Dr. Kristin R. Anderson, an esteemed educator, researcher, author, and the co-founder and CEO of The Brilliance Project, has dedicated over two decades to transforming education and unlocking the personal power of educators, leaders, and change-makers. With a rich background in teaching and learning across diverse social, cultural, and economic contexts, her work emphasizes the transformative power of education to address real world challenges and uplift communities. Kristin's expertise as an activator spans across K-12 education settings, bolstered by a doctorate in Educational Leadership and Organizational Change from Vanderbilt University. Renowned for her innovative approach to professional learning, Kristin collaborates with global leaders on impactful educational initiatives, leveraging improvement science, behavioral science, and insight into adult well-being to inspire positive change through education. 

Dr. Anita Archer is an educational consultant to state departments and school districts on explicit instruction and literacy.  She has presented in all 50 states, all US territories, and many countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, and is the recipient of ten awards honoring her contributions to education.  Dr. Archer has served on the faculties of three universities, including the University of Washington, the University of Oregon, and San Diego State University. She has co-authored numerous curriculum materials, including Phonics for Reading (Curriculum Associates), a three-level intervention program, REWARDS (Voyager/Sopris), a five-component literacy intervention program, and a best-selling textbook titled Explicit Instruction: Effective and Efficient Teaching (Guilford Publications). 

Pam Austin has over 35 years of experience as an educator. She has worked as a Professional Learning Facilitator manager with over 17 years of experience in training and supporting districts in various literacy and numeracy interventions for Voyager Sopris Learning in addition to delivering LETRS professional development sessions. She has also shared her love of proven VSL solutions as a product marketing manager when she began her role as an EDView 360 podcast host in 2019 and continues to this day. Her goal is to aid teachers in changing the lives of students so that they not only become proficient and successful learners, but also, individuals confident in pursuing personal and professional life goals. She previously held the role of literacy specialist at The Center for Development and Learning (CDL) now The Center for Literacy and Learning. As an educator in the New Orleans Public Schools for 14 years, she served as an elementary teacher, a reading interventionist, a school-based reading coach, and a central office field literacy facilitator. These varying roles allowed her to gain a myriad of experiences that have enhanced her ability to work in collaboration with other educators, schools, and districts for impactful professional learning. Pam’s first steps into a life-long career as an educator began as a fourth-grade teacher, in a small school, in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. And the journey continues… 

Dr. Barbee holds a doctoral degree in educational leadership and literacy from the University of Houston. She brings ~20 years of education-related experience in PreK-12 settings. Dr. Barbee currently serves as a full-time consultant with Corwin. She most recently served as a project manager of assessment for learning in a large urban district, which involved creating system-wide professional learning programming for central staff and campuses that promoted the spread of research-based practices. Through an emphasis on relationship-building and human-centered design principles, Dr. Barbee has coached PreK-12 principals, teachers, and district leaders on pedagogical practices that promote equity and student agency. She served as an ESOL teacher in Thomazeau, Haiti, and worked with Haitian teachers to implement sustainable teaching practices. She currently serves on the board of Roam Wild Adventures, a nonprofit that works to connect youth from diverse backgrounds through carefully designed outdoor adventure trips. Her co-authored books include The Teacher Clarity Playbook, Grades K-12: A Hands-On Guide to Creating Learning Intentions and Success Criteria for Organized, Effective Instruction, Teaching Foundational Skills to Adolescent Readers; and Clarity of Learning: Organization, Explanations, Examples, and Assessment in Teacher Clarity.

John Bennetts is a national literacy consultant specializing in evidence-based reading practices. With extensive experience training educators and collaborating with system leaders, John supports schools and districts nationwide in implementing instructional practices and systems aligned with what we currently know about best practices. He works closely with system leaders to help schools and school districts evaluate and change current practices to better align with best practices, ensuring sustainable improvements in literacy outcomes. Before joining Readsters, John served as a teacher and administrator at both elementary and secondary levels, worked at the Rhode Island Department of Education, and managed the development of an online, adaptive reading program for secondary students. These experiences have given him a comprehensive perspective on the educational landscape. Beyond his professional role, John is the vice chair of the board for Reach Out and Read Rhode Island. This nonprofit partners with pediatric practices statewide to provide books to children ages birth to five during pediatric visits, while empowering parents with strategies to foster literacy at home. 

