MSC Keynote and Featured Speakers will challenge your thinking andprovide inspiring and motivating ideas for pushing innovation and transforming teaching and learning.
Akbar Cook, Principal of Westside High School, Newark, New Jersey, who after noticing at-risk students being bullied for dirty clothes, worked hard to install washing machines and dryers so the kids could do laundry. Cook also created the Lights On! program at the school that provides dinner and extended structured activities to keep kids safe and off the streets during peak hours of crime and gang activity. With alumni, community, and now national support thanks to viewers of Ellen and viral social media shares, Cook has been able to quickly expand the project, offering a pantry full of toiletries and hygiene products for students in need. Cook and his story has been featured on the Ellen show. View clip from the Ellen show
Game-based Learning
Meenoo Rami, author of Thrive, is a national board certified teacher who taught students English in Philadelphia for ten years. The founder of #engchat, an international Twitter chat for English teachers, Meenoo is a teacher-consultant for the National Writing Project and an instructor in Arcadia University’s Connected Learning Certificate Program. Meenoo has also served as a teaching fellow with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Currently, Meenoo works as Manager for Minecraft Education at Microsoft.
Systemwide Improvement
Bill Daggett, Ed.D., Founder and Chairman of ICLE, is recognized worldwide for his proven ability to move PreK–12 education systems toward more rigorous and relevant skills and knowledge for all students. Dr. Daggett’s System for Effective Instruction and Rigor/Relevance Framework are the cornerstones of many school improvement efforts throughout the United States, and his powerful keynote messages help his audience challenge assumptions about the purposes, benefits, and effectiveness of current practices. Before founding and now serving as Chairman of ICLE, Dr. Daggett was a teacher, local administrator, and a director with the New York State Education Department.
Equity and Cultural Relevance
Tyrone C. Howard is professor in the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies’ at UCLA. He is also the Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity & Inclusion. Dr. Howard’s research examines culture, race, teaching and learning; he has published several bestselling books, and his most recent book, Expanding College Access for Urban Youth, documents ways schools and colleges can create higher education opportunities for youth of color. A native of Compton, California, where he also worked for years as a classroom teacher, Dr. Howard was recently named the recipient of the 2015 UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award.
Coaching & Blended Learning
As a former teacher and school administrator, Weston Kieschnick has driven change and improved student learning in multiple capacities within his educational career. Weston’s teaching career began internationally in Hamilton, Bermuda where he served as both teacher and department chair for social studies, and during that time he was a three time recipient of the public schools’ “Most Influential Teacher” award. Now, as an experienced instructional coach and Senior Fellow with ICLE, Kieschnick shares his expertise with teachers in order to transform learning through online and blended models. He is the author of the best-selling book: Bold School: Old School Wisdom + New School Technologies = Blended Learning That Works.
Instructional Excellence
Lissa Pijanowski, Ed.D., supports teachers and leaders in creating compelling learning environments that reflect high expectations, promote student engagement, and produce results. Lissa's work with schools across the U.S. integrates her years of school improvement experience and curriculum leadership in standards-based education. Lissa has served as a public school educator for over 25 years. She holds a Doctorate of Education with a concentration in Organizational Leadership and Change, a Master’s in Educational Leadership, and a Bachelor of Science in Education.
Digital Leadership
Eric Sheninger is a Senior Fellow and Thought Leader on Digital Leadership and Learning with ICLE. Through practitioner‐driven, professional learning solutions focused on leading and learning in the digital age, Sheninger assists school leaders in embracing and effectively utilizing technology to move schools and districts forward. As principal of New Milford High School, NJ, Sheninger oversaw the successful implementation of several sustainable change initiatives that radically transformed the learning culture at his school. Eric has received numerous awards and acknowledgements for his work. He is a CDE Top 30 award recipient, Bammy Award winner, NASSP Digital Principal Award winner, PDK Emerging Leader Award recipient, winner of Learning Forward’s Excellence in Professional Practice Award, Google Certified Innovator, Adobe Education Leader, and ASCD 2011 Conference Scholar. He is also the author and co-auther of several books including his newest title: Learning Transformed: 8 Keys for Designing Tomorrow's Schools, Today
Brain Behavior
Erica Battle is an educational powerhouse and innovative thought leader for today's youth, parents, and educators. A former middle school classroom teacher, Erica's mission is to empower the narrative between young people, their parents and teachers to facilitate personal and academic growth. Erica is the author of “Who Are You? A Guide to Help Adolescents Navigate Through the Social and Emotional Issues of Life.” This self-discovery book inspires preteens and teens alike to become more self-aware, personally motivated and committed to personal and academic excellence.
