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Islah Tauheed’s return to Newark schools is a much-anticipated homecoming that carries on her family’s legacy.
The Newark native who recently became vice principal of Avon Elementary School comes from generations of educators and advocates for public education in the city. She started her career at the now-closed Miller Street School, where her grandmother went to school as a child. Her grandmother later became a school cafeteria worker and Tauheed’s mother spent 30 years as a special education teacher in the city.
As a school leader, Tauheed is now focused on creating a welcoming environment for new immigrant students and a joyful workplace for staff. She’s also prioritizing small group literacy instruction for K-3 classes.
When we last caught up with her, Tauheed was teaching English language arts at P.S. 567 Linden Tree Elementary Schoo l in the Bronx. After 12 years there, she returned to Newark last summer. “I thrived as an educator in New York City, but for every amazing thing I did, there was a voice in the back of my head that said, ‘I wish I was doing this for my own community,’” she said in a recent interview with Chalkbeat Newark.