Kristen N. Briggs is joining the ABC team as our founding Managing Director of Program! In this role, Kristen will build on the dynamic work that we launched with our pilot and guide ABC through a period of refining and thoughtfully codifying our program with an eye for scaling our work. She joins the ABC team with over a decade of experience as a Special Education teacher, school and network leader, and nonprofit director. Kristen has been supporting schools and districts with navigating complex change through strategic planning and improvement and is eager to begin working with our partners in an area that has always been close to her heart – supporting students with diverse learning needs. Kristen is a proud graduate of Morgan State University where she earned a B.S. in Psychology and also holds a Masters Degree in Secondary Education from Chestnut Hill College.
Check out Kristen’s thoughts on joining the ABC team and her journey with Special Education below.
WOW! To say I’m excited is an understatement, this definitely feels like a full circle moment. I had no idea when I became a Special Education teacher years ago just how much that decision would impact my life, career and outlook on what is possible in education.
As a novice teacher, I learned early on that students will meet whatever bar we set for them – low or high – and it’s our responsibility to ensure they have the necessary programming to succeed. It was my mission and commitment that the bar for my students be exceptionally high because they were capable of exceptional things.
This mindset has driven everything I have done throughout my career – in the classroom and as a school and network leader. The belief that with the right support and services, students can achieve anything far and beyond what anyone can imagine has guided my work in building and maintaining quality, inclusive and impactful K-12 Special Education programs. As my career journey took me into the nonprofit sector, my heart for Special Education and that prevailing mindset of what is possible for students has been at the core of everything I do. As I join the team at ABC, I’m so grateful to return to the world of Special Education and continue growing the work Sarah and the team have started.
The true goal of this work is not to be the knower of all things, but instead to support leaders and teachers with tapping into their own brilliance to achieve incredible outcomes. That’s what joining the ABC team affords me the opportunity to do. To partner with schools and districts, help them tap into their brilliance for supporting diverse learners and maximize that to provide quality, impactful programming and services. I am thrilled for this opportunity and look forward to the incredible work ahead!
