Emily Freitag is the co-founder and CEO of Instruction Partners, a nonprofit organization that works shoulder to shoulder with schools and districts to support great teaching and accelerate student learning. Prior to this role, she was the Assistant Commissioner of Curriculum and Instruction for the Tennessee Department of Education. In this capacity, she oversaw K-12 core academics, including standards, assessment design, instructional materials, and educator training and support. She led a collaborative effort to train more than 65,000 teachers and leaders during this time in a peer-led, content-based approach, and Tennessee saw increases in student achievement on both NAEP and state tests. At the Department, she also managed implementation of educator evaluation and served as Chief of Staff, supporting the development of the strategic plan. For five years before coming to Tennessee, Emily managed Teach For America’s D.C. and Connecticut Regions. In this capacity, she oversaw the support of 1,000 teachers as well as the district partnerships, alumni coordination, and fundraising efforts. She fell in love with education teaching 7th grade math in Opelousas, Louisiana, at Opelousas Junior High School (Geaux Tigers!). She graduated from Yale University and studied history with a focus on the jurisprudential history of the civil rights movement.