Phil Capin, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His research seeks to understand differences in reading development and to develop and evaluate the efficacy of instructional practices, primarily for those with difficulties. He is currently the Principal Investigator of an Institutes of Education Sciences Grant focused on improving language and reading comprehension for elementary emergent bilinguals. In addition to advancing our understanding of reading development, instruction, and assessment, a primary goal of his work is to translate research findings in ways that can meaningfully address current challenges that affect educators and their students. Prior to joining academia, Dr. Capin was a special education teacher in El Centro, CA.

Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan, Ed.D, is a Bilingual Speech Language Pathologist and a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She is the Director of Valley Speech Language and Learning Center in Brownsville, Texas which was established in 1993.  She also works with Texas Institute for Measurement Evaluation and Statistics at the University of Houston.  Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan is the author of Esperanza (HOPE), a Spanish language program designed to assist students who struggle with learning to read. Her research interests include the development of early reading assessments for Spanish-speaking students and the development of reading interventions for bilingual students. She was the co-principal investigator of a longitudinal study funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Institute for Education Science that examined the oracy and literacy development in English and Spanish of Spanish-speaking children. She serves as the Vice President for the International Dyslexia Association and has authored curricular programs, book chapters, and journal articles related to oracy and literacy development for English language learners. 

Judi is a Consultant for Learning and Development for the 95 Percent Group. In addition, she is a former national LETRS trainer, a national literacy consultant, teaches classes and speaks on topics related to the role of oral language in learning to read, instructional choices that can change and develop the reading brain, the role of language to reinforce foundational skill development, in addition to the impact of trauma on learning and the role of literacy to help heal. Before beginning her literacy consulting work, she worked for 20 years as a special educator in Colorado. Judi is the author of 50 Nifty Activities for Reading Instruction and 50 Nifty Activities for Speaking and Listening: for Oral Language and Comprehension. Judi’s second area of passion is global education for young women. She is the president of Peruvian Hearts, a non-profit organization dedicated to the education, mentorship, and development of leadership for young women in Peru. Judi believes that literacy is a social justice issue, and this adds passion to her work with teachers and students.

Lillian Durán has a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Minnesota and is a Professor in the Department of Special Education and Clinical Sciences at the University of Oregon. She holds a B.A. in Elementary Education from Antioch College and an M.A. in Education and Human Development from the George Washington University. Her research focused is on large scale equitable language and literacy measurement development in English and Spanish from preschool to 6th grade. She also is the project director on several Office of Special Education Programs training grants focused on preparing master’s and doctoral students to serve marginalized populations with disabilities with a focus on equity and improving educational outcomes. Dr. Durán frequently delivers presentations nationally on the topic of recommended practices in language and literacy practices with multilingual learners and she has served on multiple equity and diversity councils including the National Association for Young Children and the Division for Early Childhood. Prior to Dr. Durán’s work in higher education she worked for 9 years as an early childhood special education teacher both in Prince George’s County, Maryland and in rural southwestern Minnesota. 

As the author of “Uncovering the Logic of English” and CEO and founder of Logic of English, Denise is passionate about translating the science of reading into practice. When her sons struggled to learn to read, she discovered that there are answers to the “whys” of English spelling. Upon seeing her sons go from nonreaders to reading chapter books within months, she realized that this information could help everyone! Armed with that knowledge, she continues her life work of sharing the power of knowing how English works by speaking, writing, and publishing. 

As an assistant professor at Marietta College, Michelle Elia prepares pre-service teachers to teach reading using evidence-based language and literacy practices. Michelle previously served as Ohio Literacy Lead and has taught students in preschool through high school. Michelle is a nationally recognized literacy professional development provider, training educators in literacy instruction and assessment within an MTSS framework grounded in reading science. She serves as a school board member of her local district and president of The Reading League Ohio. A lifelong learner, Elia is pursuing her doctorate in Reading Science at Mount St. Joseph University. Michelle is passionate about teaching and applying the science of reading to the classroom. When she is not talking about reading, her favorite job is being a mom to her three not-so-small children. https://linktr.ee/mjelia

Volunteering to teach adult struggling readers was a natural for Linda, who is a former English teacher, school counselor, and lifelong bookworm. Linda met her mentor, Dr. Louisa Moats, while she was volunteering to teach adults to read. She has since coauthored the Teaching Reading Essentials Program Guide and Coaches Guide with Dr. Moats. Linda is also coauthor, with Michael Hunter, of Phonics Blitz™ (1st Edition), Phonics Boost™, and the Diagnostic Decoding Surveys. Linda was a National LETRS Trainer with Dr. Moats for seven years. She has been presenting workshops, giving speeches, authoring publications, and developing reading assessment and instructional materials for more than 10 years. To keep her skills fresh and innovative, Linda works with struggling readers of all ages whenever she gets the chance to do so. 

