Her Story
About Hollie
Hollie Nawrocki, PhD is an education professional and Account Executive at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt with more than two decades of experience spanning classroom teaching, instructional coaching, higher education preparation, and education technology. She began her career as a high school teacher with Columbus City Schools in Ohio in 1996, where she taught for a decade. During those formative years, she developed a deep passion for teaching and student engagement, experiences she often describes as the most impactful and energizing of her career. Her early classroom success inspired her to expand her impact beyond her own classroom to support educators at scale.
Driven by a desire to help other teachers experience the same sense of purpose and effectiveness, she transitioned into instructional coaching and pursued advanced education, earning a master’s degree and later a PhD in Literacy Studies with a focus in English as a Second Language. Although she originally intended to pursue a career in academia as a professor, her professional path shifted toward applied educational leadership and instructional support. This transition led her into education publishing and professional learning, where she found new opportunities to support teaching and learning across entire districts.
She joined Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in the Services Division, where she spent several years as a Services Manager delivering professional development and training educators on curriculum implementation. For approximately the past four years, she has worked in the sales division supporting the eastern half of Tennessee, focusing on core instructional programs in math, science, and social studies, along with supplemental resources that support learners at all levels. In her current role, she continues to engage deeply in curriculum mapping, standards alignment, and instructional planning in partnership with school leaders and teachers, helping districts translate educational goals into meaningful classroom impact.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Hollie
01What do you attribute your success to?
I grew up blue collar my dad worked in a factory, my mom worked odd jobs, and we lived in a super tiny 800 square foot house where I shared a bedroom with my sister. I wanted more than that, and my dad wanted more for me. He didn't want me to work in a factory. We rode the bus a lot growing up, and I'd see Akron University when I was young, and I kept thinking, I want to go somewhere else. I don't want to stay here. I wanted more than that. That town has a way of sucking you in - you go to school with kids from kindergarten through high school, the same people, and you end up staying. I did not want that. I wanted to do my own thing. Seeing how hard my dad worked, and my mom, in a physical sense, just physical labor - I wanted more. I guess that's it. I just had an internal drive that nothing was good enough. I think being bold and speaking out and taking a risk, and also volunteering raise your hand if you want it, because nobody's gonna give it to you. I've always wanted to bring people with me, or if I'm a leader, I want my people that I lead to be better than me.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
First of all, are you sure that this is what you want to do? Because you're not gonna get paid, and you're gonna work really hard. You're gonna love it, and people are gonna try to squash you. Don't let them do it. Know your worth, for sure. Take chances. Take the risk and follow your gut. I did, and I was pretty bold. I walked straight into Columbus Public Schools' summer school office and said, I'm gonna be one of your summer school teachers, and you're gonna hire me right now. I ended up getting a job and teaching there for over 10 years. Being bold and speaking out and taking a risk, and also volunteering - raise your hand if you want it, because nobody's gonna give it to you. Help other people up with you. I've always wanted to bring people with me, or if I'm a leader, I want my people that I lead to be better than me. Find your people, bring people with you, and put yourself out there and take the risk. You are going to get knocked down a lot, but it's not really about what you end up with, it's how many times you got back up and started over. It's okay to discard those that are just taking, taking, taking, and not helping.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
It's hard living in Tennessee sometimes. This is the most draconian legislation on the planet. There's a lot politically happening that I'm not thrilled with, and I don't think it's going in the right direction. They're attempting to pass bills like vetting students to make sure that they're not immigrants - that was Plyler versus Doe in 78, you can't do that. They just redistricted in Memphis and split it up because of the Supreme Court rule that just came down. The fact that the Education Department is now demolished at the federal level is a whole other can of worms. I'm seeing a lot of disconnect, and I don't know what this is gonna mean later. I think it's only bad. But I'm hoping there's something that we can do to fix it. I'm gonna try. We just found out we're 48th in education funding. How do you fix the invisible labor that women carry? We are all aware that we carry this invisible labor - the dentist appointments for the kids while mom works a full-time job and dad works a full-time job, but ask Dad when the kid's dentist appointment is and he has no idea. You start to educate, but then you have responses from those who will say, well, that's not my job. I don't know what to do about that.
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