"Phyllis Bivins- Hudson has been an educator for 42 years, having begun her career as an English Language Arts middle school teacher in East Orange, NJ where she taught more than 16 years. She taught middle school students for an additional 12 years in South Orange, NJ and later worked as an administrator in Paterson and East Orange districts. She currently serves as District Mentor Coordinator for iLearn Schools and shares her experience mentoring new teachers in A Handbook for Mentors: Helping New Teachers Succeed & Persist, a book she authored in 2019 under a grant funded through the Diversifying the Teacher Pipeline from the New Jersey Department of Education.

Dr. Bivins-Hudson is the founding instructor for Rutgers University's Alternate Route Teacher Program and continues to teach at the program's Hackensack location and help advance program innovations. She is also the author of Flying on Broken Wings, which is a memoir she wrote, in part, to pay homage to how exceptional teachers can offer immeasurable support to vulnerable students.  

Dr. Bivins-Hudson holds an Ed.D. from Nova Southeastern University. Her M.A. in English Literature is from Middlebury College (Bread Loaf School of English), and her B.A. in General Elementary Education with a minor in Behavioral Science is from New Jersey City University. "

"Teaching new teachers is rewarding because it gives me an opportunity to pay it forward. Over the years I have amassed a great deal of knowledge and strategies that I take joy in sharing with them because like student learners during their formative years, new teachers are sponges, absorbing the gems I share. Teaching novice teachers also allows me to impact the education process by imposing good methodology and pedagogy where it matters most. Further, I get to model what it means to be a humanitarian in the classroom, demonstrating what it can look like to show up for those students who are flying on broken wings."