Antonio A. Fierro is the Vice President of Professional Learning and Academics with the 95 Percent group and co-author of Kid Lips, a phonetics curriculum for young children. For almost 20 years, he was a member of the national LETRS cohort of literacy consultants led by Dr. Louisa Moats and has led many initiatives nationwide to improve instruction for English learners. Dr. Fierro currently sits on the national board of The Reading League and the advisory board of LETRS 3rd edition.

Douglas Fisher, Ph.D., is Professor and Chair of Educational Leadership at San Diego State University and a leader at Health Sciences High & Middle College having been an early intervention teacher and elementary school educator. He was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame in 2022. Doug has published numerous articles on leadership, reading and literacy, differentiated instruction, and curriculum design as well as books, such as The Teaching Reading Playbook, PLC+: Better Decisions and Greater Impact by Design, Rigor Unveiled, and Better Learning Through Structured Teaching.

Nancy Frey, Ph.D., is a Professor in Educational Leadership at San Diego State University and a member of the International Literacy Association’s Literacy Research Panel. Nancy has published in The Reading Teacher, Theory Into Practice, Reading Psychology, Early Childhood Education Journal, and Educational Leadership on research related to literacy, school leadership, and effective instruction. Current books include The Teaching Reading Playbook, The Mathematics Playbook, Teaching Students to Drive Their Learning, Welcome to Teaching, and the PLC+ suite of books. In 2008 she was given the Early Career Achievement Award by the Literacy Research Association and is a member of the California Reading Hall of Fame. She is a credentialed special educator, reading specialist, and administrator in California, and is a co-founder and administrator at Health Sciences High and Middle College. 

Dr. Lorraine Hammond AM, is an Associate Professor at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia who has worked and researched in the areas of early literacy, high impact instructional strategies, including explicit teaching and learning difficulties since 1990. Awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2002, Lorraine has been recognized by an Australian Government National Teaching Award (2016) for outstanding tertiary teaching and in 2017 the Australian Council for Educational Leadership recognized her work in schools promoting high impact instruction. In 2019, Lorraine received an Order of Australia (AM) for her significant contribution to tertiary education and the community. Lorraine has designed units of work on structured literacy and explicit instruction at Edith Cowan University, including the first post-graduate unit on the Science of Reading Instruction in Australia. Since 2017, Lorraine has developed and presented professional learning on evidence-based literacy strategies for the Kimberley Schools Project in the north of Western Australia in regional and remote community schools as well as the Catholic Archdioceses of Adelaide, Broken Bay, Canberra-Goulburn, Melbourne and Tasmania. In 2024, Lorraine was inaugurated into the Western Australian Women’s Hall of Fame for her work teaching evidence-based reading instruction in schools and at Edith Cowan University.

A native of historic Selma, Alabama, Krystal Allen is the Founder & CEO of K. Allen Consulting™, an award-winning former teacher and principal, respected organizational leadership and DEI thought leader, and best-selling author of "What Goes Unspoken: How School Leaders Address DEI Beyond Race". Krystal began her career teaching elementary school, then moving into instructional leadership as an administrator, and in 2017, became a social entrepreneur founding what has become a highly sought after global education and management consulting firm serving over 8 countries; major corporate brands, such as Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft; school systems, nonprofits, and government agencies. Most recently featured within Time Magazine for her thought leadership on racial bias with K-12 classrooms, she was named one of the 2024 top five Education Change-makers within the state of Louisiana, is a 2019 Gambit 40 Under 40 recipient, a 2019 Aspen Institute Ideas Festival Scholar, the 2016 Urban League of Louisiana Activist Award recipient; was named one of the 2022 Most Influential Women in Business in Louisiana by the BRM Regional Chamber of Commerce, and serves on the Board of Directors for several national and state nonprofit organizations that advance educational equity. A first-generation college graduate, Krystal holds a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, M.Ed. from NLU (Chicago), and pursued doctoral studies at Teachers College, Columbia University. 

