All week I’ve been wondering what I could say about the horrific acts and responses to Charlottesville. What could I say that hadn’t already been said about racism, oppression, hate, and injustice? What could I say that would encourage others and myself to keep fighting for liberty, humanity, and justice in the midst of heartbreak?

Well, yesterday I was wrapping up my workday scrolling through the #WhyITeach hashtag on Instagram for inspiration for TeachDFW’s social media channels. I found encouragement for myself. I found hope in the power of seemingly ordinary people to fight for justice, and to win that fight. I wanted to share that piece of hope with you, future teachers. Perhaps you’ll realize you can be more powerful than you ever imagined.

While scrolling through the Instagram posts of teachers all over this country, I saw over and over again the immovable conviction, purpose, and power among teachers who know that they have an incredible ability to lead, change lives and change this country from their classrooms. Their sense of responsibility, and therefore their acknowledgment of their own power, was clear to me. They know that as teachers they have the power to shape citizens who will use their voices to speak the truth in love, who will use their privilege to empower, and who will use their knowledge to create a world that is better than the one we live in now. These teachers know they have the power to vastly reduce the impacts that decades of racist policies have created on educational and life outcomes for far too many of our students. They know that they have the power to show love in a world that sometimes seems more hateful than not.

Teachers have power, teachers can resist, teachers are game-changers. And they know it:

Being a teacher is an opportunity to become an agent of change. Is the chance to support your community and to support the creation of the leaders of tomorrow. We teachers, are our nation's hope for a better future.

-Mr. Lopez, Dallas ISD

Teachers have the amazing power to educate the future of our country. Teachers can build bonds and bridges where no one else can.

-Ms. Mock, Grand Prairie ISD

Being in education allows you to influence the future. The education professional has the ability to help break family cycles of poverty and all that comes with living in poverty…Education uplifts entire families and communities.

- Ms. Rustenhaven, Grand Prairie ISD

Teachers have a tremendous platform to impact change across their community. It takes an unrelenting tenacity and dedication to leave a positive impact on students beyond the classroom, but that is the most rewarding product of any profession I can imagine. The future of this profession relies on having future generations of teachers motivated and passionate about the content they teach and the lives they can impact.

-Mr. Lyons, Uplift Education

I am thankful for the teachers all over Dallas-Fort Worth who will dive into social justice work this year (and honestly, that can be all of them). I am thankful for the teachers who will pursue justice by having hard conversations, by teaching hard truths, by being committed to becoming the best teacher they can be, by never giving up on their students and by loving them fiercely through it all.

Are you ready to pursue justice through teaching? Are you ready to resist and change this country? Complete your ‘Roadmap to Teaching’ and we’ll help you figure out if it’s right for you and if so, what your next steps are.

Future teachers, know that I have a lot of hope in you.

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Carissa Grisham wakes up every morning thinking about how to inspire and support future teachers through her work at The Commit Partnership and by helping run the TeachDFW campaign. She considers herself the ultimate fan-girl of the city of Dallas and great teachers. Have an idea to help future teachers? Share it with her at email