Dr. Towanda Harris is an expert in educational leadership and child and adolescent literacy, including a focus on rigorous instructional planning.
Her teaching, writing, and research support educators in examining instructional resources and practices through a critical lens that helps teachers match their understanding of their student’s needs to their individual goals. Her passion to elevate teachers’ voices through her podcast, “My Two Cents”, provides a space for a community of educators to share their personal stories with each other.
Towanda is the author of The Right Tools: A Guide to Selecting, Evaluating, and Implementing Classroom Resources and Practices. Her experience ranges from a classroom teacher, staff developer, literacy content specialist, and an instructional coach. Currently an Instructional Leadership Coordinator and an adjunct professor of reading and writing in Atlanta, Georgia, she brings years of experience to the education world. As a member of the #G2Great Twitter Chat team of educators, Towanda enjoys engaging in meaningful dialogue that challenges education and centers students in the process.
Towanda’s teaching journey began in an urban school in Atlanta, Georgia, with third-grade students. She eventually transitioned to the role of an Early Intervention Program specialist where she began to provide additional reading and math support to third through fifth-grade students each year. Soon after, as a literacy coach for the Georgia Reading First program, she began providing professional learning to teachers across the state of Georgia. Towanda’s Doctorate in Educational Leadership has provided her with opportunities to support school leaders throughout the state and has allowed her to return to her Historically Black College and University alma mater, Clark Atlanta University, as an adjunct professor.
Teachers turn to her to learn how to employ resources, blend them with best practices, and help all students reach their full potential. Towanda has presented workshops, webinar series, and on-site professional learning throughout the country. Some of her workshops include the Wisconsin State Reading Association (WSRA) Conference, Learning Forward Conference, National Reading Recovery LitCon Conference, Indiana State Literacy Association Conference (ISLA), GDOE Impacting Student Learning Conference, and the Public Education and Business Coalition (PEBC) Conference. In addition, she is a member of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), International Literacy Association (ILA), and Literacy Consultants Coalition (LCC).