Jan Hasbrouck, Ph.D. is an award-winning researcher, educational consultant, and author who works with schools and agencies in the U.S. and internationally. Dr. Hasbrouck worked as a reading specialist and literacy coach for 15 years and later became a professor. Her research in reading fluency, academic assessment and interventions, and instructional coaching has been widely published. She is the author, coauthor, and co-editor of several books along with some assessment tools. She continues to collaborate with researchers and school colleagues on projects related to reading interventions, assessment, and instructional coaching. She enjoys volunteering at her grandson’s K-8 school in Seattle. 

Nancy Hennessy is an experienced teacher and administrator who currently works as a literacy consultant. While in public schools, she provided leadership for innovative programming for special need students and professional learning for all educators. Nancy has designed and delivered keynote addresses and multiple virtual and live professional learning events including workshops, podcasts, and training courses on the science of reading, dyslexia & structured literacy. Most recently, reading comprehension has been her focus. She is the author of the book, The Reading Comprehension Blueprint: Helping Students Make Meaning of Text and recently, co-authored a companion text with Julia Salamone, The Reading Comprehension Activity Book: A Practice & Planning Guide for Teachers. Nancy has also written the chapter, Working with Word Meaning: Vocabulary Instruction, in Multisensory Teaching of Basic Skills (4th edition). While serving as a national trainer for Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling, she co-authored LETRS, Digging for Meaning: Teaching Text Comprehension (2nd edition) with Louisa Moats. She is a past president of the International Dyslexia Association (IDA) and has served as the vice-president of the North Carolina Branch of IDA. In 2011, Nancy received the International Dyslexia Association’s Margaret Byrd Rawson Lifetime Achievement Award. She was recently honored with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s 2023 Impact Award. Nancy believes we are the sum of all our teachers and that learning is our work. 

Dr. Elfrieda “Freddy” Hiebert (Ph.D., U. of Wisconsin-Madison) is the President and CEO of TextProject, a non-profit that provides open-access resources for instruction of beginning and struggling readers. Freddy has had a long career as a literacy educator, first as a teacher of primary-level students in California and, subsequently, as a teacher educator and researcher at the Universities of Kentucky, Colorado-Boulder, Michigan, and California-Berkeley. Her research, which addresses how fluency, vocabulary, and knowledge can be fostered through appropriate texts, has been published in numerous scholarly journals and books. Through documents such as Becoming a Nation of Readers (Center for the Study of Reading, 1985) and Every Child a Reader (Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement, 1999), she has contributed to making research accessible to educators. Freddy’s contributions to research and practice have been recognized through awards such as the Oscar Causey Award for Outstanding Contributions to Reading Research (Literacy Research Association, 2015), Research to Practice award (American Educational Research Association, 2013), William S. Gray Citation of Merit Award for Outstanding Contributions to Reading Research (International Reading Association, 2008), and membership in the Reading Hall of Fame (2008). 

Michael Hunter, M.Ed., is a founding partner of Readsters, a small company dedicated to supporting and developing excellent reading instruction, so all students learn to read. Michael found his passion for teaching struggling readers as a volunteer teaching adult nonreaders. He is now dedicated to helping teachers teach every student to read. Michael has co-authored instructional materials with his business partner, Linda Farrell, including Phonics Plug-In ONE & TWO, Practice Packets for Fixing Common Confusions, and Teaching Vowel Sounds. Michael delivers professional development and advises schools nationally. Some of his favorite work with schools includes coaching and modeling in the classroom. This work with students and teachers keeps Michael’s skills fresh. This work also continues to inform the creation of additional instructional materials for beginning and struggling readers of all ages. Michael’s work at Readsters has even taken him to Africa to consult on early reading instruction in tribal languages. 

