Haley Ford

Director of Teacher Development
Haley@VOCEL.org

“Play is key to learning and growing—for kids and adults alike. Everyone should have plenty of opportunities to play, because it helps build confidence and connection at every stage of life.”

Haley holds a Bachelor's degree in Government and Public Policy from Suffolk University and a Master's degree in Special Education from Dominican University. She began her education career in 2015 as a Teach For America corps member in Chicago, teaching middle school special education.

Over the past decade, Haley has served as a Special Education Teacher in several Chicago neighborhoods, including North Lawndale, Humboldt Park, Garfield Park, and Ukrainian Village. For five of those years, she taught preschool special education in a blended classroom setting.

Most recently, Haley worked as a Special Education Administrator (SEA) in the Office for Students with Disabilities at the Chicago Public Schools central office. In this role, she supported K–8 classrooms across Network 4—which includes schools in Hermosa, Logan Square, Avondale, Lakeview, Old Town, and Lincoln Park—by ensuring that students with disabilities received high-quality instruction and had a rightful presence in their learning environments. She also provided coaching and mentoring to new special education teachers in her network and led professional learning across CPS.

Haley is a proud alumna of VOCEL’s EETC fellowship, completing the program in 2023–2024. She also served on VOCEL’s Associate Board for three years, most recently as Vice President. Additionally, she was a 2023–2024 Teach Plus Early Childhood Policy Fellow, further deepening her advocacy for equitable early childhood education.

Outside of education, Haley is a Senior Wedding Planner with Plan and Gather Events. In her free time, she enjoys long walks, trying new restaurants, reading, and spending time with her husband and their two cats, Luna and Rodrigo.