Presenter(s): Kenneth Shelton

Keynote discussion: Developing A Relevant and Responsive Approach to Learner Empowerment and Learner Wellness 

Description: Incorporating the problem-based learning activity called Solve In Time! along with elements of the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) participants will utilize both a design and computational thinking process to identify effective strategies for problem-solving within the themes of learner empowerment and learner wellness. The key elements for this session are the emphasis on developing a working terminology, relevant definitions, and practical solutions. This highly interactive session is focused on learning through the process rather than focusing solely on the outcome. The protocols are also adaptable to any curricular area, content to be covered, and expands to additional focal areas such as Equity, Social-Emotional Learning, and many others.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Nathaniel Hoston 

Presenter Bio: I am a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) coach within Student and Family Support Services. In this role, I support 15 schools in the implementation of MTSS. Additionally, I am a fourth-year doctoral candidate in the Special Education Program at the University of Washington. At UW, I study the integration of tier-one mental health supports into tiered systems, as well as best practices for coaching and supporting pre- and in-service teachers. Before starting this work, I lived in Denver where I was a special education teacher. Outside of work, I am an avid runner/swimmer and enthusiastic board gamer.

Session Description: This session will introduce educators to Zaretta Hammond's Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain to help promote classroom belonging and engagement. The session will begin with a review of research on the neural impact of culturally responsive teaching. Following this, educators will receive a toolkit of evidence-based practices that recognize and sustain cultures that students are bringing into the classroom.

Target Audience: K-8 Teachers; Paraeducators

Presenter(s): Christy KehrPresenter

Bio: Christy Kehr M.Ed. has 22 years of classroom teaching experience (grades 4-8). She is currently serving the Kent School District as an MTSS-B Coach. She has a BA in Education from Central Washington University, and MA in Education from Lesley University, her Administrative Certification is from City University. She is currently working to obtain her doctorate in Educational Leadership from City University.

Session Description: This course is designed for primary staff who don't have experience with Second Step curriculum or need guidance on how to best utilize the resources provided in the curriculum. The two one-hour sessions are conducted in the flipped classroom model comprised of asynchronous (independent) and synchronous (collaboration) activities. The 1st session is asynchronous, instructor directed and independent learning. Session 2 will focus on synchronous learning, collaboration with colleagues on the material presented in session 1 with an end result of a beginning action plan to start the 2021 school year. It is advised that interested participants enroll in both sessions to benefit from the content.

Session 1 (August 16) will include instructor-directed walk-through of the Second Step online program, including how to access lessons through the SEL calendar. Participants will also engage in independent learning, exploration of the Second Step resources to build background knowledge for session 2 activities.

Session 2 will be small group collaboration and planning for the first 4 lessons in Second Step. We will utilize the Padlet platform for collaboration, exploration, questions and gathering of resources.

Target Audience: PK-2 Teachers; Paraeducators

Presenter(s): Trise Moore

Presenter Bio: Trise Moore is nationally recognized for leading the effective implementation of outcome-based family and community partnership practices for over twenty years. She has received numerous awards for her service to children, families and educators, with a focus on equity, excellence and integrity. She is the author of, “Unreached: What Every Educator Wants to Know About Engaging Families for Equity & Student Achievement” and the recipient of Education Week’s 2017 National Award for Outstanding Leadership, in the area of family outreach and engagement. Trise was identified as one of six emerging leaders in the field of family engagement by Harvard’s Family Research Project, for successfully creating collaborative family and community partnership structures in one of the most diverse districts in the country.

Session Description: Reaching Families for Equity & Student Achievement is a session that holds space for school staff to identify ways to establish partnerships with families with a focus on shared responsibility and balanced expectations. The Pandemic has clearly shown how important it is for families and staff to manage self-care by earning trust and making connections meaningful. The session will cover four equity recommendations and five leadership practices that can support classroom, school and district goals linked to promoting equity and student achievement.

Target Audience: All

Presenter(s): Heidi Anderson

Co-Presenter(s): Jess Bell, Kent SD Teachers

Presenter Bio: The team at Actively Learn believes in accelerating learning through quality content, engaging tools and dynamic partnerships.