Pam Kastner, Ed.D., is an educational consultant and the former state lead for literacy in Pennsylvania at the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) Harrisburg. Currently, Dr. Kastner is honored to serve as a contributing faculty member at Mount Saint Joseph University in the Reading Science Program where she teaches in the Masters’ and Doctoral Program and was honored as the Adjunct Professor of the Year in 2023. Dr. Kastner has presented widely across the United States and internationally. She partners with State Departments of Education and school districts throughout the nation to provide on-site technical assistance, consultation and coaching.  Dr. Kastner serves on the Pennsylvania Literacy Coalition and has the honor of serving as the President of The Reading League Pennsylvania, The Reading League Journal’s Practitioner Editorial Board, and is a member of The Science of Reading: A Defining Movement coalition.

Devin M. Kearns, Ph.D. is Goodnight Distinguished Professor in Early Literacy at North Carolina State University at Raleigh. He is also a research scientist for the Haskins Global Literacy Hub affiliated with Yale University and the University of Connecticut. Devin studies how students in the elementary grades learn to read and designs instructional programs to better meet the needs of these students. He conducts research to understand the cognitive and neurobiological basis of reading and to help schools better implement multi-tiered systems of support to increase the literacy success of all students. He also works with teachers, school administrators, and district leaders to improve implementation of multi-tiered systems of support for readers in the early and later grades. Devin has seven years of classroom experience as a teacher, literacy coach, and reading specialist. He continues to help schools and districts implement high-quality reading instruction—including demonstrating how to implement evidence-based reading instruction. Devin publishes articles for researchers and educators on reading difficulty and helps schools and districts implement high-quality reading instruction. 

Although most educators and experts agree that phonics is necessary for teaching foundational reading skills, there are many approaches and programs to choose from. There are also key instructional elements that can enhance the effectiveness of any program. This session will focus on powerful, evidence-based practices that have been shown to maximize the effectiveness of phonics instruction. 

Daryl Michel, PhD, consults with organizations nationally and internationally in areas such as instructional coaching, teacher education, disciplinary literacy, learning and lesson study, and curriculum design. He is the founder of Be A Change, LLC, and coauthor of Student-Focused Coaching: The Instructional Coach’s Guide to Supporting Student Success Through Teacher Collaboration (Brookes Publishing, 2022). In addition to his educational consulting, he serves as a project manager for The University of Texas at Austin’s Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk consulting with districts to develop systemwide Multi-tiered System of Supports. Daryl began his career in the education profession nearly three decades ago and, today, continues to follow his passion of learning with and from others and advocating for voices and perspectives to be heard. 

Katharine Pace Miles, Ph.D. is an associate professor and the Director of the Advanced Certificates in Reading Science at Brooklyn College, City University of New York (CUNY). Dr. Mile's research interests include orthographic mapping, high frequency word learning, reading interventions, and literacy instruction that is both developmentally appropriate and grounded in the science of reading. She is the author of Reading Ready and Reading Ready for Whole Phonics, and she is the academic advisor for Reading Go. Dr. Miles is the co-founder and principal investigator of CUNY Reading Corps, which improves preservice teacher training and provides free high-dosage tutoring to over 2,000 historically underserved NYC students per year. Dr. Miles is also the founder and president of The Reading Institute, which brings free evidence-based tutoring to striving readers and provides reading science-aligned professional development to teachers.

Molly Ness is a former classroom teacher, a reading researcher, and a teacher educator. She earned a doctorate in reading education at the University of Virginia and spent 16 years as an associate professor at Fordham University in New York City. The author of five books, Molly served on the Board of Directors for the International Literacy Association and is a New York state chapter founder of the Reading League. Dr. Ness has extensive experience in reading clinics, consulting with school districts, leading professional development, and advising school systems on research-based reading instruction. She provided literacy leadership for nationally recognized literacy non-profits, as well as major educational publishers. 

For 28 years, Dr. Terrie Noland, CALP, has put her energy into leadership and literacy; first as a teacher and administrator and as a national non-profit literacy leader. Terrie coaches and mentors leaders about the urgent need to align all practices and resources to an evidence-based approach to literacy. Recognized as a national thought leader and an award-winning podcaster with a focus on building a community of literacy champions, Terrie speaks to crowds to hear captivating stories, leadership principles, research, and best practices in literacy, which she always delivers with humor and inspiration. She has extensive experience working with state departments, regional education service providers, and local LEAs to build the framework for evidence-based instruction that needs to be delivered with clear leadership principles. Terrie is a Certified Academic Language Practitioner and has a Ph.D. in Literacy and Educational Leadership. 

