For this Profile in Practice, we hear from Dr. Dawn Brooks-DeCosta. Dawn began her service of teaching 27 years ago. She served as a teacher for the NYC Department of Education (NYCDOE) in Harlem for 16 years, and served as principal of Thurgood Marshall Academy Lower School (TMALS) for the nine years. She is currently the Deputy Superintendent for Community School District 5 at the NYCDOE. Dawn’s numerous awards and recognitions for her work include the 1998 Teacher of the Year, the Heroes of Education Award 2002 for her work with students involving the 9/11 tragedy (highlighted in CNN’s “Through a Child’s Eyes”), and Outstanding Educator 2002. She is a 2015 Marvin Mauer Spotlight Award winner through her work with Yale Institute and the RULER Approach for Emotional Intelligence, and a 2020 Lois Mailou Jones Art Education Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Dawn received her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from Teachers College, Columbia University; her M.S. in Fine Art Education from Queens College; and a B.S. in Education from St. John’s University.