Session Description: Are you looking for ways to ensure all student in your classes are engaging in rich conversations around grade-level content? Join us to learn how some of your colleagues are using Actively Learn to create a more equitable and inclusive learning environment, in which all students will grow and succeed. Our panelists will speak to their best practices and call us all to action as we strive to connect with each student.

Target Audience: 3-2 Teachers; HiCap; Paraeducators; Principals; Central Office Admin

Presenter(s): Melissa Benner

Co-Presenter(s): Justin Talmadge

Presenter Bio: Melissa Benner is a former KSD Teacher Librarian Technology Integration Specialist at the elementary level. Justin Talmadge is a former middle school teacher. Now they work together to ensure KSD staff and students have the tools and training they need to teach and learn effectively.

Session Description: In this session, participants will explore ways to maximize student productivity using tools available as part of Microsoft365 provided to all KSD students. Strategies for improving individual time and task management, as well as how to support small groups of students working together will be shared.

Target Audience: K-12 Teachers; HiCap

Presenter(s): Jayde Sorbello

Presenter Bio: Jayde Sorbello has an M.Ed. in K-12 Literacy Instruction. Currently, she teaches 7th grade at Northwood Middle School. Throughout her career, she has taught 6th-8th grade ELA and literacy remediation in mainly urban areas. Prior to joining the Kent School District, she was the Residency Director of NYU’s Teacher Residency Program in Syracuse, NY where she oversaw the learning of future teachers. She worked with mentor teachers and interns for social studies, science, ELA, math, and special education. She also taught several literacy instruction courses to graduate students of various content areas, furthering her knowledge of literacy in all content areas.

Session Description: CEAS is an organizational structure for writing that can be beneficial for all content areas, grade levels, and learning needs. This session will focus on why CEAS is a successful acronym for writing and how it can be implemented in all content areas for almost any purpose. There are many acronyms out there; but CEAS allows all students to attack writing at their level because of its simplicity, clarity, and adaptability. CEAS makes scaffolding and differentiation a breeze.

Target Audience: K-12 Teachers; HiCap

Presenter(s): OPEN National Trainer

Session Description: Physical education is the only academic subject area to have standards and outcomes specifically targeting social and emotional learning (SEL) concepts. Physical educators have specific expertise on SEL and an opportunity to deliver innovative ways to develop SEL core competencies in their students. This workshop is designed to provide an overview of SEL concepts aligned to the CASEL core competencies with a focus on trauma-informed teaching. From there, teachers will discover and experience OPEN resources that have been backward designed from those competencies. This professional learning experience will also feature the “Believe in You” video series featuring Kevin Atlas.

Target Audience: K-12 Physical Education Teachers

Presenter(s): Lana Glennon

Presenter Bio: Hello! I'm a fourth year, 5th grade teacher at Sunrise Elementary with a passion for technology. I've loved technology since I was a kid and since I started in the world of teaching have always wanted to find more and more ways to use technology to help my students learn and engage in learning. UDL is just one way that I've found to be engaging, and by incorporating tech, I've found it to be even more beneficial for my students.

Session Description: UDL (Universal Design for Learning) is something that is beginning to gain popularity as more and more people gain interest in allowing students to show their work in unique ways. UDL allows students to access learning in whatever way works best for them. UDL backpacks allow students to access their learning anytime, anywhere, in any format that works best for them. Students have access to learning through OneNote and are able to put in resources themselves, as well as allowing teachers to put resources in for specific student's learning needs. This course will teach you how to set up these backpacks, engage your students, and get them started in your classroom.

Target Audience: 3-12 Teachers; HiCap

Presenter(s): Natalie Wexler

Presenter Bio: Natalie Wexler is an education writer and the author of The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America’s Broken Education System—And How to Fix It (Avery 2019). She is also the co-author, with Judith C. Hochman, of The Writing Revolution: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subjects and Grades (Jossey-Bass, 2017), and a senior contributor to the education channel on Forbes.com. Her articles and essays on education and other topics have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and other publications. She has spoken on education before a wide variety of groups and appeared on a number of TV and radio shows, including Morning Joe and NPR’s On Point and 1A. She holds a BA from Harvard University, an MA in History from the University of Sussex (UK), and a JD from the University of Pennsylvania, and she has worked as a reporter, a Supreme Court law clerk, a lawyer, and a legal historian. The author of three novels, she lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband and has two adult children.