Tim Odegard is a Professor of Psychology and holds the Katherine Davis Murfree Chair of Excellence in Dyslexic Studies at Middle Tennessee State University, where he leads the Tennessee Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia. Dr. Odegard plays a pivotal role in advancing the Science of Reading and currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Annals of Dyslexia and consulting editor for the Journal of Learning Disabilities. He is also a former editor at large for Perspectives on Language and Literacy. As a contributing author to the IDA’s Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading, he has helped shape educational standards in literacy. Additionally, he has served as Vice President of the Texas Dyslexia Licensure Advisory Committee and contributed to the IDA’s Educational Training Initiative. Dr. Odegard’s commitment to enhancing educational opportunities extends beyond dyslexia to broader literacy efforts across North America. His service includes technical consulting for multiple state literacy initiatives, developing online training for state departments of education, and supporting large U.S. school districts. He is a California Reading Difficulties Risk Selection Panel member and serves on the intervention selection committee for Ontario, Canada. He also serves on advisory boards for nonprofit organizations that impact communities nationwide. His numerous accolades include the AIM Institute Founder's Award, the Innovator Award from IMSLEC, ALTA’s Luke Waits Service Award, the Massey-Sexton Dyslexia Advocacy Award from the Tennessee IDA, the Roland H. Waters Teaching Award from the University of Arkansas, and the Research Excellence Award from the University of Texas, Arlington. 

Nicole Ormandy, M.S. Ed. is the Head of Research and Product Development at AIM Institute for Learning and Research, where she is responsible for designing professional learning solutions centered around reading, writing, and inclusive practices for culturally and linguistically diverse populations. In consultation with researchers and literacy experts across the nation, Nicole synthesizes and disseminates research, practical classroom practices, and evidence-based strategies through presentations and online course content. Nicole was previously an Elementary and Special Education teacher. She received a Master of Science in Special Education and a CERI Structured Literacy Classroom Teacher certificate. 

Dr. Lucy Hart Paulson, Ed.D., CCC-SLP, is an author and literacy specialist with the mission of bringing research to practice. She is also a speech-language pathologist with many years of experience working with educators and with young children and their families in a wide range of educational settings. In addition, Lucy was an associate professor teaching and conducting research in the areas of language and literacy development and disorders. She provides professional development using a broad-based perspective blending areas of language and literacy together resulting in effective, appropriate, and engaging language-based literacy instruction and intervention for all children. Finally, Lucy is the co-author of the Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) for Early Childhood Educators, 2nd Edition and also for Good Talking Words, 2nd Edition, a social communication skills program for young children. 

With her infectious energy and deep expertise, Dr. Kim Richardson is a powerhouse in educational leadership and coaching. Dr. Kim holds a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) designation from the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and serves as president-elect for the Virginia Learning Forward Board of Directors. She’s also part of the VASCD Annual Conference Planning Committee. Dr. Kim’s talents don’t stop there—she created the Radical Learners course, Coaching for Connection, Certainty, and Autonomy, for Jim Knight’s Instructional Coach Group, and she and her district’s coaching program were even spotlighted in Knight’s book, Focus on Teachers. In her current role, Dr. Kim leads professional learning for school and district teams, digging deep into instruction, coaching, and leadership development. Her work is inspired by her dissertation, where she found that great leaders, especially coaches, are enlisted and developed! Among her many roles, Dr. Kim’s all-time favorite was serving as an Instructional Coaching Coordinator, where she built and led the district’s coaching program from the ground up. This initiative has become a cornerstone of the district’s success, providing ongoing training and leadership for coaches and specialists. Her background also includes experience as an elementary school principal, technology specialist, coach, and classroom teacher. Outside the office, Dr. Kim is all about family time with her husband, three sons, daughter-in-law, and her one-year-old granddaughter. She also gets her groove on every Saturday as a Zumba® fitness instructor, dancing her way to joy and energy! 

