Professional Development & Coaching
Professional learning for equity.
As an experienced professional learning team, we know that every school, district, or organization has its own diverse community and specific set of needs. Instead of a one size fits all approach, we work with our partners to design a professional learning plan that meets them where they’re at. Our work is grounded in clear, actionable goals and outcomes for all learners—youth and adults.
While schools and youth-serving organizations continue to deal with the impacts of the pandemic, it’s more important than ever to have targeted professional learning that is grounded in equity and inclusion.
Want to learn more about what our expert team can do for you?
We work with schools, districts, and organizations across Massachusetts and beyond.
How we can support you
A partnership with WriteBoston can look a few different ways. For the most impact, we embed a coach into a school or district for 1-3 days per week through the duration of one or more school years. For shorter-term projects, we consider your available time and resources and offer customized workshops with or without implementation support.
Professional learning support can include:
A coach collaborates with educators—both new and experienced—to teach their content through targeted literacy strategies (writing, of course, but listening, speaking, and reading as well). These methods promote students’ critical thinking and meaning making. Coaches provide resources and support to keep teachers learning and improving their practice. What coaching looks like can vary:
- A coach meets one-on-one with teachers during planning periods to help develop units and lessons, create assessments, and devise effective teaching strategies. The coach then follows up in the classroom with co-teaching or observation.
- A coach meets weekly with a department or teacher teams to provide workshops, reflect on student work, and develop and align school-wide language and practices.
- A coach facilitates school-wide professional development on a particular aspect of literacy across the curriculum.
Read about a successful coaching partnership at Boston Community Leadership Academy.
Schools and districts that employ embedded coaches know that coaching can be demanding—and often isolating. With an expert staff of instructional leaders who possess extensive coaching experience, WriteBoston is able to support school-based coaches in their daily work of translating literacy best practices into actionable supports and strategies that can be shared with classroom teachers.
Tasked with wearing multiple hats, coaching requires a body of content knowledge around instruction broadly, and literacy specifically. At the same time, effective coaches also know how to work with adults to advance their learning. That can be a tall order, even for the most skilled educators.
Based on the needs of our partners, WriteBoston strengthens the capacity of school and district coaches around both content and coaching strategies that enable them to deepen their impact on classroom instruction.
Read about a successful partnership that includes coaching-the-coach support.
Professional development done well—responsive to authentic needs, deeply tied to implementation, and delivered with an awareness of who’s in the classroom—can lead to real change. WriteBoston provides workshops on a broad range of topics, all tailored or created specifically for the particular context of the partner.
WriteBoston pairs skillful workshops with implementation support such as modeling, co-planning sessions, and short-term coaching, to ensure that the practices and strategies at the core of the workshops become a part of daily classroom instruction and truly reach students.
We support educators across disciplines and content areas, with the knowledge that developing strong literacy skills happens across department and school buildings.
As an external partner, we have the unique opportunity to maintain a strategic focus on literacy in all its forms—and to ensure that the work of educators across all levels of the school ecosystem (teachers, building coaches, principals and district leaders) are aligned, coordinated and supporting powerful instructional practices in the classroom.
This work can include administrator versions of teacher/coach workshops, support aligning evaluation with instructional best practices, learning walks and literacy audits all geared towards creating impact and coherence across schools and districts.
TiP for Teachers
As an authentic platform for youth voice, Teens in Print is an accessible resource for classroom learning.
Introduce your students to Teens in Print.
Teens in Print welcomes 8th through 12th grade students into our virtual after-school program every three weeks. No journalism experience is required. In addition to helping teens build their writing and critical thinking skills, we also provide college writing support. Share this form below with your students, and we’ll get them connected to our after-school programming.
Have your students submit writing for publication.
Teens in Print encourages teachers to support their students in submitting writing to our website. We accept submissions of any kind on a rolling basis: journalism, academic, personal, or creative. Our publication provides students with a broad and influential audience.
Receive student writing from Teens in Print.
Teens in Print is publishing student journalism and multimedia content online. Sign up below to receive student writing in your inbox, and read our students’ work here.
Teens in Print
Amplifying youth voice across Boston.
