Specialist Jode Brexa spent more than 4 weeks implementing a career readiness camp for 97 secondary school girls from North and South Kolkata, India, working in conjunction with staff from Vikramshila Education Resource Society, a non-profit based in Kolkata. She designed and delivered a three-day experiential learning workshop for 18 staff members to gain experience with instructional theory and methods for English language learners. Brexa also attended a month-long camp to mentor teachers and oversee curriculum revisions. These efforts helped the program reach underprivileged girls and empower them to view themselves as young future career women. The newly-trained staff can now expand their own professional growth by taking these new skills to various schools, institutes, and programs across the region.
Jode Brexa, Ed. S., has taught and trained at secondary and post-secondary institutions in the United States, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe for more than 30 years. She has guided curriculum development for district, national, and international projects. Brexa’s education achievements have been highlighted nationally and she has received the Congressman Jared Polis Teaching Excellence Award in 2009, a State Department Teaching Excellence and Achievement Award in 2010, a TEA Alumni Grant in 2011, and a Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching in 2013.