Ricky Robertson is an educator, author, and consultant who assists schools and districts across the country in developing trauma-informed systems of support that foster resilience and success for staff, students, and families. Ricky’s latest book The Other Teachers: A Guide to Psychological Safety Among Educators (Corwin Press) explores the harmful effects of fear-based leadership, workplace bullying, and collective burnout and provides guidance on how to transform schools to support educators’ well-being and collective efficacy. If you are interested in learning more about trauma-informed teaching, you can visit https://www.adlit.org/trauma-and-teaching for free resources for educators made available through a partnership between Ricky, WETA, AdLit, and the National Education Association. If you would like to contact Ricky, you can reach him through www.teachfortrust.com.

Dr. Jasmine Rogers is a leading national voice in literacy instruction, specializing in culturally competent approaches to teaching. With nine years of classroom experience in charter and DC Public Schools, she saw firsthand how traditional reading instruction often left Black Language-speaking students behind. Her research at American University’s School of Education challenges long-held misconceptions, showing that when teachers receive even minimal training on Black English, their instruction becomes significantly more effective. A sought-after structured literacy coach, adjunct professor, speaker and consultant, Dr. Rogers blends data-driven research with practical classroom insights. She has been featured as a guest on podcasts, led workshops at teacher conferences, and moderated academic panels. Her work not only helps educators recognize unconscious biases but also equips them to better serve linguistically diverse students. Dr. Rogers' mission is clear- to revolutionize literacy instruction by affirming every student's linguistic heritage. 

Joan Sedita is the founder of Keys to Literacy, a literacy professional development organization based in Massachusetts. Joan has been in the literacy field for over 45 years as a teacher, administrator, and teacher trainer. She is the creator of The Writing Rope framework and has authored multiple literacy professional development programs, including The Key Comprehension Routine, The Key Vocabulary Routine, Keys to Beginning Reading, Keys to Content Writing, Keys to Early Writing, Understanding Dyslexia, and Adolescent Literacy. Beginning in 1975, she worked for 23 years at the Landmark School, a pioneer in the development of literacy intervention programs. As a teacher, principal, and director of the Outreach Teacher Training Program at Landmark, Joan developed expertise, methods, and instructional programs that address the literacy needs of students in grades K-12. Joan was one of the three lead trainers in MA for the Reading First Program and was a LETRS author and trainer. Joan received her M.Ed. in Reading from Harvard University and her B.A. from Boston College. 

Amy Siracusano, MS Ed., worked in public education for over 20 years before becoming a national literacy consultant. Her career has included working as a classroom teacher, administrator, IEP chairperson, and a system-wide literacy specialist. Amy is a member of Decoding Dyslexia Maryland, the Vice Chair of The Reading League National, and an adjunct professor for the Advanced Certificate in Reading Science post-master's program at Brooklyn College in New York City. She is determined to support national efforts in making sure teachers are equipped with deep knowledge of language systems and teaching approaches to ensure all students leave second grade with proficient reading and writing skills. Amy lives in Southern Maryland with her husband Joe and their two daughters, Lucia (17) and Isabella (15). 

Dr. St. Martin is the director of Michigan’s MTSS Technical Assistance Center. She is a co-principal investigator for an Institute of Education Science (IES) grant and a State Personnel Development Grant. Dr. St. Martin has been a panel member for the IES Practice Guide, Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4–9. She has assisted in writing Michigan’s K-12 literacy and dyslexia legislation. Dr. St. Martin is the primary author of the Reading Tiered Fidelity Inventory (R-TFI) and co-author of the District and Regional Capacity assessments. She has more than 25 years of experience in the field of education. 

Laura Stewart is an educator and organizational leader. She has served as a classroom teacher, building and district administrator, adjunct professor, and director of numerous professional development initiatives around the country. Before joining 95 Percent Group, Laura was the Chief Innovation Officer with The Reading League and the Chief Academic Officer for Professional Development at Highlights for Children. Laura presents widely and has written for numerous organizations and publications, including The Courage to Lead and co-authoring The Everything Guide to Informational Text K-2; Best Texts, Best Practices. She is a contributing author to Climbing the Ladder of Reading and Writing: Meeting the Needs of ALL Learners. Laura hosted the podcast “Teaching, Reading, and Learning: The TRL Podcast.” She serves on several advisory boards and was formerly a certified LETRS facilitator. Laura’s position as the Chief Academic Officer at 95 Percent Group suits her perfectly, as her passion is empowering educators to positively impact ALL students and ultimately change the course of literacy achievement in this country. 