Session Description: Writing has gotten far less attention than reading from educators and scientific researchers. But it’s potentially the most powerful lever we have for building knowledge and analytical abilities and boosting reading comprehension. That’s true even at upper grade levels, where gaps in background knowledge can pose serious obstacles to learning.

At the same time, writing is also the most difficult thing we ask students to do in school. If inexperienced writers are asked to write at length—as they generally are—they can easily become overwhelmed as they juggle everything from spelling to word choice to organizing their thoughts. Not only do they fail to learn to write well, they’re deprived of the other crucial benefits that writing can confer.

The solution is two-fold: We need to make writing easier by beginning instruction at the sentence level, enabling students to learn the mechanics and simultaneously use writing to build knowledge. And we need to ground writing activities in the content of the core curriculum, so that students are acquiring the kind of knowledge that’s important to their academic success.

This is an approach that shouldn’t be limited to ELA or English classes. As schools that have tried it have discovered, it can have powerful effects in any subject and at any grade level.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Karisa Keasey

Presenter Bio: Award winning artist, Karisa Keasey has been using her paintings to promote social justice and amplify the voices of some of the most marginalized people for over eight years. Her most recent book, When You Can’t Go Home, tells the story of ten refugees and their families alongside thirty breath-taking watercolor portraits. For every book sold, Karisa donates 50% of the profit to World Relief to continue in their efforts of resettling refugees. Her work has been featured in CNN, Seattle Times: Pacific Northwest Magazine, King 5 News, and Realism Today. Currently, Karisa lives in the greater Seattle area, where she paints and speaks full time.

Session Description: In this session, you will learn how to empower students to use their unique voice and gifts to impact their community. Through Karisa’s experience as an artist and advocate for refugees, hear how even the most seemingly “mundane” or “useless” gifts and experiences can promote social change. Learn how to talk to your students about this and how empowered people, empower others.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Curriculum Associates

Co-Presenter(s): Marcie Baril

Presenter Bio: The Curriculum Associates Professional Development Team is made up of former educators with direct experience using the Ready Classroom Math program with students. Our PD team, led by Katie Randall, are experts at current best practices in math education. Each facilitator has expertise in both the core RCM program and i-Ready tools.

Session Description: In this session, educators evaluate student needs to create differentiated rotations that leverage Ready Classroom Mathematics resources in small groups, empowering students to develop autonomy, self-efficacy, and a growth mindset. Educators refine strategies to prepare scaffolds that support students’ instructional needs, while honoring their thinking and maintaining the rigor of Ready Classroom Mathematics to foster student ownership of their learning.

Target Audience: K-5 Teachers

Presenter(s): Melissa Cook

Presenter Bio: MEd in Digital Education Leadership, Seattle Pacific University; B.A. Education and Japanese Language, minor in ELL, Central Washington University. 15 years experience as an elementary teacher. Certified Microsoft Innovative Educator (2017), Minecraft Certified Educator (2019), Novel Engineering (2020), District SME for Flipgrid, Special Experience with Makerspace, Coding, Digital Citizenship, and Leaf Aviation Challenge. Currently a Digital Learning Coach for Kent School District, 2019-Present.

Session Description: This course is for educators that want to take their Flipgrid use to the next level. We will explore five innovative ways to engage your students with Flipgrid. This course is designed for educators of all subject areas, early grades through higher education, who want to empower Student Voice and already have a working knowledge of Flipgrid.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Kathy Morrisson, Quincey Davison, Dee Klem and Anthony Berry

Presenter Bio: KSD's CTE Career Specialists come to KSD with varied backgrounds and experiences. They enjoy working together as a team to share ideas and resources to better support our students and their post-high school goals. Fun fact: Two of our Career Specialists are KSD grads and two of them have children that are KSD graduates (Can you guess which ones?)

Session Description: We will share information on the role of the Career Specialist to help support your students post high school goals and provide information and resources that staff members can use with students to continue to build positive relationships with their students through post-secondary planning.