Teens in Print (TiP) is a writing program created to amplify the marginalized voices of eighth to twelfth-grade Boston students. TiP offers an after-school program, an intensive six-week summer writing program, writing and media literacy workshops for Boston teachers and community organizations, and an online platform for student writing.
Who we are
We pride ourselves on being an inclusive writing program that encourages and celebrates the diversity of thought and identity. TiP believes that empowering students to explore, refine, and share their ideas is a prerequisite to creating young adults who do well in the world and for the world.
We strive to give students the tools to effectively share their experiences and perspectives through writing, the platform to reach decision-makers who can act on their ideas, and the knowledge to become thoughtful consumers of media.
Join TiP and share your story.
At Teens in Print (TiP), we seek to uplift young voices that are historically marginalized and often excluded in traditional media. Students who join our program will connect with peers from across Boston, learn about writing and media, and publish writing on our website: teensinprint.com.
TiP students are free to explore their own interests and passions. From op-eds and advocacy letters to listicles and photo essays, our students try out all sorts of writing and creative expression.
Summer Journalism Institute
Learn about our six-week summer journalism program.
TiP for Teachers
Sign up to receive student writing from Teens in Print, schedule a workshop for your classroom, or submit student writing for publication.
Read our Magazine
The Writing through the Distance magazine chronicles our students' work during the school year they spent at home due to COVID-19.
Summer Journalism Institute
Discover journalism. Develop your future. Dive into Boston.
Teens in Print’s Summer Journalism Institute (SJI) aims to give Boston teens an immersive writing experience through culturally enriching outings that encourage students to interrogate the history of Boston as it relates to them using key journalism skills.
By interacting with public and cultural spaces they may not traditionally have access to, students will be able to claim ownership over larger societal narratives and produce pieces of writing that reflect their enhanced understanding of their unique position within the city of Boston. Through a combination of writing and multimedia projects, students will contribute to and challenge some of the established narratives that define people’s lived experiences in this city.
From Snapchat, to Twitter, to Buzzfeed, news is everywhere you look. Your generation is the first to have 24/7 access to everything going on in the world—but that comes with a unique set of challenges. Couple this with growing up in the city of Boston and suddenly you are the center of historical narratives that have combined with current trends that ultimately shape how people view and behave in this city. We aim to help you find your place within these larger narratives and use your voice to positively contribute to the world around you.
As a journalist this summer, you’ll get to test out the power of your voice and identity and leave with sharpened media skills, something you’ll be able to apply in the future whether you’re a reporter on the White House beat, or simply reading your news app on the T.
By the end of this hybrid six-week program, you will walk away with a deeper understanding of journalism, plus several published pieces of writing and multimedia content.
SJI is a dynamic program, and every day looks a little different. Here’s a sample of what you might experience:
- The day will begin with a check-in with a group of 30 of your peers.
- Next, you’ll break into small writing modules to talk about the piece you’re working on.
- After a break, you’ll take some independent time to work on your piece.
- You’ll have a dedicated mentor and small group check-ins to talk about your writing, ask for and offer feedback, and discuss challenges.
- The full group will come back together to share and debrief at the end of each day.
Throughout the summer, you’ll participate in multi-media workshops and explore historical landmarks across this city. You might hear from seasoned journalists, speak to professionals of color about navigating race and equity issues in the workplace, or network with adults in fields like marketing, law, and the arts.
Who participates in SJI?
Each year, we welcome about 30 teens who live in Boston and will be attending high school in September. These teens come from a vast array of neighborhoods and attend dozens of different schools across the city. Approximately 40% of our participants speak a language other than English at home.
When does SJI take place?
SJI runs for six weeks, July 5 – August 11, Monday to Friday. We ask that all participants are able to commit to attending all six weeks of programming.
Where is SJI held?
SJI will be both in-person and virtual this year. You’ll join us in person for the first few days of programming as we review program expectations and equip you with access to our Discord server that we will use to meet virtually. Every Wednesday we will meet in person for the second half of the day and go on a field trip. For the last four weeks, we will be in person at Babson College located in downtown Boston.
Why should I join?
