About Ms. Stellman

For Emma Stellman, working directly with children is the best way to both shape and give back to society.

“Education is a powerful way to improve people’s quality of life,” says Ms. Stellman, who grew up in Brooklyn, New York and studied physics at Bryn Mawr College. “There are few things better than being immersed in a subject you love and being able to share that with others.”

Ms. Stellman, who has a master’s degree in education from Stanford University, is the Director of Education at CCSC. She is the school’s co-founder and was the primary writer of the charter for CCSC.

“Great teaching happens when a student thinks she has figured out an idea or mastered a concept all on her own,” she says. “In reality, hours of preparation and years of practice enable teachers to create these transformative moments for students.”

Ms. Stellman, who taught physics for six years prior to coming to CCSC, says she’s not sure if she has a favorite grade.

“I am torn between juniors and seventh graders,” she says. “Juniors are on the cusp of adulthood. They are starting to think abstractly and they take intellectual risks partly because they are still sheltered from the reality that graduation is right around the corner. Seventh graders are amazing because they maintain the innocence and excitement of small children yet possess the intellectual capability to begin to think about and process complex ideas.”

She says she loves working at CCSC.

“CCSC has outstanding teachers and curriculum,” she says. “Visitors are amazed by the quality of teaching and regularly compare our curriculum to that of elite private schools. All children should have the opportunity to have such high quality education.”