District Four Fulton County School Board Member, Franchesca Warren has spent the last 18+ years advocating for equity in literacy resources for all students - as a teacher, instructional coach, and literacy coordinator across the Southeast.

Always in search of a way to amplify teacher voices, she has presented at several national conferences including NCTE, GCTE, and other professional education organizations. In 2012, Ms. Warren was selected as the South Atlanta High School, School of Law and Social Justice Teacher of the Year for the 2012-2013 school year and a Difference Maker for the Atlanta Public School district. Due to her accolades both inside and outside the classroom, she has been featured on several local news stations including Education Week and the Jennifer Keitt Show. In 2015, she was selected out of hundreds of applications to be part of Harvard’s Turnaround School Leader Training where she collaborated with school leaders from around the world on how to tackle the inequities found in many of her schools from a district perspective.

Inspired by her experience in schools, Ms. Warren founded the parent advocacy think tank, South Fulton Parents for Education, where she has galvanized a group of parents to demand equity for schools south of the I-20 Corridor. Through the strategic work of these parents, they have been able to move forward with work of several initiatives around literacy, STEAM and mental health.

Outside of her daily work with students and educators, Ms. Warren enjoys reading, writing, and resting when she has time to herself. She is also a wife and mom to four kids and one dog. Her oldest son is a Westlake High School graduate, who currently attends school at George Washington University in Washington, DC and interns on Capitol Hill. The youngest three children are all students in South Fulton ranging from Kindergarten to seventh grade.

Board member since 2021. Current term expires December 31, 2024.

Fulton County Schools would like for you to meet our new board member, Franchesca Warren. She represents District Four and was sworn in at the board meeting December 10.  Warren has spent the last 18 years advocating for equity in literacy resources for all students, as a teacher, instructional coach, and literacy coordinator across the Southeast.

Always in search of a way to amplify teacher voice, Warren founded the education think tank, “The Educator’s Room,” which focuses on teacher expertise and self-care.  In 2012, she was selected Teacher of the Year for 2012-2013 and named a Difference Maker for Atlanta Public Schools. Inspired by her experience in schools, Warren founded the parent advocacy think tank, South Fulton Parents for Education.

Outside of her daily work with students and educators, she is a wife and mon to four children and one dog.

Here is more on Franchesca Warren, in her own words.

Why did you decide to run to become the school board representative for District Four?

My work in the community and my own kids inspired me to run. Because I had worked in education for the last 18+ years, I found myself helping parents navigate the school system and helping them to be partners with their schools. This work forced me to really know what parents, community leaders and stakeholders want for their schools. I also know as a parent, that all of my kids are different and their needs reflect that. All of them have attended, or currently attend, schools in District Four. The excellent education they’ve received in our schools made me want to advocate for those educators in our community. I’m a true believer that we are the sum of our total actions and because of that, I decided that I wanted to serve my community in this capacity.

What are your hopes as you represent District Four? What’s special about District Four?

My hope for District Four is that we can continue to have schools that excel academically and socially for our communities. I believe that schools belong to the community and the community belongs to the schools. With that, we understand that strong schools signal stronger communities, communities that support the schools, the students and the families that reside in them. District Four is a special place that spans from the City of South Fulton to Union City to Fairburn to Palmetto to Chattahoochee Hills. Due to all of that land, we have a diverse group of parents, students and community needs. On any given day, I can get to the airport in under ten minutes in any direction, while if I want to experience riding a horse in a secluded place, I can go to Serenebe in Chattahoochee Hills.

Who inspires you?

Two of my inspirations in life are writers James Baldwin and Zora Neal Hurston, because of their abilities to use literature to address the intricacies of race, sex, and class distinctions in America. Many times, when I’m conflicted with something, I re-read pieces from them and they help me find the words to decide what my next steps are. While both of these inspirations are mammoth in the literary world, I am also inspired by the stories of resilience that I find in my community. It can be my friend who suffered a medical emergency and her ability to pivot to use her story to inspire others or my friend who’s a Nurse Practitioner and who’s on the front lines of treating COVID patients despite her own fears. I truly believe that inspiration is all around us.

What’s on your bucket list?

I want to visit every continent in the world and experience the cuisine while filming for YouTube. I was an avid watcher of Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown” and I want to experience the culture of people through food. Once it’s safe to travel, I like to book weekend trips and dedicate 24-28 hours exploring the world all while eating. Anthony Bourdain once said, “You can learn a lot about someone when you share a meal together.”

What are your hobbies?

I LOVE reading. I usually pick a lot of nonfiction, but I’m getting back to reading fiction pieces more. I currently have about 20 books on my list to read right now, including pieces like, “Where the Crawdads Sing,” “Harbor Me,” “Paper Towns,” “Children of Virtue” and “Vengeance,” just to name a few. Through the last ten months, I’ve found myself buying more books than I have time to read. I also love to travel. Right before the pandemic, I was scheduled to do a backpack tour of Mexico and experience the beauty of that country, but I had to cancel. Once we come out of the pandemic, I plan on visiting Mexico Ghana, Greece and Italy for an extended vacation over the next couple of years.

What’s the last song you added to your playlist?

I love what my kids consider “old school” music. I just downloaded an essentials playlist from Tony! Toni! Tone! It’s currently on repeat as I work, cook, and live life!

What’s your favorite book?

This is such a hard question; however, if I had to narrow it down, my three favorite books are “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker, “Left to Tell,” by Immaculee Ilibagiza, and “The 48 Laws of Power” by Robert Greene.