Moise Derosier, IEP'11: An Advocate for ELLs

Moise Derosier is passionate about the education of English Language Learners (ELLs). This zeal -- which the Haiti native says originated with his personal experience as an ELL -- drove him to take a leave of absence from his job in West Palm Beach, Fla., as a high school math teacher of ELLs to come to HGSE and study programs and policies related to access.

“Moise exemplifies with distinction the qualities of the students and graduates of the International Education Policy (IEP) Program,” said Professor Fernando Reimers, director of IEP. “His commitment to serving the most disadvantaged, his entrepreneurial leadership and his awareness of the power and responsibility of educators to expand the horizons of those we serve has been evident to all of us this year, and we all have learned and being inspired by him.”

Now that his time at HGSE has come to a close, Derosier plans to return to the classroom and continue teaching. Upon learning that he had been honored with the Intellectual Contribution/Faculty Tribute Award for IEP, Derosier answered some questions about his time at the Ed School and beyond.

What is something that you learned at HGSE that you will take with you throughout your career in education? At HGSE I learned to ask questions -- and the right kinds of questions -- and to listen to what others have to say. I was fortunate to be surrounded by impressive and accomplished classmates of diverse backgrounds and experiences, so I learned a lot by engaging in meaningful conversations with them. A large portion of my intellectual growth at HGSE occurred through working with and discussing issues with my classmates and cohort members.

Is there any professor who significantly shaped your experience at the Ed School? All of my professors have shaped my experience at the Ed School. I very much enjoyed Professor Dick Murnane’s Microeconomics class. I also enjoyed Professor John Willett’s course, Applied Data Analysis. I worked on seven DAMs (Data-Analytic Memos) for that class, and a great number of assignments.

I would say that Professor Fernando Reimers most significantly shaped my experience at HGSE. I took two awesome classes with Reimers, Education Policy Analysis and Research in Comparative Perspective and Education Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship in Comparative Perspective. I am inspired to use what I have learned from his classes to impact the world in a meaningful way. Professor Reimers challenged students’ thinking in his classes, and also helped them to develop their own sense of agency. I left his classes with a greater belief that I can actually make a big difference in the world.

During the orientation, I remember Reimers encouraged the IEP cohort to start student groups, whether study groups or student clubs. When my friend, Andrew Johnston, took the initiative to start HGSE for Haiti, I joined the executive board of that club. When Reimers encouraged his students to join the Social Business Enterprise Initiative at the Harvard Business School, my friends, Daniel Lin, Jared Hove, Hiu Chung Chan, Peter Bonanno, and I entered the competition and designed a social enterprise to help with the low teaching quality in Haiti. Reimers became our group advisor and put us in touch with a number of social entrepreneurs working in the field of designing and producing educational content.

Any special study spots on campus (or off)? The computer lab on the third floor of Gutman became my second home. This is so true that my friend, Daniel Lin, and I developed a pretty good relationship with the security guard who closed the computer lab because we were always the last ones to leave! We have laughed about how sad it is that we were always forced to leave the computer lab.

What will you change in education and why? Schools and school systems across the nation are failing miserably at addressing the educational needs of ELLs. This is an issue that I focused intensely on in my studies, and I am looking forward to being a part of the solution to this problem. Since ELL students are one of the most rapidly growing student populations in the United States, it is critically important that school systems learn to serve these students well.

If you could transport one person/place/thing from HGSE to your next destination, what would it be? I came to HGSE with my most precious wife, Jessica, and I am returning to Florida with her, so I don’t need anything else!