Target Audience: 9-12 Teachers; Paraeducators

Presenter(s): Curriculum Associates

Co-Presenter(s): Marcie Baril

Presenter Bio: The Curriculum Associates Professional Development Team is made up of former educators with direct experience using the Ready Classroom Math program with students. Our PD team, led by Katie Randall, are experts at current best practices in math education. Each facilitator has expertise in both the core RCM program and i-Ready tools.

Session Description: In this session, educators evaluate student needs to create differentiated rotations that leverage Ready Classroom Mathematics resources in small groups, empowering students to develop autonomy, self-efficacy, and a growth mindset. Educators refine strategies to prepare scaffolds that support students’ instructional needs, while honoring their thinking and maintaining the rigor of Ready Classroom Mathematics to foster student ownership of their learning.

Target Audience: K-5 Teachers

Presenter(s): i2e

Co-Presenter(s): Melissa Cook, DLC

Session Description: In this session, learn how to stay organized with OneNote for data collection and collaboration, using Class Notebook to support student learning, and using OneNote integrated with Teams to maximize accessibility.

Target Audience: K-12 Teachers; HiCap; Paraeducators

Presenter(s): Melissa Benner

Co-Presenter(s): Justin Talmadge

Presenter Bio: Melissa Benner is a former KSD Teacher Librarian Technology Integration Specialist. Justin Talmadge is a former middle school teacher. Now they work together to ensure that KSD staff and students have the tools and training they need to teach and learn effectively.

Session Description: In this session, participants will explore ways to maximize personal productivity using tools available as part of Microsoft365 provided to all KSD staff. Strategies for improving individual task management, as well as ways to support team productivity will be shared.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Karisa Keasey 

Presenter Bio: Award winning artist, Karisa Keasey has been using her paintings to promote social justice and amplify the voices of some of the most marginalized people for over eight years. Her most recent book, When You Can’t Go Home, tells the story of ten refugees and their families alongside thirty breath-taking watercolor portraits. For every book sold, Karisa donates 50% of the profit to World Relief to continue in their efforts of resettling refugees. Her work has been featured in CNN, Seattle Times: Pacific Northwest Magazine, King 5 News, and Realism Today. Currently, Karisa lives in the greater Seattle area, where she paints and speaks full time.

Session Description: In this session you will learn how to empower students to use their unique voice and gifts to impact their community. Through Karisa’s experience as an artist and advocate for refugees, hear how even the most seemingly “mundane” or “useless” gifts and experiences can promote social change. Learn how to talk to your students about this and how empowered people, empower others.

Target Audience: All

Presenter(s): OPEN National Trainer

Session Description: Students need 60+ minutes of activity every day for healthy bodies and healthy brains. Physical activity helps build brains and prepares students for optimal learning! This will help them leap over any learning gap they may be facing. OPEN’s Active Classroom and Recess resources are also designed to improve social and emotional health with activities that address physiological stress response. Teachers participating in this session will learn about the connection between physical activity and learning, as well as how to safely implement physical activity into every school day. This workshop is designed for elementary classroom and physical education teachers.

Target Audience: K-6 Physical Education Teachers; Principals

Presenter(s): Christy Kehr

Presenter Bio: Christy Kehr M.Ed. has 22 years of classroom teaching experience (grades 4-8). She is currently serving the Kent School District as an MTSS-B Coach. She has a BA in Education from Central Washington University, and MA in Education from Lesley University, her Administrative Certification from City University. She is currently working to obtain her doctorate in Educational Leadership from City University.

Session Description: This course is designed for intermediate staff who don't have experience with Second Step curriculum or need guidance on how to best utilize the resources provided in the curriculum. The two one-hour sessions are conducted in the flipped classroom model comprised of asynchronous (independent) and synchronous (collaboration) activities. The 1st session is asynchronous, instructor directed and independent learning. Session 2 will focus on synchronous learning, collaboration with colleagues on the material presented in session 1 with an end result of a beginning action plan to start the 2021 school year. It is advised that interested participants enroll in both sessions to benefit from the content.We will utilize the Padlet platform for collaboration, exploration, questions and gathering of resources.

