Our Story
A Legacy of Learning, The Evolution of Lead by Learning
Mills Teacher Scholars co-founders, Claire Bove (left), Dr. Anna Richert, and Carrie Wilson, smile alongside current Lead by Learning Executive Director Jennifer Ahn at the 2024 Inquiry in Action Forum.
Lead by Learning began as Mills Teacher Scholars. Born from the commitment and scholarship of Professor Emerita Dr. Anna Richert of the School of Education, Mills Teacher Scholars enabled graduates to convene and continue their inquiry into student learning as in-service educators in Bay Area schools. Starting with a group of 15 teachers, the group met monthly to engage in collaborative inquiry to improve their teaching.
In 2008, inspired to bring this work to more educators in the community, Carrie Wilson, herself a graduate of the Mills College School of Education and later Lead by Learning’s founding Executive Director, partnered with then Creative Director Claire Bove to design what we now know as Lead by Learning. As co-founders, Anna, Carrie, and Claire began convening teachers from across various Bay Area schools at the Mills College campus. Over the next 16 years, Lead by Learning grew into a program that supports teams of teacher leaders, district leaders, and other educators from across school systems to improve their practice in service of equitable outcomes for students.
Today, as the newest Center of Mills College at Northeastern University, Lead by Learning continues to improve students’ day-to-day experiences in the classroom by building the capacity of those best positioned to improve student learning experiences – the educators and leaders on the ground. As we enter this new chapter as a center, Lead by Learning will continue the legacy of Mills College by delivering community-centered, social justice-oriented services to our partners and leveraging the opportunities within Northeastern’s Global Network. In doing so, we continue to stay dedicated to our mission of cultivating communities of adult learners who work toward educational equity through collaborative inquiry, collective efficacy, and shared action while keeping students at the heart of teaching and leading.
To honor our legacy, we proudly launched the Anna Richert Legacy Award in Education Leadership at our Inquiry in Action Forum in May 2024. Learn more about the Inquiry in Action Forum and the award and join us in celebrating our recipients: Carrie Wilson (2024), Claire Bove (2024)
