Corey Dixon is a new kindergarten teacher at Sunland Elementary in South Central Phoenix, entering the field through Teach for America. With a background in music and a degree in film scoring composition, he pivoted to education, eager to make a meaningful impact, particularly in underserved communities.

• "I'm excited to impart on my students this philosophy I'd like for them to take... which is to listen well and be heard."

• "I would like to see more emphasis in the arts in education instead of cutting the funding for those programs because oftentimes that's the one outlet that they excel at."

• "I'm terrified the kids are gonna walk all over me because I got a taste of it at summer school and it was very hard to actually get their attention."

• "I hope that affords those children as they go forward better opportunities to actually climb the social ladder and to engage in society while being able to hit those critical milestones such as third grade reading and eighth grade math."