Target Audience: 3-6 Teachers; Paraeducators

Presenter(s): Cheri Simpson

Co-Presenter(s): Audrey Gallagher

Presenter Bio: Cheri Simpson is currently working as the Assistant Director of Student and Family Support Services. Cheri has been in Kent School District since 2011 serving as a program specialist with Inclusive Education and a special education teacher at Kentwood High School. Cheri formerly taught in Indianapolis Public Schools. Cheri has a BA in Business Administration from Illinois Wesleyan and a MA in Education from Marian University. She completed the Administrative Certification Program through University of Washington Tacoma, as well as National Boards in 2017. Audrey Gallagher, MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Support) District Coach, will be leading the professional learning. Audrey has been with the Kent School District since 2014 as a behavior interventionist at Jenkins Creek. She received her Bachelors from University of Alberta and obtained her Masters in Counseling Psychology from Athabasca University. She formerly worked in Orting School District, as well as Ewa Beach, Hawaii. Audrey has completed her principal certification from Eastern Washington University and is a Certified Neural Educator and Champion facilitator.

Session Description: Participants will take part in a brief overview of SEL and Restorative Practices. They will develop the skills to actively engage students in productive student talk through restorative practices, active engagement, along with strategies to embed these practices within content areas. Participants will engage in SEL embedded activities.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Amanda Wilson

Co-Presenter(s): Jennifer Mazukelli

Presenter Bio: For 15 years, Amanda has been an advocate of STEM education. She has been a secondary science teacher, then transferred to a district science instructional and assessment specialist. Amanda has worked with multiple education grants at the collegiate level supporting new STEM teachers designed to increase teacher retention rates. She believes that all students are curious and providing resources that allow for student exploration is critical for transformative learning.

Session Description: Get acquainted with Gizmos and how they can support math instruction in the classroom. Experience a model lesson, review student resources and make a plan for using Gizmos in your classroom.

Target Audience: 7-12 Teachers; Principals; Central Office Admin

Presenter(s): Curriculum Associates

Co-Presenter(s): Marcie Baril

Presenter Bio: The Curriculum Associates Professional Development Team is made up of former educators with direct experience using the Ready Classroom Math program with students. Our PD team, led by Katie Randall, are experts at current best practices in math education. Each facilitator has expertise in both the core RCM program and i-Ready tools.

Session Description: Educators use questioning to differentiate instruction to support student access to grade-level content. In this session, educators explore the important role teacher questions play in the Try-Discuss-Connect routine and examine how high-leverage questions can engage all students in rich mathematical discussion. With Ready Classroom Mathematics resources in hand, they consider how and when questions can be used to probe student thinking and build connections among mathematical ideas. Working collaboratively to respond to scenarios gives educators practice using purposeful questions and lays a foundation for continuing this practice when they return to the classroom.

Target Audience: K-5 Teachers; Paraeducators

Presenter(s): Angelica Clark

Presenter Bio: Angelica, a former STEM Integration Program Manager and teacher, has approached her career with the goal of creating equitable access to STEM learning for all. She has developed structures and experiences to promote growth in STEM for both teachers and students. Through her professional journey, she has managed a National Science Foundation Grant, hosted professional development experiences and planned and executed a variety of schoolwide STEM events. She continued working towards equity in STEM learning by creating authentic, relevant and engaging project-based learning experiences and curriculum for teachers and students. She both authored and co-authored middle school science curriculum for Educurious. Now, as a Digital Learning Coach for the Kent School District, she is focused on digital equity by building capacity towards effective digital learning. She works alongside Teacher Librarians/Technology Integration Specialists to improve student engagement and access in digital tools and learning through skills, opportunity and empowerment.

Session Description: Transform and enhance your classroom by learning to access and use a wide variety of Translator tools. Support your diverse students, learners and families with these tools by improving access to technology, content and learning outcomes.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Colin Seale

Presenter Bio: Colin Seale was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, where struggles in his upbringing gave birth to his passion for educational equity. Tracked early into gifted and talented programs, Colin was afforded opportunities his neighborhood peers were not. Using lessons from his experience as a math teacher, later as an attorney, and now as a keynote speaker, contributor to Forbes, The 74, and Education Post and author of Thinking Like a Lawyer: A Framework for Teaching Critical Thinking to All Students (Prufrock Press, 2020), Colin founded thinkLaw, a multi-award-winning organization to help educators leverage inquiry-based instructional strategies to close the critical thinking gap and ensure they teach and REACH all students, regardless of race, zip code or what side of the poverty line they are born into. When he’s not serving as the world’s most fervent critical thinking advocate, Colin proudly serves as the world’s greatest entertainer to his two young children.

