Acelynn Perkins
Acelynn Perkins
Pronouns: she/her
Graduation year: BA 2018 with Elementary Licensure
Hometown: Denver, CO
Currently living in: Denver, CO
Current occupation: PhD Candidate & Instructor at the University of Colorado Boulder
What was your experience at CC like as an Education major?
I loved my experience at CC as an Education major! The project-based and experiential emphasis of the coursework allowed me to learn as much about myself- and the experiences that had shaped how I understood the world- as I did about education, teaching, and learning. My learning was about so much more than just educational theories and practices; I was constantly invited to connect what I was learning to real contexts, real communities, real questions, and my own developing sense of who I wanted to be. The relationships, though, were what made my undergraduate experience truly special. The Education Department felt like home. I knew I had people who cared deeply about me, challenged me to think differently, and believed wholeheartedly in my potential to become something bigger than myself.
Why were you interested in focusing on Education as your major?
I initially came to CC with interests in sociology and psychology, but quickly fell in love with Education which was my first block after my FYP. I was drawn to the major because the courses brought together so many of the questions I was already curious about: How do people learn? How are our identities and experiences shaped by the communities around us? How do larger social systems shape what is possible for individuals and communities? So, I especially appreciated that the Education courses offered critical analyses of systems of power and encouraged me to see differently what happens in classrooms, schools, and communities and how policies and practices shape that.
Although I initially wasn't sure I wanted to pursue license and teach, the coursework really reframed my understanding of teaching as so much more than teaching content and supporting academic learning and is deeply connected to questions of identity, opportunity, belonging, justice, and power. My Education major paired particularly well with my pursuit of a minor in Race, Ethnicity, and Migration Studies, which gave me a more comprehensive understanding of education as embedded within social and political systems and broader historical legacies of resistance and helped me see education as a powerful site for transformation.
How are you using your major in your post-CC life?
Post CC, I've worked as an educator in a number of schools in the Denver-metro area- first in Elementary, then Middle School, and now in Higher Ed! I'm currently an instructor in the Elementary and Middle School & High School teaching departments in the School of Education at the University of Colorado Boulder (and sometimes CC! I often have the privilege of TAing courses in the Education Department). I'm also a PhD candidate in CU's School of Education, where my work as a researcher and teacher educator focuses on anti-oppressive teacher education, racial literacy, educator diversity, and designing more just and community-grounded pathways into teaching. I have also worked in curriculum design, professional learning, and initiatives supporting more inclusive learning environments for educators and young people with a variety of partners across the state and nation.
My time as an Ed major provided a foundation in both theory and practice for imagining and working toward more liberatory educational futures. The grounding in concepts like educational equity, intersectional justice, community partnership, experiential learning, and pedagogies of transformation all continue to shape how I approach this work today, particularly in how I create learning experiences that aim to support both teachers and young people to understand and transform themselves, their communities, and the world around them. Further, the relationships I built while in the Ed department taught me that this work is work we do not and cannot do alone! My professional life and trajectory has been directly shaped by the communities, colleagues, students, and mentors who taught me (and continue to teach me along the way)!
I am incredibly grateful to CC not only for giving me hands-on opportunities to apply cutting-edge theories and practices in education, but for giving me the intellectual grounding, relationships, and sense of possibility that continue to guide my work today.