Authors & Presenters

Kimberly Rodriguez Cano, a consultant with over 30 years’ experience, is a former transition specialist, special education coordinator, professional development director, and school improvement specialist for the Florida Department of Education, supporting educators in that state and across the United States.

Megan Clarke is the superintendent of a special education collaborative serving four school districts in Illinois. In addition to supporting the collaborative, her work focuses on building partnerships with parents, community agencies, and other districts.

Becky Conner currently serves at the Georgia Department of Education in the instruction and systematic improvement unit. During her 32-year career in Catoosa County Public Schools, she was part of the guiding coalition and accomplished numerous goals for all students.

Shawn Creswell, author and presenter, has over 25 years of experience in education and has served as a classroom teacher, assistant principal, principal of two campuses, and district director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. She is currently a school board member in her community.

Beth Dalton, EdD, is an educator and presenter with more than 35 years of experience. In her career, she has served as an assistant superintendent, a special education supervisor, a principal, an assistant principal, and a special education teacher.

Brenda Davis is originally from New Zealand and currently resides in Oklahoma City. As an educator, Brenda is committed to educational equity for all students and has served in Title 1, urban, high poverty, and high multilingual learner (ML) populations for the past 21 years.

Joshua Depoe, EdD, is the principal at Benton Elementary in the Neosho School District in Southwest Missouri. During his 17 years as an educator, he has also served as a classroom teacher and an assistant principal. His work has focused on ensuring all students achieve at high levels.

Jessica Edwards is an instructional support specialist at the Professional Learning and Innovation Center, Broome-Tioga BOCES in upstate New York. Previously, she taught special education for eight years across various grade levels and educational settings.

Elizabeth Ferguson is a former teacher, district trainer, and campus administrator with experience in establishing and growing professional learning communities (PLC) to ultimately become Model PLC at Work® schools, primarily through her work with special populations and challenging demographics.

Angie Freese is an author and speaker with expertise in assessment, leadership, system improvement, and strategic planning. With over two decades in education, Angie brings a unique blend of experiences that include classroom teacher, building administrator, curriculum specialist, and district leader.