Session Description: Brilliance is distributed equally. But too often, opportunity is not. The dual pandemics of COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice have given us the strongest possible case for prioritizing critical thinking instruction, but we still treat critical thinking as a luxury good. Equity requires educators to remove the systemic barriers far too many students face to unleashing their critical thinking potential.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Sheena Keiser

Presenter Bio: I have been an enthusiastic educator for the last eighteen years; the majority were spent teaching 5th grade or 3,4,5 multi-age classrooms and enjoying three years as a gifted education teacher. Special training during that time included being the elementary lead for an AVID elementary program, while teaching in Federal Way Public Schools and also being GLAD trained. More recently, I completed my Masters in Library Science and Technology Integration and I have spent four years as the librarian at Fairwood Elementary. As a committed life-long learner, I am currently working on my ELL endorsement.

Session Description: Follow along in my journey of intentional lesson design creating a learning opportunity that ACCELERATES LEARNING FOR ALL. Experience my teaching decisions along the way that leverage student voice to design a product, create meaningful instructional opportunities and integrate technology in meaningful ways. You will have a chance to reflect on strategies to promote student agency in the fall.

Target Audience: 3-8 Teachers; HiCap

Presenter(s): Paul Regelbrugge

Presenter Bio: Paul is the Teaching and Learning Specialist for the Holocaust Center for Humanity. A former attorney, he ultimately heeded his passion to become a teacher in the inner cities of Chicago and Buffalo, as well as in Spokane and Kent. Paul is a USHMM Teacher Fellow, Powell Teacher Fellow and Jewish Foundation for the Righteous Alfred Lerner Teaching Fellow. He is also the author of The Yellow Star House: The Remarkable Story of One Boy’s Survival in a Protected House in Hungary, as well as the co-writer of a forthcoming graphic novel about Holocaust survivor Steve Adler.

Session Description: This highly interactive session will examine primary sources, including excerpts from the autobiography of Hans Jurgen Massaquoi, a Black German during the Nazi era, as well as an image, and will understand how hatred and racism that fueled the Holocaust affected the lives of a victim group other than Jewish people: AfroGermans. Based on a new unit created by the Holocaust Center for Humanity, the session invokes questions of racism, hatred, prejudice in both Germany and the United States, identity, and how to combat hatred. As such, it transcends the Holocaust alone, and is an invaluable resource both for educators and students looking for examples that further speak to them about their own lives, the choices they make, and the consequences of actions and inactions.

Target Audience: 7-12 Teachers; HiCap; Paraeducators; Principals; Central Office Admin 

Presenter(s): Scott Edgar

Presenter Bio: Dr. Scott N. Edgar is Associate Professor of Music, Music Education Chair, and Director of Bands at Lake Forest College. Prior to his work in higher education, he taught K-12 music in Ohio and Michigan. Dr. Edgar is the author of Music Education and Social-Emotional Learning: The Heart of Teaching Music and is an internationally sought-after clinician on the topic. Dr. Edgar serves as Director of Practice and Research for The Center for Arts Education and Social-Emotional Learning. In addition to clinics, he also teaches graduate courses on Musical Social Emotional Learning at VanderCook College of Music. Dr. Edgar is a Music for All Educational Consultant, a Conn-Selmer Educational Clinician, and VH1 Save the Music Foundation Educational Consultant. He enjoys grilling, exercising, and spending time with his wife Steph, their son Nathan, and their cats Elsa and Wolfie.

Session Description: Our students encounter a great deal of social and emotional challenges affecting their lives. Arts educators are in a primed position to provide students this support through a socially rich and emotionally sound environment. However, arts educators are rarely prepared to offer this support. Social-Emotional Learning is intended to help students become socially and emotionally competent. The purpose of this session is to introduce the framework of SEL and to highlight explicit connections to arts education.