Stephanie Stollar is passionate about using MTSS as the framework for helping all students become skilled readers. She’s the founder of the Reading Science Academy, an online community where over a thousand educators support each other to improve results in their schools. Dr. Stollar also advises the next generation of education policy leaders in her role as an assistant professor at Mount St. Joseph University. She served as a Vice President at Acadience Learning, provided training and consultation to hundreds of school districts, worked as an Assistant Professor of School Psychology, and as a School Psychologist. Dr. Stollar believes that by supporting all educators, high achievement is possible for every student. 

Lyn is an educational linguist, author, and founder of Lifelong Literacy, an education coaching and training organization. Her goal is to help educators awaken linguistic curiosity in their students using creative, engaging tools and strategies that are based upon scientific consensus as to what constitutes best practice. Lyn creates research-informed professional development seminars, both online and face to face, for teachers and other education professionals. She directs a team of specialist practitioners to deliver high quality literacy intervention at Tiers 2 and 3, and a team of school coaches to deliver the best possible Tier 1 literacy instruction. Her occasional podcast about the lives of prominent education professionals, Loves, Hates and Passions, can be found on Spotify. Her three books, Spelling for Life, Language for Life and Reading for Life continue to attract worldwide acclaim and enjoy places on various bestseller lists. 

Kareem Weaver is the Co-Founder & Executive Director of FULCRUM. He is an award-winning educator and community advocate with extensive experience leading schools and systems in district, juvenile justice, and managed-care settings. His advocacy is featured in the 2023 documentary The Right to Read. Kareem has engaged with the Council of the Great City Schools, the College Board, and the Ontario Human Rights Commission on literacy as a civil right. He has offered diagnostic support to districts, states, and educator preparation programs; presented at over 100 conferences, departments of education, universities, and community organizations; and led field visits for system leaders, all in service of bringing clarity to the literacy crisis and illuminating the most productive path forward so that all children have access to Full and Complete Reading, which is a Universal Mandate (FULCRUM). He is the current second Vice President and Education Committee Chair for the Oakland NAACP. 

What are the concrete steps that have been proven to work? How can we create systems that consistently develop “effective” readers? Children’s civil right to read can be secured by ensuring systems are making well-informed decisions that are rooted in evidence of success. As a result of practice, research, and examples of success, key steps have been identified and verified as being critical to sustainable success. This session will identify and explore each of these key steps while providing examples and clear, actionable guidance for attendees to consider. Designed for stakeholders with an interest in improving reading outcomes: policymakers, district and school leadership teams, teachers, unions, community, parents. 

Daniel Willingham is a Professor at the University of Virginia. He trained at the intersection of cognitive psychology and neuroscience and did basic research in human memory for the first 15 years of his career. Since 2007 all of his work has focused on thinking about how findings about the mind and brain might apply to classrooms.  He is the author of several books, including the best-selling Why Don't Students Like School? and most recently, Outsmart Your Brain. His writing on education has appeared in twenty-three languages. In 2017 he was appointed by President Obama to serve as a Member of the National Board for Education Sciences. 

Research shows that student engagement and motivation has dropped precipitously since the pandemic. How can instructors get students to be more consistent in reading assignments, participating in class, and so on? Explanations for student disengagement sometimes blame the instructor (“be more interesting!”) and sometimes blame the student (“have more grit!”) but neither provides helpful direction. In this talk I will describe recent psychological findings on two determinants of motivation: curiosity and feelings of self-efficacy. This research suggests some novel strategies that instructors can bring to their classrooms to increase student engagement. We'll also look at the latest data on how the use of digital technologies (both in school and out) affects student cognition. 

When asked to name our highest hope for schooling, most educators would agree that we want to teach students to think critically; we don't want them merely to learn factual content and to memorize formulas and strategies that solve problems—we want them to be creative thinkers and analyzers. This instructional task has never been easy, but it seems still more challenging today, when students can tap the power of AI at home to generate ideas and solve problems. In this talk I will explain why critical thinking is so difficult to teach, which will in turn suggest curricular and instructional strategies to get around these difficulties. I will also discuss how to adapt assignments to the new realities presented by Chat-GPT, not just to defend against student cheating, but to utilize the power of AI to help students think.