James R. Doolittle Academy
CPS neighborhood elementary school serving grades pre-k through 8th. Located in historic Bronzeville on Chicago's southside. Home of the rockets!
About
At JRD, we feel the world is our stage. We approach all that we do with the excellence, energy, and confidence that can only come from preparation and hard work. Each student reaches their potential by following four guiding principles:Think, Dream, Believe, and Achieve.It is in this mindset that students approach the stage of life with vigor and moxy, eagerly waiting for ACTION!
We want every student to feel, “My teacher sees me.” To foster those connections, we train our staff in active listening and equip them to both meet and anticipate student needs. By laying out clear structures and systems—defining when and how adults should step in—we ensure our students experience the same care and respect we’d demand if they were our own children in school.At Doolittle, our instruction is driven by one central question: What does our student data tell us? We believe that our students’ needs—not personal preferences—should shape how we grow as educators. When data shows that students are struggling in a particular area, such as math, our team responds by developing and facilitating PD sessions that target those gaps.Our commitment to anti-racist education means we do not separate data from identity. We ask hard questions: Who is succeeding in our school? Who isn’t? Why? We examine how race, trauma, language, and access shape student outcomes and challenge ourselves to disrupt inequitable systems within our classrooms and the school as a whole.Children learn through planned and engaging activities that provide school-wide, hands-on learning experiences. These experiences, led by both ancillary and classroom teachers, make learning interactive and celebrated throughout the school in the form of games, contests, and other engaging activities. By adjusting the curriculum based on school-wide data, we ensure that learning is relevant, challenging, and fun.
Chicago Public Schools
Staff
Administration
Principal Iysha Jones
[email protected]Assistant Principal Judith Hill
[email protected]
Teachers
Sarah Koviack
[email protected]Cortney Schoen-Rubini
[email protected]Robert Cron
[email protected]Miranda Wanker
[email protected]Sade Brown-Simms
[email protected]Eulisa Jerez
[email protected]Shaka Ford
[email protected]Georgina Tisdale
[email protected]Celia Melendez
[email protected]Robert Ludlow
[email protected]Corey Lee
[email protected]Kelly Crisler
[email protected]Deborah Guardiario
[email protected]Tierre Brunson
[email protected]Valerie Lane
[email protected]Kristal Coleman
[email protected]Christopher Riggs
[email protected]Tiffany Jackson
[email protected]Amerson Fontana
[email protected]
Special Education Classroom Assistants
Jaleah Robinson
jrobinson104@cpsDeriqua Gipson
dgipson9@cpsJennifer Franklin
jfranklin82@cpsShavaughn Banks
sjbanks4@cpsVanessa Moultry
vmoultry@cpsTamika Gipson
ttgipson2@cpsAlison Lechowicz
amlechowicz@cpsMathew Rodriguez
mrodriguez512@cps
Support Staff
Albert Kerwin III
akerwiniii@cps
Security
Kim Thomas
kthomas42@cpsJerry Walker
jlwalker3@cps