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For teachers and clinicians in their first, second and third years at CPS— especially new educators of color—there are so many pressures and pitfalls to navigate. No wonder CPS has lost so many teachers of color over the past twenty years. The CTU is determined to build connections that ensure newer clinicians and teachers in their first, second and third years find success.
Register today for the We Care Program for New Teachers and Clinicians, as a part of the Illinois Virtual Coaching and Mentoring program. This program is a union-led, CTU initiative in partnership with CPS.
The We Care Program provides:
- A framework for We Care coaching
- Two experienced professionals to support you:
- A Virtual Instructional Coach to support you with curriculum development, classroom management, pedagogy, IEP’s, and other issues specific to your subject, grade, and area of expertise
- An In-Building Mentor to help you navigate the culture and climate of your school and the wider community
- Professional Development Units
- A $500 stipend for participating
My mentor has been giving me exceptional advice on how to improve my teaching practices and excel in my professional responsibilities. Furthermore, she has offered me emotional support when needed. This is my first year teaching in person, and it has been at times very stressful. Ms. Alba has helped me stay strong and believe in my unique qualities as a teacher. Her smile and positive energy are contagious. She does not simply answer my multiple questions but authentically cares for my overall success as a teacher. She is incredible.

Second year teaching 1st Grade
Jerrica and Timothy are the most amazing mentors. They’ve helped me navigate and celebrate many of the struggles, challenges and triumphs that we, as new teachers, have to go through on a daily basis — in particular during the pandemic. Having support from both of my mentors has given me the drive and desire to continue to be the amazing teacher that I have always dreamed of becoming and that I am. I hold near and dear to my heart the lasting relationships built with other educators from other CTU schools/communities. This means that I can collaborate and learn from other educators that have the same beliefs and values.

Twenty-year educator, second year Special Education Teacher
Hear more about the We Care program
Hear presenters from the IFT, CTU and NEA discuss the development and impact of We Care and similar programs statewide in a webinar prepared for the Illinois State Board of Education.
Application Form

Tara Stamps
Administrator of New Teacher Development
Tara was first inspired to become a community leader by her mother, the late Civil Rights activist Marion Stamps, who fought tirelessly for racial equity and affordable housing in Chicago. Following in her mother’s footsteps, Tara has long been engaged in the movement for living wages, economic justice, and fairness within the workplace for all Chicagoans. She has consistently been involved in service to the community, currently serving as the chair of the board of directors of the Marion Nzinga Stamps Youth Center.
In 2018, the American Federation of Teachers gave Tara a Living Legend Award, and in 2010 she received the Chicago Teacher Union Leader award. In sum, Tara is an outstanding educator and advocate who seeks “to curate an authentic, socially conscious, civically engaging coaching and mentoring experience through the CTU lens with a goal of retaining more teachers of color in our classrooms. Because representation matters.”
Meet Some of Our Virtual Instructional Coaches

Karyn Aguirre
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
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Dion Love
HS English Teacher and Instructional Coach
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Marisol Nieves
HS Spanish Teacher
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Jerrica Omoware
Middle School Special Education Teacher
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Tlaloc Rodriguez
School Social Worker
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Alyssa Silva-Rafi
Elementary School Teacher
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Kimberly Walls
Middle School Special Education Teacher
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Apply for the We Care Program
CTU Speaks! Podcast
Our podcast, CTU Speaks! is hosted by Andrea Parker and Jim Staros. We’ll chat about our union, enforcing our contract, and our fight for the schools our students and educators deserve.