Naomi Wilfred is a visionary, a dreamer, and a disruptor.
A Boston-born transplant turned proud Chicagoan, Naomi has spent the past 13 years wearing multiple hats as an educator and advocate for transformative learning. She currently serves as the Manager of Coaching & Improvement where she partners with Chicago Public Schools to reimagine and improve the middle grades experience. In this role, Naomi supports a cohort of schools by combining qualitative and quantitative data analysis, student belonging frameworks, and innovative change ideas that help students not just succeed—but thrive.
Beyond her work with school leaders and educators, Naomi also leads the MGN Student Fellowship—a dynamic program that amplifies student voice and nurtures leadership skills in direct alignment with the teacher cohort experience. Her approach bridges coaching, community, and collaboration in service of equity and liberation for young people.
Before joining To&Through, Naomi spent over a decade in the classroom as a Chicago Public Schools teacher, where she taught nearly every grade and subject area in elementary school. Her classroom was a space rooted in antiracism, healing, and joy—where students were encouraged to know their history, honor their identities, and imagine their own liberatory futures.
Naomi’s leadership extends far beyond school walls. She is an alum of the Surge Institute Fellowship and previously served on the Teach For America Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council. She is currently a Chicago United for Equity (CUE) Fellow, continuing her work at the intersection of equity and systems change. Naomi has delivered professional development to hundreds of educators, authored education-focused publications, and presented at regional and national conferences.
Outside of her professional life, Naomi is deeply rooted in love—for her family, friends, travel, the Boston Celtics, and a good dose of reality TV. She is a proud graduate of the University of Kansas and Loyola University Chicago