Earning a byline is hard, even for adult professional journalists. But after just six weeks in the Summer Journalism Institute, you’ll be published on the Teens in Print website. Having a publication on your resume will help you stand out for other professional opportunities—like college and internships. Past participants have talked about their experience with SJI in job interviews, asked SJI mentors for feedback on their college essays, and requested recommendation letters.
How do I get paid?
Participants will be paid an hourly rate of $15 an hour up to 25 hours a week. Checks will be mailed to participants’ homes. Direct deposit is not available.
Do I need to have experience in journalism to join?
No. We do not expect participants to have experience in journalism prior to joining our program. We look for participants who are curious about the world, passionate about something and ready to learn.
What if I don’t have a laptop computer that I can use?
While students are free to use their own computer, we have laptops available for students to borrow during the summer. Students who borrow technology will be asked to sign a contract along with their parent/guardian.
If I don’t have a lot of writing experience, is SJI for me?
Whether you’re a published poet or you’ve never written a word, our mentor team at SJI will meet you where you are. Our job is to push you to grow as a writer – you just need to be excited about telling your story, and willing to practice writing every day.
While everyone will be required to write in some capacity, we’re open to having students work on products that aren’t explicitly writing, such as a photojournalism series.
Read articles published on the Teens in Print website.
Sign up for our newsletter to receive additional updates.
Check out our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to see photos from TiP and past Summer Journalism Institutes!
Support Great Writing
We’re committed to building impactful partnerships with organizations and individuals who are invested in the next generation.
Opportunities to volunteer—as a group or as an individual—are listed below. We aim to build mutually beneficial partnerships that support the success of young people and have opportunities throughout the year. To discuss other ways to get engaged, please contact Anne Shackleford, Director of Development and Communication.
Become a Source for Teen Writers
Offer your industry expertise to budding journalists. Add your contact information to our source list to be a valuable resource for young reporters.
When you sign up, students may reach out to you for a quote, interview, or for background information in your area of expertise. If you agree, your name and organization will be published as an authority for readership across the city.
Read for the Rising Voices Awards
The Rising Voices Awards (RVA) are presented for each quarterly cycle of Teens in Print, our writing program for Boston middle and high schoolers. Winning students receive a cash prize and special recognition on the Teens in Print website.
As a reader for RVA, you’ll celebrate excellent writing and engage in meaningful volunteering. Partners volunteer to read and score a selection of nominated articles to decide each cycles’ Rising Voices Award winners.
Contact Us
Thank you for your interest in WriteBoston. To get in touch, please use the form below or call us at 617-541-2604.
Join Our Team
Current Openings
SuccessLink Youth Leader Positions (3)
Teens in Print is WriteBoston’s afterschool program for Boston middle and high schoolers. We’re currently hiring Youth Leaders to join our program team for the 2023 school year. Applicants will be paid through the City of Boston’s SuccessLink program and must therefore be full-time Boston residents between the ages of 19 and 24 to be eligible.
You can read more about the positions available below. Links to apply are embedded in the text.
Teens in Print Afterschool Program Social Media and PR Manager
Employment dates: October 2023 – April 2024 (Dates may change depending on SuccessLink)
Hourly rate: $17.00
Hours per week: 30
Requirements:
- Must be between the ages of 19-24.
- Must be a full-time resident of the City of Boston
- Must be legally permitted to work in the United States
Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to:
- Provide Teens in Print staff feedback on program structure, content, and student engagement opportunities
- Serve as a positive role model
- Handle the Teens in Print social media which includes:
- Managing the Teens in Print’s Instagram account
- Enhancing engagement through appealing content
- Promoting programs and events effectively
- Designing visual materials for outreach
- Providing relevant information to members and the community promptly and respectfully
- Assist with ongoing Teens in Print projects
Qualifications for the position:
- Interested in helping expand your social media and PR presence
- Familiarity with social media posting and campaigns
- Feels comfortable with speaking to and leading groups of students
- Comfortable working independently but also in a team environment
Apply here: https://teensinprint.typeform.com/to/vOHpe4zY
Teens in Print Afterschool Program Writing Mentor
Employment dates: October 2023 – April 2024 (Dates may change depending on SuccessLink)
Hourly rate: $17.00
Hours per week: 30
Requirements:
- Must be between the ages of 19-24.
