Meet the Team

Laura Gluckman

Instructor

Laura Gluckman (they/them) is a white, disabled/chronically ill, queer, transmisogyny exempt educator and activist also in the unceded land of The Council of Three Fires, currently known as Chicago, IL. Laura worked as a Science and Humanities educator in Chicago Public Schools for 14+ years. In the classroom they developed units of study and inquiry-based lessons that went beyond the prescribed curricula, engaging young people with a variety of media and social justice topics. They are passionate about creating liberatory and culturally sustaining experiences in the classroom, and learning how to dismantle white supremacist understandings of knowledge alongside young people. Laura believes in fluidity of expertise between teacher and student, centering interconnectedness and care in the classroom. Laura weaves participatory action research processes into units of study to foster critical questioning, interdisciplinary skill-building, and as a way for students to critique systems of injustice while also imagining and creating the world they want to live in. Laura is a member of the TEAACH Nuclear History Project, a curricular project that teaches young people to critically examine the nuclear power industry and its politics of disposability. They also advocate for disability and Long COVID justice through Care Not COVID Chicagoland. Laura also enjoys gardening, collecting fossil rocks at the lake, and spoiling their fur and lizard babies. Many young people have called them Mx. Frizzle and they love that!

Arielle Rebekah

Instructor

Arielle Rebekah (they/them) is a queer, trans, disabled, anti-Zionist Jewish organizer and activist based in the unceded land of The Council of Three Fires, currently known as Chicago, IL. Through their writing, public speaking, and narrative strategy development, they seek to create the broadest possible "we"—a contingent of people who come together across race, class, genders, and political ideologies to fight for the world we all deserve. An admirer of media’s ability to shape culture, Arielle's all-time favorite show is The Good Place. This understatedly profound and thoughtful comedy dares to dream of a world in which rather than being punished for their mistakes, people are given the love and support they need to do good.

Arielle Rebekah has a BA in Psychology & Women and Gender Studies from Ramapo College of New Jersey. They have worked in queer and trans advocacy for nearly a decade, particularly at the intersections of disability justice, reproductive justice, & migrant justice.

Board of Directors