Using Stories to Explore Persistence, Resilience, Voice, and Allyship with Students

Molly is the Program Manager for the Girl Rising US Educator Program. Previously she managed Girl Rising's global storytelling challenge. She is an educator, documentary filmmaker and storyteller. She spent ten years living and working in South Africa exploring issues of education, youth, race, and community and she believes strongly in the potential of stories to effect social change.  She co-authored the book How To Fix South Africa’s Schools: Lessons from Schools That Work, and produced/directed a 19-part series of short videos about successful schools that serve poor communities. Her work has included creating social impact, educational and outreach campaigns for films and helping several national non-profits tell the stories of their work on equity, education and juvenile justice. Molly taught 5th grade for two years in Washington DC, has a Masters in Journalism from the University of California, Berkeley, and was a Fulbright Scholar.

Kayce is senior advisor at Girl Rising and director of the US Educator Program. She has been with Girl Rising since its inception as part of The Documentary Group, which she co-founded.  Before that, as a producer for ABC News, she covered international and national news while based in London, Atlanta and New York.  She produced for virtually every ABC News broadcast and was on the staffs of Nightline, World News Tonight and 20/20.  Kayce currently serves on the boards of SOLA - School of Leadership Afghanistan and Win, New York City’s largest provider of shelter to homeless families; she also sits on the advisory board of the Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center. 

teacher. For the last seventeen years, Ali has been teaching reading and writing in fifth grade at traditional public schools and public charter schools. Ali revels in the opportunity to nurture readers and writers and discussing the world with young people. As an educator, Ali explores teacher development and training both in the United States and in various rural communities in East Africa. Ali specializes in curriculum writing, implementing and sharing learning around culturally sustaining pedagogy, and educational leadership.

 When not in a classroom or school, Ali enjoys traveling the world, playing with her dog, Archie, and spending time scouring the shelves of independent bookstores.