Growth Mindset
For more than 20 years, Anthony has dedicated himself to creating atmospheres where adults and children feel happy, healthy, and successful. A former teacher and administrator, Anthony helps school districts across the country understand and operationalize research around culture, growth mindset, and rigor and relevance for ALL through leadership development and improved teacher practice.
Social Emotional Learning
Savanna Flakes works with districts and schools across the country to equip teachers and leaders with effective instructional practices to improve academic achievement for ALL students. Savanna Flakes specializes in inclusion, special education, literacy, SEL, and team behavior. Savanna has led instructional change as a Manager of Professional Learning, a Master Educator, Technology Instructional Specialist, and an Inclusion Specialist. Savanna has also served as a Professor in the American University School of Education. She presents internationally on topics such as differentiation, co-teaching, universal design for learning, and inclusion. Savanna has received numerous honors and awards such as a National Association of Special Education Teachers Outstanding Special Educator Award, a Sontag Prize in Urban Education Award, U.S. Department of Education-White House Outstanding African American Educator, The College Board Minority Professional Fellowship, and the Alexandria City Jaycee Public Service George Webber Award for Excellence in Education.
Understanding Trauma
Maisah, a former social worker and elementary school teacher in Compton Unified School District, has been advocating for kids more than 23 years. Currently she provides professional development nationwide for teachers and principals, focusing on ways for them to acquire the skills, knowledge, and dispositions that can help support the needs of children and families dealing with social emotional trauma.
Mathematics Leadership & Instructional Excellence
Dr. Matthew R. Larson is past-president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and a Senior Fellow for Math Solutions. Prior to serving as president of NCTM, he was the K-12 mathematics curriculum specialist for the Lincoln Public Schools in Nebraska, where he currently serves as director of elementary education.
A prolific speaker and writer, he is the co-author of more than a dozen professional books. He was a member of the writing teams for major publications including Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All (2014) and Catalyzing Change in High School Mathematics: Initiating Critical Conversations (2018). Key areas of focus include access and equity and effective stakeholder communication. He has taught mathematics at the secondary and college levels and held an appointment as an honorary visiting associate professor at Teachers College, Columbia University.
Instructional Coaching
Venola is driven by her belief that all students deserve a high quality education that affords them many options as they enter adulthood. She is passionate about working with school and district level leaders to create practical solutions using data and support implementation efforts. Venola is fascinated with technology and enjoys working with teachers to design instructional tasks that allow students to use technology to demonstrate learning. She has earned a master’s degree in Educational Leadership & Technology and maintains her teacher and administrator credentials in the state of Georgia. She began her career in education as a Teach For America. Venola is also the co-founder of Pieces that Fit, Inc., a non-profit organization purposed to support children and families in the areas of emotional wellness, academics, cultural awareness, and life skills.
Literacy Instruction
Jennifer Serravallo is a literacy consultant, speaker, and the author of several popular titles including the NY Times Bestselling The Reading Strategies Book and The Writing Strategies Book. Her latest publication, Understanding Texts & Readers connects comprehension goals to text levels and reader response. Upcoming publications include A Teacher's Guide to Reading Conferences (early 2019) and Complete Comprehension, which is a revised and reimagined whole book assessment and teaching resource based on the award-winning Independent Reading Assessment (due out in Spring 2019). She was a Senior Staff Developer at the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project and taught in Title I schools in NYC.
Impactful Coaching
Sherry is passionate about coaching leaders and teachers to best meet the needs of all students. As a national consultant, she draws from her rich experience at various levels of public education to provide expertise in the areas of leadership, effective classroom practices, walkthroughs, use of data, balanced literacy, science, and guidance on how to create a culture of college and career readiness.
Design-driven Learning Experiences
Erika Tate’s passion is to extend the scope and impact of her community service and design-based research experience to support healthy, sustainable, and just communities. Her work with educators focuses inquiry-based instruction that fosters creativity and collaboration. Erika earned her PhD in Education in Mathematics, Science, and Technology, from the University of California, Berkeley. Her doctoral research centered on the design and research of technology- and standards-based science instruction that engaged high school students in evidence-based decision-making about community health and environmental justice issues.