Meet the 2026 Global Health Teacher Fellows

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"Global health is not just about diseases; [it’s] also about how poverty, inequality, government policies, and access to healthcare affect people around the world. Global health reporting helps bring attention to these issues, share the stories of affected communities, and encourage people and governments to take action."

—Lissania Martinez, New York

"I learned that the same disease can tell very different stories depending on a community’s resources, and that health inequities are often rooted in everyday constraints like water access. Strong global health reporting gives students a window into those realities, helping them see themselves as connected to, and responsible within, a global community."

—Keishla Crespo, Puerto Rico

This fall, 13 educators from around the United States were selected to participate in the Pulitzer Center’s Fall 2026 Teacher Fellowship program, “Examining Interconnected Health Inequities Through Global Reporting." As a cohort, these educators worked to analyze how global health news stories from Africa, Asia, and Latin America engage students in critical analysis of interconnected health inequities, encourage students to make local and personal connections, and empower students to apply their learning through civic engagement.

The Fellows, representing six individual states and two U.S. territories, brought a diversity of perspectives and experiences to this work. The cohort, which included educators working with students from 4th-12th grade and incarcerated adult learners, aligning and incorporating global health reporting into their coursework. Their courses included English, Computer and Media Literacy, Library Media, Journalism, Environmental Science, Psychology, Global History, African American History, and Special Education. 

Learn more about these amazing Fellows in our slideshow below (click on the image to advance slides):

Over the course of the Fellowship Program, Teacher Fellows participated in an orientation and five learning workshops. During workshops, Fellows had the opportunity to build community with one another, explore ways to align and integrate global health reporting into their curricula, and craft a learning experience (instruction over one to three class periods) to facilitate students’ connections to a global health topic through reporting. 

Beyond developing resources for students, the Fellowship Program allowed educators the opportunity to increase their own understanding of global health issues and the process journalists take to report such stories. During the program’s orientation, Fellows connected with Pulitzer Center Executive Editor Marina Walker Guevera and Teacher Fellow alum Amy Frontier to critically analyze how global health reporting can connect to students’ lives. Throughout the workshop series, Fellows also engaged with the following Pulitzer Center grantees telling critical health stories around the world:

• Andy Pierrotti, an award-winning investigative reporter who specializes in government accountability and consumer advocacy, with an emphasis on tracking viewers' tax dollars, safety, health, and well-being. Fellows explored Andy’s reporting on vaccine hesitancy in Samoa and the United States.
• Ridwan Karim Dini-Osman, an award-winning journalist based in Ghana who covers global health inequities, social justice, and sustainable development. Dini-Osman led a discussion on how cuts to foreign aid under the Trump administration are leaving critical gaps in medical research and healthcare for infants in Ghana.
• Mark Johnson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning science reporter who reported for The Washington Post and The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, explored how the loss of species around the world due to habitat loss and climate change is taking a toll on human health, leading to thousands of additional illnesses.

100% of Fellows agreed in post-workshop surveys that the program increased their knowledge of global health topics and expressed a desire to discuss the topics covered in the program with their peers. 92% of Fellows felt that the program increased their trust in science journalism. When Fellows were asked to reflect on their experiences in the program so far, they shared the following:

“I gained a deeper understanding of how global health inequities are shaped not only by medical conditions but also by historical, economic, and institutional barriers that disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Equally important, I learned that responsible global health reporting brings underreported experiences into public view, challenges prevailing narratives, and creates opportunities for greater awareness, accountability, and informed action.”

—Eric D. Crowell, CA

“I don't think I've been shown how reporting can be used and contextualized in a learning setting, and this fellowship really helped bring that to life. Once you read a news article, you're more informed... but then what? What are you supposed to do with that information? This fellowship has not only helped shape how I teach, but how I go about thinking about reporting stories (and, honestly, what classifies as an impactful story)."

—Colin Hanner, IL

“I really look forward to teaching the lesson I planned because it's such a departure from some of the more mainstream stories I've taught in the past. The work Pulitzer does on underreported stories is so important because it brings attention to serious public health problems that may receive less sustained international attention than more visible disasters or headline-making political events. I think it's incredibly valuable for my students to be exposed to these stories.”

—Chanti, CA

When the program fully culminates at the end of December, Fellows will have implemented their learning experiences in classrooms and documented student learning and impact. Their lessons and reflections will be available in our lesson library in Spring 2027.

The 13 members of the Fall 2026 Teacher Fellow cohort build on a community of over 100 amazing educators who have participated in teacher fellowships over the past four years. For more information on our fellowship program and to explore learning experiences developed by previous Fellows, click here.