Eric Schildge

Eric Schildge is an Associate at Essential Partners. Eric is also an eighth grade English teacher in Newburyport, MA, where he serves as his school's dialogue coach. He has taught for more than a decade in a variety of Catholic, charter, independent, and public schools, both in the United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Eric is an instructor at Mount Holyoke's Masters in Teacher Leadership program, where he teaches classes on Education Policy and Leadership. In addition to dialogue, he loves to incorporate his training as an actor and director in order to help facilitate engaging and embodied learning opportunities for students and faculty.

Eric is an experienced curriculum designer, working to bring a diverse array of perspectives and lived experiences into the classroom; using interactive and performance-based activities to help students develop empathy and understanding across lines of difference. He seeks to empower students through creative, project-based assessments and helps them develop their voice by facilitating dialogue, deliberate democratic decision making, and shared leadership in the classroom and his school.

Eric earned his M.A.T. in Teacher Leadership at Mount Holyoke College and a B.A. from Dartmouth College with a degree in Women’s and Gender Studies. He is currently a candidate for a Certificate in Advanced Graduate Study in Educational Leadership at Salem State University. Long ago, Eric was a professional cyclist.