Dr. Rachelle Savitz is a faculty member in literacy education at East Carolina University, where she prepares and supports educators and literacy leaders across North Carolina. Her teaching, research, and service center on adolescent and disciplinary literacy, culturally sustaining and trauma-sensitive practices, multilingual learners, and the development of teachers’ identities, self-efficacy, and critical consciousness.
Dr. Savitz leads collaborative initiatives that connect educator preparation, research, policy, and practice. She is currently directing a William T. Grant Foundation–supported project with Pitt County Schools that examines how sustained professional learning influences teachers’ beliefs and classroom practices. She also collaborates with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction on initiatives related to literacy, educational opportunity, and educator development. Her leadership includes co-founding Literacy in the Disciplines 6–12, co-chairing ECU’s College of Education Culture, Opportunity, and Engagement Committee and co-chairing DRIVE East.
Across these roles, Dr. Savitz is committed to ensuring that educational policies and systems are informed by the experiences of students, families, and educators—particularly those whose perspectives have historically been overlooked. She values opportunities to learn alongside others and translate shared learning into meaningful change.