Zehra F. Greenleaf has had a long career as an educator. She taught twenty-five years with the Springfield (Oregon) Public Schools, in a variety of roles including Talented and Gifted Specialist and Classroom Teacher.

She served as a teacher with the English Language Development program for the majority of her time in Springfield, during which she created several innovative programs.

These new initiatives were focused on fostering family involvement among the parents of the English Learners.

Family Bridges invited parents to read a bilingual book in their child’s classroom; the home-based Spanish Literacy iPod program supported first language development.

Family participation was a factor that contributed to outstanding student achievement among her students.

Since 2017 she has served as a supervisor with the UOTeach program for secondary level teacher candidates in English Language Arts. She works closely with aspiring educators, guiding them in their first steps in the profession.