"Your (Leah's) work needs to be known everywhere, so others can be inspired by your actions."
-Forest Whitaker (US Actor & Producer)
Praise & Reviews
Former President & CEO of NNSTOY
Executive Director, NJ Tutoring Corps and CEO at Tall Poppy, LLC
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President & CEO during Leah's Stoy year
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Leah Juelke is a passionate advocate for marginalized young people. Her commitment to education for all children is palpable. Leah is a consummate professional. She is a dynamo and it is an honor to work with Leah. Without hesitation, I recommend Leah as a professional colleague.
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Program Manager, Sanford Inspire at National University Systems
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Worked with Leah as project manager, and facilitation contract work & National University Teacher of the Year Trainings
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Leah is not only an award-winning educator, but she is a true teacher leader as she shares her best practices and advocates for all students on educator webinars, at conferences and within her vast network. I have worked with her behind the scenes on planning webinars where I have seen first hand her commitment and organization, and she still always maintains a humble perspective. I have seen how she has taught her immigrant students the power of their voice by helping them publish their own journeys. Leah is such a compassionate educator who is truly making a difference in her community and beyond. You would be fortunate to work with her.
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Co-Founder and Chief Education Officer
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Worked with Leah
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Leah is focused on young people, providing spaces for their voices to be heard and experiences to be shared. Through their writing, Leah guides them on a path for personal growth, independent learning and self-fulfillments. This commitment and refined practice makes Leah a very special person and a unique professional.
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Abbey Leier-Murphey
Instructional Designer | Relationship Builder | Adult Instructor 💻 & 👩🏻🏫
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Leah supervised Abbey & mentored her as a cooperating teacher for her student teaching experience.
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Leah is an excellent advocate for the voices of all students, but especially immigrants and refugees. Her narrative project has taken her and her students from the classroom to publishing, speaking engagements, training, and so much more. Leah was an exemplary mentor to have as a student teacher and I am always looking forward to seeing the next step her and her students take to shine.
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Stacy Duffield
Professor & Director of Teaching and Learning at North Dakota State University
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Leah’s Supervisor, Teacher, Collaborator, Colleague
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I have known Leah for nearly 20 years, first as a student in the teacher preparation program at North Dakota State University, and then as a valued educator. Although there are far more than three reasons that Leah will make an excellent colleague, this recommendation will focus on three that stand out. First, Leah is a leader who takes initiative to make a difference. Leah has held teaching positions around the world since 2006, always going the extra mile to ensure her students not only learn but feel a sense of belonging and worth. Her efforts have distinguished her among educators. While only early in a career as a teacher, she has already distinguished herself among teachers in the state, nationally, and even internationally, earning multiple recognitions for her outstanding work including: 2020 Global Teacher Prize Top 10; 2020 YWCA F-M Woman of the Year; 2019 NDSU Alumni Horizon award; 2016 Central Minnesota Credit Union & WDAY Educator of Excellence; June 2017 WIDA Featured Educator; 2017 CSTAND Outstanding Teacher of the Year; 2017 Communications, Speech & Theater Association of North Dakota Debate Coach of the Year; 2017 Fargo Public Schools Teacher of the Year; and notably—the 2018 North Dakota Teacher of the Year. Second, Leah is a leader in the community, advocating for immigrants and refugees, and helping to build bridges between new residents and the community. She worked with her students to improve their English communication skills while telling their stories of immigrating to the United States. These stories—many filled with tragedy and hardship—are shared to build understanding and hope. A highlight of this work is the Green Card Voices through which Leah hosted a community event and published a book of her students’ stories. "Green Card Youth Voices: Stories from a Fargo High School" won the 2018 Independent Publisher Regional Award Gold Medal in Best Regional Non-Fiction. Her expertise and experiences will further benefit other educators with the upcoming release of her co-authored book, Creating a Sense of Belonging for Immigrant and Refugee Students: Strategies for K-12 Educators. Lastly, it is important to highlight the value Leah places on self-improvement and life-long learning. Leah was awarded the Eleanor Laing Law grant in 2015, 2016, and 2017 to support innovative literacy work in her classroom. Leah was also a recipient of the 2015 National Fund for Teachers Fellow Award through which she was able to attend training to study culture in Africa, enhancing her ability to work with her refugee students and their families. In addition, Leah earned her master’s degree in education, completing research in her classroom in Ecuador to find more effective ways to engage her students and help them learn. Leah is a difference-maker. She will bring energy and innovation to any position. With just over a decade in the teaching profession, Leah has achieved more than most of us achieve in an entire career.
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Laetitia worked with Leah but they were at different companies
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Leah Juelke is passionate, engaging, creative and forward-thinking. I have learned valuable life lessons just watching the kind of relationship she has with her students. Any opportunity to collaborate with Ms. Juelke on classroom projects has always been golden .
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Leah’s Former Student & Former Debater
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It isn't often that you come across someone as hardworking and accomplished as Leah. She coached me and my high school forensics teams to numerous individual state championships in speech, debate, and student congress because of her outstanding leadership and expertise. Not only is Leah an exceptional coach and mentor, but she truly cares about her students. Leah encourages her ELL students to share their stories through her Journey to America project and has created numerous publications and outreaches to further foster inclusion. Leah was by far one of the most compassionate and inspiring individuals that I looked up to during my time in high school. I cannot recommend Leah more. Anyone would be lucky to have Leah for her skills and true dedication to her craft.
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Dawn Duncan
Professor, Narrative 4 Master Facilitator, Actor
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Managed Narrative 4 Project & trained Leah.
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Leah is an outstanding educator and community organizer, working to better the lives of students, other educators, and immigrants & refugees who are starting their lives in unfamiliar situations. She is open-hearted, clear-minded, and a superb leader.
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STEM Outreach Liaison at Penn State - Center for Science and the Schools
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2020 Global Teacher Prize Top 50 Finalis
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Leah is a compassionate, servant-leader who boldly leads from the classroom, to promote positive change within and far beyond her classroom walls. I've known Leah as a finalist colleague in the 2020 Global Teacher Prize. Leah stepped up to the plate and took the initiative to facilitate monthly Zoom chats with our fellow finalists to collaborate and ideate initiatives to positively impact education around the world. Leah creates a safe environment for her English language learner students to tell their stories so that the world may know the grit, determination, and value ELL students bring to us all, increasing the richness of the United States. She has created annual publications of the stories of her students and even created additional outreach initiatives to serve her students. She exemplifies the potential of national strength through diversity. I highly recommend Leah for her compassion, leadership, innovation, and grit. With a strong growth mindset, Leah adds value to any environment she is in.
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Director Of Communications at North Dakota United
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I first met Leah when she was a finalist for ND Teacher of the Year, which she won, and she has been an inspiration to me, professionally and personally. From our first conversation, I knew that she was, and still is, a special human being and educator. Tremendous drive and focus, Leah gives 100% of her efforts in service to her students, making them feel welcome and excited about learning. Awe-inspiring dedication to her craft. I never walk away from a conversation with Leah not feeling empowered to do better, achieve greater and work harder.
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