Deeper Learning 2023

Dr. Rochelle Gutiérrez’ research interrogates the unearned privilege that mathematics holds in society and the roles that race, class, language, and gender play in teaching/learning mathematics so as to open up new possible relationships between humans, mathematics/science, and the planet.  
 She has served on a number of national panels and committees, including most recently the writing team of the Standards for Preparing Mathematics Teachers organized by the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators. Recognized for the work she has conducted and the theories on equity she has offered to the field, she has earned the Excellence in Research Award from the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators; the Innovations in Research in Equity and Social Justice in Teacher Education Award from the American Educational Research Association; Distinguished Educator in the Pedagogy of Success in Urban Schools by Pace University; Circle Holder within Science for the People; featured mathematician in Latinx/Hispanics in the Mathematical Sciences (LATHISMS) and various podcasts including Abolition Science. Her work has been published in such journals as American Educational Research Journal, Mathematical Thinking and Learning, Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, Harvard Educational Review, Democracy and Education, Urban Review, and Mathematics Teacher. She recently co-edited the book Rehumanizing Mathematics for Black, Indigenous, and Latinx students.  
For the past 25 years, she has been deeply and passionately invested in supporting teachers of mathematics and science to navigate the politics of their local work environments. Her work on Rehumanizing Mathematics and creative insubordination has been used in K-12 settings and university/college mathematics and science departments in the US and beyond. Moreover, building upon the concept of Living Mathematx (pronounced math-ma-TESH), she has argued for a spiritual turn in mathematics education research, which relies on Indigenous perspectives and futures.

Curtis Taylor is currently serving as an Improvement Coach at High Tech High’s Center for Research on Equity & Innovation in San Diego, California, with 10+ years of teaching experience. Taylor's passion is for every student to see themselves as a brilliant mathematician. Because of his passion, Taylor has made equity in math his priority. He has served as the co-project director for the Lesson Study Fellowship at all High Tech High Schools, a collaborative effort to promote more equitable practices in math classrooms. Also, Taylor is a faculty member of High Tech High’s Graduate School of Education, where he directs and co-teaches the M.Ed in Teaching & Learning program of the San Diego Teacher Residency. Taylor holds a B.A in Elementary Education from Clemson University, a M.Ed. from the University of San Diego, and his Ed.D in Educational Leadership from the University of California San Diego.  His dissertation focused on the impact of lesson studies on middle school teacher’s self-efficacy in culturally relevant mathematics instruction. 

Yekaterina Milvidskaia is a Math specialist and improvement coach working within the Center for Research on Equity & Innovation. She coaches teachers that are part of the Mathematical Agency Improvement Community (MAIC), a network of 18 southern California schools working to abolish the phrase “I am not a math person.” Prior to joining High Tech High, she taught middle school math with the goal of helping her students develop their mathematical identities. Yekaterina has facilitated professional development for various San Diego districts, teacher education programs, and has co-written curriculum.