- Must be a full-time resident of the City of Boston
- Must be legally permitted to work in the United States
Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to:
- Provide Teens in Print staff feedback on program structure, content, and student engagement opportunities
- Assist in the facilitation of the Teens in Print curriculum which includes writing and multimedia projects
- Provide feedback on student writing weekly
- Help develop and carry out community-building activities
- Serve as a positive role model
- Handle the Teens in Print social media accounts by posting, engaging, and responding to messages
- Assist with ongoing Teens in Print projects
Qualifications for the position:
- Interested in helping students with their writing
- Some familiarity with podcasting, photography, video, or social media
- Feels comfortable with speaking to and leading groups of students
- Comfortable working independently but also in a team environment
Apply here: https://teensinprint.typeform.com/to/vOHpe4zY
Teens in Print Afterschool Program Video and Photography Leader
Employment dates: October 2023 – April 2024 (Dates may change depending on SuccessLink)
Hourly rate: $17.00
Hours per week: 30
Requirements:
- Must be between the ages of 19-24.
- Must be a full-time resident of the City of Boston
- Must be legally permitted to work in the United States
Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to:
- Provide Teens in Print staff feedback on program structure, content, and student engagement opportunities
- Assist teens with ongoing photography projects through:
- Direct instruction on photography and videography
- Feedback on student performance and products
- Demonstrating proper techniques
- Assisting and guiding students through editing processes
- Serve as a positive role model
- Assist with ongoing Teens in Print projects
- Serve as the editor and quality control for Teens in Print social media photo posts
Qualifications for the position:
- Interested in helping students develop their photography and videography skills
- Extensive experience as a photographer and videographer
- Feels comfortable with speaking to and leading groups of students
- Comfortable working independently but also in a team environment
Apply here: https://teensinprint.typeform.com/to/vOHpe4zY
Our Partners
Our partners have transformed their approach to student literacy and writing. Since 2002, we have partnered with approximately 50 schools, districts, and nonprofit organizations. To learn more about becoming a partner, please submit an inquiry through our contact form.

Madison Park Technical Vocational High School
Partnership: 2016 – 2022
“How do we prepare students to meet the complex, industry-specific writing and reading demands of technical and vocational professions?“
Madison Park Technical Vocational High School, a Boston Public turn-around school, provides training in 20 technical vocational programs.
Whether career or college bound, students need to be confident readers and writers: able to read dense technical manuals as an auto-mechanic or electrician, or document patient outcomes as a medical assistant. A WriteBoston instructional coach supports teachers as they build the literacy skills students need to succeed in their chosen fields.
Coaching has impacted early career and veteran teachers alike. A veteran teacher commented, “As an experienced educator, I really thought I didn’t need any assistance. Kelly has taught me different strategies on lesson plans, differentiated instruction, and assessments. [Coaching] allowed me to increase student achievement and instructional dialogue.”

Chelsea Public Schools
Partnership: 2015 – 2020
“How do we build capacity to support all of our students in grappling with complex reading and writing? What does this look like at every level of a school district: for teachers, coaches, and administrators?”
After six months with a WriteBoston coach supporting teachers at Wright Academy, the Chelsea Public Schools decided to think bigger. Why not transform literacy instruction across Chelsea’s three middle schools, so that every student has access to aligned and strong instruction?
District leaders knew it couldn’t happen overnight. More than that, transformation would require understanding and buy-in at every level. But together, the Chelsea Public Schools and WriteBoston designed a three-year plan to support students, teachers, coaches, administrators, and district leaders.
Initial feedback has been excellent. As one district coach wrote: “When I heard we had another trainer this year, I was less than thrilled. However, this is one training (and trainer) I actually learned from and walked away with immediate action steps, plans, ideas and resources to test out literally the next day.”

City Year Boston
Partnership: 2015 – 2019
“What literacy tools, strategies, and knowledge do City Year corps members need to support school communities and impact the students they serve?”
Nearly 200 City Year corps members work in 20+ Boston Public schools — reaching over 1,000 students each year. Corps members, young and passionate, often have little prior experience in urban education. To help them navigate their complex work in schools, City Year provides ongoing training to every corps member. When literacy was identified as a central area of need, City Year Boston called WriteBoston’s Director of Programming and Training, Jessie Gerson.
