“New York City kids are honestly a different breed… We’re the best.” These words, spoken by Brooklyn-bred educator Ava Prince, expresses both her deep connection to her roots and the lively energy she brings to her teaching style. Raised in South Slope, Ms. Prince is thrilled to teach seniors about the world of Economics and Government, bringing her passion for social studies and social justice to the classroom.
Ms. Prince has always been deeply committed to giving back to her community, and she sees Millennium’s diverse and driven student body as a perfect avenue to channel her passion for education and social justice. She is particularly excited to be teaching at one of New York City’s top-ranked public schools, a place she believes offers her the chance to work with motivated and diverse students. For Ms. Prince, teaching has been a lifelong passion, rooted in her high school years when she first became interested in social justice and community action.
Growing up, Ms. Prince developed a love for social studies and history. Looking back on her high school days at LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, she fondly recalls, “APUSH was my favorite class. I always loved teachers who revealed hidden histories, especially about New York, because it is such a unique place.” The complex story of the United States always piqued her curiosity, and she was eager to explore it further.
During high school, Ms. Prince became involved in NY2NO, an experience that deeply shaped her perspective on education and activism. It exposed her to hands-on learning, grassroots organizing, and the power of youth-led initiatives—values she now integrates into her teaching. (New York to New Orleans), a youth-led, consensus-driven organization that led her on a life-changing service trip to the Crescent City. There, she helped facilitate environmental justice workshops with fellow teenagers and spent a summer working on an urban farm called Our School at Blair Grocery in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward. This hands-on experience in farming, community organizing, and confronting social issues left a profound impact on her. “It was my introduction to learning and teaching about the intersections of racism, classism, gender inequity, food injustice, and environmental injustice,” she explains. “It also taught me the importance of listening, organizing, and working together as a community.”
Ms. Prince’s commitment to social change and education is shaped by her diverse experiences and the values she holds close—values she is eager to share with her students as she embarks on this exciting new chapter in her teaching career. Her passion for education and history continued to grow, especially after a life-changing experience in Tokyo, Japan.
While living abroad, Ms. Prince was awarded the Shangsi Fellowship, a non-profit program that sponsors teaching fellowships in Asia. Oberlin Shansi is a non-profit that hosts Fellowships across Asia for alumni of her college, with sites in Japan, India, China, and Indonesia. At her site, she taught English at a university in Tokyo. She had studied Japanese language and history throughout college and studied abroad in Kyoto, so she was eager to return to Japan as a young adult and spend a few years living and working there. She was very happy to be selected. She says in her interview, “It was such an incredible experience, and I miss it very much.”
With her background in East Asian Studies and Japanese language, as well as her previous experience in museum education, she felt ready to take on the challenge. Reflecting on her time there, she said, “It was… the best two years of my life.” During this time, she taught at J.F. Oberlin University and also worked on museum education projects, where she helped develop programs to share historical lessons with a wider audience.
Upon returning to the United States, Ms. Prince found her true calling in the classroom. She now teaches Economics and Government at Millennium Brooklyn High School, working alongside her co-teacher, Ms. Gibeson, to foster a collaborative and dynamic learning environment. “Co-teaching is so rewarding,” she says. “It’s great to have someone to bounce ideas off of, and the relationships we build with our students are so much stronger because of it.”
Although she occasionally misses the museum world, where she enjoyed seeing students engage with historical documents and artifacts, she finds fulfillment in the classroom setting. One of her favorite lessons so far has been simulations, where students actively participate in real-world scenarios. “Communicating history to other people and new people is what makes it so great,” she explains.
Looking to the future, Ms. Prince hopes to continue strengthening her relationships with students while also exploring ways to bring more real-world experiences into the classroom. Her long-term vision is to create opportunities for students to engage with history in dynamic, hands-on ways, fostering a deeper understanding of the world around them. In her interview, she discusses the Filibuster, a tactic used by Senators to just keep talking and talking to prevent a bill from being voted on. So, to simulate this, Ms. Gibeson and her have one student from each class stand at the front of the class and read aloud from Twilight book for as long as they can before the class votes to stop them. She says it is really fun for her and her students. They also simulate passing bills to improve MBHS through the “House” and “Senate,” and practice collective bargaining between “Dunkin” management and union, which “always get very heated”.
Not only is she a teacher, but an advisor for the ninth grade, giving her a unique perspective on both the beginning and end of the high school journey. Working with freshmen allows her to help students build foundational skills and confidence, while teaching seniors enables her to guide them toward their next steps beyond high school. She says it’s not a challenge for her at all, she says it is funny to teach at “such polar ends of the high school experience”. Her students love her and she loves them too. She says in her interview, “ I’m so lucky to see you all start as ninth graders and to be here to support you for all four years is a privilege. I’m really excited to see how you guys grow!”
Ms. Prince’s journey as an educator reflects her dedication to history, community, and social justice. Whether she’s teaching students about economics, leading discussions on social issues, or inspiring them to think critically, her commitment to making learning engaging and impactful shines through in everything she does.
