everyone, and we are feeling it profoundly in the Gateway community. Even in the hardest moments, when the way forward seems so urgent and so unsure, I know education matters. We are helping to build the future we need by listening to, understanding and empowering students, one at a time.