Founder, New Teacher Center

Ellen Moir began her career as a First-Grade Teacher at Grace Thille Elementary in Santa Paula, California. She went on to serve as the Executive Director of the New Teacher Center at the University of California–Santa Cruz for eleven years. Most recently, she served as the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of New Teacher Center (NTC), a national organization dedicated to improving student learning by accelerating the effectiveness of new teachers, experienced teachers, and school leaders. She is recognized as a passionate advocate for our nation’s newest teachers and for the students they teach. Founded by teachers in 1998, NTC works in conjunction with school districts, state policymakers, and educators across the country to increase the effectiveness of teachers and school leaders at all levels. Ellen is widely recognized for her work in teacher development, teacher effectiveness, and school reform. She believes the best way to ensure all students are college-, career-, and community-ready is to provide educators at every level with the support necessary to succeed from their first day of teaching to their last.

Ellen is widely recognized for her work in beginning-teacher development and school reform. She has extensive experience in public education, having previously served as Director of Teacher Education at the University of California at Santa Cruz and worked as a bilingual teacher. Ellen became an Ashoka Fellow in 2011 and is a recipient of the 2011 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship. Other major awards include the 2010 Civic Ventures Purpose Prize Fellow; 2008 National Staff Development Council Contribution to the Field Award; the 2008 Full Circle Fund Impact Award; the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. 2005 Prize in Education; and the 2003 California Council on Teacher Education Distinguished Teacher Educator Award. Ellen has also co-authored many publications, including Keys to the Elementary Classroom, Keys to the Secondary Classroom, New Teacher Mentoring: Hopes and Promise for Improving Teacher Effectiveness, and Blended Coaching: Skills and Strategies to Support Principal Development.