Mercy Baez has been chosen by Fulbright Teacher Exchanges to take part in its Distinguished Awards in Teaching Research Program. The Salem native is one of 20 individuals selected for this year’s award cycle. The program gives winners the opportunity to conduct research about other countries’ education systems in order to better themselves, their schools, and perhaps the United States.
Baez started her career as a teaching assistant at Marblehead Community Charter Public School. After earning her master’s degree, she became a full-time Spanish teacher at MCCPS. After two years, she taught at Boston Public Schools for a short time before moving to Marblehead and teaching fifth grade in her hometown’s public school system. She is entering her third year as a teacher in Salem.
Baez originally applied in February, and made it to the interview round in late April before she was eventually chosen. Her research idea came from a problem she feels exists in the country’s educational system.
“Local schools have anti-racist pedagogy and things they want teachers to do,” Baez said. “But I wanted to learn more about it and how other countries are doing it from the top-down. I felt like a lot of it is put on teachers in the U.S. to do anti-racism in their classrooms but it’s not coming from the top-down, so we don’t have that many policies or organizations that are doing this and training people.”
Baez is headed for the United Kingdom to conduct her research. She specifically hopes to end up in Glasgow, Scotland as she feels the city has a great example of institutional inclusion policies.
“They are doing that at a government level,” Baez said. “They’re passing laws and being really proactive instead of reactive.”
While Baez’s exact departure date is not yet set, she expects to leave next April and return in July with a whole new perspective.