Leah Gaines, Blacklick, OH leahgaines@cpm.org
I became a teacher because I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to change the way students experience math and the way they see themselves as mathematicians. As a teacher, I made a difference for 120 students each year. Once I had been teaching for several years, I wanted to expand my reach. I became department chair and coached fellow teachers in my school and district to make a difference for their students. In this position, I made a difference for over a thousand students each year. Then I had the opportunity to expand my reach even further. After over a decade in the classroom, I became a curriculum writer for CPM and now I write curricula that make a difference for tens of thousands of students each year.
As a curriculum writer, not only do I get to help teachers across the country and all over the world make a difference for their students, but I get to do the fun and interesting work of digging into how and why people teach the way they do. I get to investigate the latest research on best practices in teaching math and discover ways to weave them into CPM’s already fantastic curriculum. I get to collaborate with the wealth of experienced and knowledgeable teachers that make up CPM and learn every day. And I get to do this all from home. I get to cut out all the time I used to waste commuting, which allows me to meet my son at his bus stop at the end of the day and have lunch with my husband when he works from home. I get to use my paid volunteer time off to help out in my son’s classroom. And, most fun of all, I get to travel all over the US to meet with my colleagues on our writing team.
I am so grateful to CPM for the opportunity to do such important work. I truly love what I do and am excited for what is to come.
We are looking for more writers to join our team, so please consider applying and embarking on this fulfilling and rewarding journey with us!