Local Educator Receives Elite “Distinguished Teacher” Recognition

CHICAGO — Noble Schools in Chicago have welcomed seven additional teachers into its Distinguished Teacher program, including Joshua Sosa, an advanced placement US history and advanced placement government teacher at Noble’s Pritzker College Prep – the very school he graduated from in 2012. Distinguished Teacher provides an industry-changing approach to celebrating and rewarding teachers who are achieving an exceptional impact with students. Among other benefits, each Distinguished Teacher will receive an additional $10,000 annually for as long as they remain teachers at Noble.

“Earning the title of Distinguished Teacher has helped me in fighting off imposter syndrome. For too long, I have felt that I needed to be better and more talented to teach amongst the brilliant staff at Pritzker. While I am still impacted by imposter syndrome, I feel more confident in my skills as an educator in the building,” said Sosa. “Professionally speaking, I am most excited to not only refine my craft in building classroom spaces that are transformational and equip students to complete college and lead choice-filled lives, but also to share best practices and help other educators do the same.”

Since graduating from Pritzker College Prep, Sosa went on to attend Macalester College in Minnesota, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in political science while working as a teacher’s assistant. Sosa then began his career at Pritzker College Prep and has obtained a Master of Arts in Teaching from the Relay Graduate School of Education.

“Many of us remember our favorite teachers far into adulthood. Educators who make a difference in their classrooms make a pivotal difference in their students’ lives, and it is important that we recognize this kind of devotion,” said Constance Jones, CEO of Noble. “It is my honor to welcome this new cohort of outstanding educators into the program and thank them for the abundance of passion, love and dedication that they bring with them to the job each and every day.”

Sosa added, “I truly believe in the African proverb ‘it takes a village to raise a child.’ As a Noble alumnus, I have come back to that village to pay it forward. While unique to my experience, many of my high school classmates’ families have chosen Pritzker as the high school for their children. That means that from time to time, I have the opportunity to teach my high school friends’ younger siblings and cousins. In all, I am a living testament to Noble’s vision and mission, and I am committed to helping to open as many doors for our students as possible.”

Distinguished Teachers must be in at least their fourth year teaching at Noble, having exemplified Noble's core values and traits in five key areas:

• Student Growth: Are your students achieving exceptional growth?
• Classroom Culture: In what ways have you created a strong classroom in which students feel invested, empowered, and connected?
• Instructional Rigor: In what ways does your classroom culture, planning, and instruction push students' cognitive lift, quality responses, and intentional use of time?
• Inclusion and Relevance: How is your classroom inclusive of and/or relevant to the students that you serve?
• Extended Impact: How have you directly impacted your school, the community it serves, and/or our network outside of your classroom?

These Distinguished Teachers applied for the program by submitting written narratives and a portfolio of artifacts including comprehensive data. Finalists then participated in classroom observations and debriefs, student surveys, a panel interview, and reference checks over the course of several months. Read more here: https://nobleschools.org/work-at-noble/

“One aspect of teaching that I love the most has to be supporting students to develop into agents of change and future leaders. While one of my main responsibilities is to ensure that students learn the essential knowledge and skills of my courses, it is also my responsibility to aid students in their social and emotional development,” said Sosa. “And while I am a teacher, I am also a lifelong learner. Teaching challenges me to grow. I can continue to reflect and refine my craft so that I am the qualified teacher that students and their families deserve.”

The Distinguished Teacher designation will come with several clearly defined benefits:

• An additional $10,000 award on top of base salary, as determined by the Noble Salary Schedule, each year for the duration of employment as a teacher at Noble;
• Opportunities to engage in professional development specific to Distinguished Teachers as well as facilitate professional development experiences across Noble Schools;
• Unique opportunities to participate in network-wide decisions across functions;
• Participation in the selection of future Distinguished Teachers.

Ellen Metz, head of schools for Noble, concluded, “While it is often said that teaching is one of the most important jobs in the world, too often, the many innovative ways that teachers reach their students is not properly acknowledged or recorded. Through Distinguished Teacher, we are not only rewarding incredible teachers – we are always learning more from them so that we may impart their wisdom across our network. By combining teacher evaluation, awards and teacher-to-teacher learning into one unique organizational program, we are working to elevate the very profession of teaching.”