Danbury Principal & Newtown Resident Named Distinguished Fellow


Nine educators selected from New England

Frank LaBanca, principal at Westside Middle School Academy, was recently chosen as one of nine “Jobs for the Future’s Students at the Center Distinguished Fellows.”

Jobs for the Future (JFF) is a national nonprofit that builds educational and economic opportunity for underserved populations in the United States. It develops innovative career and educational programs and public policies that increase college readiness and career success, and build a more highly skilled workforce.

The fellows are a diverse group of nine leaders in policy, practice and research from around New England, each selected for his or her vision, contributions and impact in the student-centered learning movement in the region. The nine fellows comprise the inaugural cohort and were selected from a highly competitive field of nearly 40 applicants from across New England.

The fellows were also chosen because of their passion and desire to learn, grow, and share knowledge.

“These fellows are uniquely qualified to leverage research findings toward the creation of student-centered learning at scale,” said Eve Goldberg, Nellie Mae Education Foundation’s director of research. Nellie Mae provided anchor funding for the research collaborative. “They were chosen not only based on their impressive qualifications but their drive for moving this field forward across New England and beyond.”

LaBanca was chosen as a practitioner fellow, meaning that he has proven expertise in achieving positive and equitable academic outcomes using student-centered learning approaches in multiple settings. The fellows will gather in November in Boston to begin work as part of the  Student-Centered Learning Research Collaborative.

LaBanca has been principal at the WSMSA since its opening in 2014. He is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, has a master’s degree from the University of Bridgeport, and an educational doctorate in instructional leadership from Western Connecticut State University. He lives with his wife and their two daughters in Newtown.

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Submitted by Danbury, CT

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