Get to know Carissa

Carissa believes classrooms can be places of deep trust and joyful learning. With more than fifteen years of experience across public, charter, and private schools, she has helped design and teach in multiple innovative middle schools in Denver, Colorado, including a micro-school embedded in a coffee shop where students learned through real-world business challenges. A learner-centered educator and facilitator, she has shared her work through Edutopia, the Association for Middle Level Education, and at national conferences, including SXSW EDU and Deeper Learning.

Carissa lives in Colorado, where she teaches at Denver Green School Northfield, hikes with her sons, adds avocados to nearly every meal, and dances and sings her way through the kitchen. Teaching with Trust: Creating Space for Learner Agency and Connection is her first book.