Target Audience: ALL 

Presenter(s): Randie Gottlieb

Co-Presenter(s): Dr. Daudi Abe and Dawnée Valencia

Presenter Bio: Dr. Gottlieb is the founding C.O.O. of UnityWorks. She has served as a teacher, school principal, college professor, and diversity trainer; has authored 14 books; and holds degrees in education from Cal State, Boston University, and Harvard. Her work has taken her to 30+ countries, including 11 years in Puerto Rico. Dr. Abe is an author and professor at Seattle Central College. He also serves as the History of Race & Policing Curriculum Consultant at the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission. He holds a Master’s Degree in Human Development, and a Doctorate in Education from the University of WashingtonDawnée Valencia is a Financial Educator and Coach based in Los Angeles, CA. For almost two decades, she has worked with youth traveling the country speaking about Race Unity, Diversity and Inclusion through performance art: dance, poetry, song/rap, and dramatic presentations. She is currently a Facilitator for a weekly national online discussion on Race.

Session Description: What is race and its impact on education? Learn about the history of race in education, society, and law in order to develop an increasingly multicultural perspective. TOPICS INCLUDE: Race in science & religion; The eugenics movement & its impact; Skin color & color blindness; The “one drop” rule; Race amity: the other tradition; and share our personal stories about race.

Target Audience: ALL

Presenter(s): Ernest Morrell

Co-Presenter(s): Russell Crew

Presenter Bio: ERNEST MORRELL is the Coyle Professor, a member of the faculty in the English, and Africana Studies Departments, and Director of the Center for Literacy Education at the University of Notre Dame. Ernest is also Director of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) James R. Squire Office for Policy Research in the English Language Arts. He is an elected Fellow of the American Educational Research Association, a past president of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), and a co-convener of the African Diaspora International Research Network. From 2015- 2021, Ernest has been annually ranked among the top university-based education scholars in the RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings published by EdWeek. Ernest is also the recipient of the NCTE Distinguished Service Award, the Kent Williamson Leadership Award from the Conference on English Leadership, and the Divergent Award for Excellence in 21st Century Literacies. His scholarly interests include: Critical Pedagogy, English Education, Literacy Studies, Postcolonial Studies, popular culture, and education across the African Diaspora.

Session Description: In this session, the conversation will center on culturally responsive practices, student inquiry experiences, equitable learning communities and the importance of social studies and critical literacy at this pivotal point in our current social climate.

Target Audience: ALL 

Presenter(s): Dustin Foster

Co-Presenter(s): Megan Keliikupakako

Presenter Bio: Dustin has taught middle school math and science and worked as a Digital Learning Coach. Dustin has also coached football and track in the district. He is a graduate of the Kent School District and a second-generation teacher. Session Description: This course will cover using eLearning (Canvas) to make your course materials more accessible to your students. Learn how to post content, engage students in discussion forums, and use quizzes for formative assessments. This course is aimed at new or novice Canvas users. Participants will be given hands-on exploration time to implement ideas discussed in the class and shown a variety of ways to implement a Canvas course with students.

Target Audience: 3-12 Teachers; HiCap

Presenter(s): Sherry Prindle

Presenter Bio: Sherry Prindle has an MA in Interdisciplinary Studies (Business and Linguistics) from the University of Texas at Arlington. She lived in Fukuoka, Japan for four years and Moscow, Russia for three years successfully working as a multilingual television and radio personality. She conducts energetic, interactive training programs that prompt discovery, motivation, and change. International speaker and corporate trainer, Sherry Prindle has delivered over 3,000 presentations in 8 countries and all 50 states in three languages. She founded the Professional Coach Academy where she has been instrumental in launching the careers of over 1,200 professional speakers and coaches through Life and Executive Coach Certification classes the biannual Star Marketing Summit.

Session Description: Re-awaken the natural ability you have to come up with great ideas. Move into solution mode. See obstacles as challenges. Practice the art of the possible with dozens of activities.

• Re-Approaching Creativity as a Practical Skill
• Warming Up—Overcome Blocks and Open to Possibilities
• Building Confidence—It’s Not Just Hit and Miss
• Directing Ideas Toward Solutions
• From Solutions to Decisions—Action Plan Development
• Making it Happen—Applying Thoughts to Practical Application

Target Audience: ALL