Alumni Profile
Anna Novogratz ’14 Inspired to Teach Special Education By Stephanie Huie, Associate Director of Digital Communications & Publications
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f Anna Novogratz could give one thing to every student, what would she give to them? An education at The Windward School. Why? After three years at Windward, the trajectory of Anna’s life was radically altered. She received endless support from her teachers, which instilled a desire for her to help others with disabilities, and she curated a toolbox of useful lifelong skills, which helped her reach her full potential. Anna’s experience at Windward had a profound impact on her, and her journey as a dyslexic led her to where she is today. Following her graduation from Princeton University last June, Anna joined Teach for America as a special education teacher at a public elementary and middle school in the South Side of Chicago. The main reason she chose to work in her specific position was because of her time at Windward. “From my teachers at Windward, I learned how much change one person can effect,” asserts Anna. “After experiencing that level of support myself, I decided that I wanted to be a special education teacher, so I could teach kids with disabilities how to read because the ability to read is the key to life. Being a teacher is a real privilege; you can really make an impact on someone’s life.” She teaches a range of grades and subjects, including thirdand fourth-grade math, seventh- and eighth-grade English, and seventh- and eighth-grade social studies. All of Anna’s students have special needs, from moderate to severe cases. Her school’s neighborhood, though vibrant and full of Latinx culture, has been plagued with poverty and gun violence over the years, and the district lacks sufficient resources. Although Anna admits that every day presents a different kind of battle, she loves her students and believes strongly in her work as an educator. Anna tells her students every day that each of them can achieve their goals if they truly work hard. She shares with them stories of her journey from feeling isolated and angry as a young child to gaining confidence from Windward’s specialized program to earning a degree from her dream school of Princeton. Anna was diagnosed with dyslexia when she was in second grade. She recounts the moment when her family knew it was time for her to get tested. Her younger brother was learning to rhyme, so the family was naming words that rhymed with ‘cat.’
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The Compass Spring/Summer 2019
Anna and her thesis The Cost of Courage: The Robert R. Moton Students, the NAACP, and Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County
Anna remembers feeling certain that her answer was right when she screamed ‘beaver.’ Her mother then suspected dyslexia. Her own father was a dyslexic, and she thought the rhyme misunderstanding could be an indicator. Meanwhile, going to school was a draining experience for Anna. She desperately wanted to be able to read, to be like her peers, and grasp what was happening in the classroom. Despite her best efforts to be an engaged student, she had no success. With no explanation as to why, this led to extreme frustration. Anna constantly experienced moments where she felt like a failure—being unable to open a locker or tell time in front of the class—so she frequently lashed out at home. Finally, after her official diagnosis and much research seeking a place that could best help Anna, the Novogratz family found The Windward School. “My grandfather had dyslexia, and he was an extremely successful man who spoke multiple languages and had a PhD,”
At Windward, I was the priority for the first time in a long time.