Together, WriteBoston and City Year developed a series of workshops based on core literacy practices and feedback from Corps members. And support didn’t end with workshops. To help corps members as they tested out strategies in their own schools, WriteBoston conducted classroom observations, hosted office hours for corps members, and provided thought partnering with City Year leadership.
Feedback from Corps Members has been glowing. Over nine training sessions, more than 99% of the 130+ volunteer respondents rated the trainings as “good” or “excellent” — the top two ratings on a five-point scale.

Five District Partnership
Partnership: 2015 – 2018
“What does good “grade-level” writing look like? How do we assess it, and how does that assessment guide instruction? How do we scale and align great instruction happening in one classroom to multiple classrooms, schools, and districts?”
The Five District Partnership (5DP) is an innovative joint education effort among the districts of Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Revere, and Winthrop to improve instruction and academic achievement. Born after research showed a high rate of mobility among students within the five districts, the collaborative has already made incredible progress.
WriteBoston’s relationship with the 5DP started small–with a series of summer workshops for teachers–but quickly expanded. To meet areas of critical need in literacy, WriteBoston and the 5DP launched a two-year project to design, pilot, and bring to scale argument-based writing assessments in middle schools across all five districts.
Funded by the Cummings Foundation, this project impacted an estimated 10,000 students. The work was spearheaded by a WriteBoston facilitator and a working group of coaches and teacher leaders from across five districts, who have continued to shepherd this work after the partnership officially ended.
Cove Davis, the 5DP’s Executive Administrator for Curriculum and Development, said: “WriteBoston has been one of our key professional development partners. Facilitators from WriteBoston are dynamic, experienced, and responsive to the needs of teachers.”

Boston Community Leadership Academy
Partnership: 2002 – 2015
At Boston Community Leadership Academy (BCLA), teachers and administrators alike credit WriteBoston with helping to transform the school’s approach to professional development.
Kelly Knopf-Goldner, a WriteBoston coach, worked on-site with teachers two days a week. BCLA educators say that Kelly has brought coherence and focus to teachers’ professional growth and classroom instruction.
Headmaster Brett Dickens said, “Before WriteBoston, I always found professional development to be discouraging for teachers – too many presenters with no credibility and no follow-up. Now, with Kelly, the professional development is institutionalized, planned, teacher-driven, and sustained.”

Greater Lawrence Technical School
Partnership: 2011 – 2014
Teachers at Greater Lawrence Technical School admit that they were somewhat skeptical at first about working with a WriteBoston coach. Many of them recalled frustrating past experiences with “expert consultants,” whose support was not tailored to their needs and rarely resulted in meaningful change to their practice. When Rebecca Steinitz began working with the faculty in the fall of 2011, she knew she had to deliver professional development that was relevant, customized, and actionable.
Two years later, teachers and administrators alike reported that their work with WriteBoston had a profound impact on teaching practice and on the overall culture of the school. Student writing grew dramatically in volume and quality. Teachers now hold students to high expectations for literacy, writing, and critical thinking, not only in English classes but in other academic subjects and in vocational classes as well.
Our Board
WriteBoston Board of Directors
James Tierney
Board President
Managing Director, New England Market
JLL Boston
Phillip Page
Board Vice President
Vice President of Strategic Partnerships
Cambridge College
Doug Banks
Board Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair
Executive Editor
Boston Business Journal
Frannie Moyer
Board Secretary
Career Educator, Mentor, and Volunteer
Corey Allen
NEHSJC
Caren Arnstein
Development Committee Chair
(Retired) Senior VP, Head of Corporate Communications
Sanofi Genzyme
Caitlin Dodge
Chief Executive Officer
ThinkArgus
Jenny Leopold
Yoga Teacher and Community Volunteer
Celeste Lee
Philanthropy Consultant
Adjunct Instructor, Brandeis
Nick Martin
Governance Committee Chair
Senior Director
Bully Pulpit Interactive
Deborah Spencer
Chief Marketing Officer
The Castle Group
Claudius Zorokong
Lending Officer
Rockland Trust