Authors & Presenters

Whitney K. Freije is an elementary school principal at A.F. Palmer Elementary, a Model PLC at Work® school in the Windsor Central School District, located in upstate New York. She specializes in empowering teachers with effective instructional practices to promote high levels of literacy and mathematics.

Nancy Frey, PhD, is a professor of literacy in the Department of Educational Leadership at San Diego State University. She is also a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College in San Diego.

Katherine Gillies is the lead architect of districtwide literacy improvement at Niles North High School, D219, in Illinois. Her work includes building a comprehensive system of intervention and support for struggling readers and developing a research-based curriculum to ensure continued literacy growth for all students.

Kathy Tuchman Glass is an accomplished author, presenter, and former classroom teacher with more than twenty-five years of experience in education.

Sarah Gord is a reading specialist and literacy coach at Kildeer Countryside School District 96 in suburban Chicago. Her work focuses on the implementation of standards-aligned teaching and assessment practices.

Marge Christensen Gould is a high school English teacher with 31 years of classroom experience. She also coordinated a program for students at risk funded by the Arizona Supreme Court and the Tucson Unified School District.

Peg Grafwallner is an instructional coach and reading specialist at Ronald Reagan College Preparatory High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With over 25 years of experience in the field of education, Peg has also served as an English teacher and an alternative education teacher.

Maria C. Grant, EdD, is a professor in secondary education at California State University, Fullerton. She has authored numerous publications centered on science literacy, formative assessment, and reading.

Floyd Gómez-Starnes is an educational speaker providing training in literacy, dual language education, and school improvement. His career spans over 30 years and includes classroom teaching, developmental coaching, and literacy.

Kourtney Hake is an English teacher at Sparta Lincoln School in Sparta, Illinois. She is also a member of the National Council for Teachers of English (NCTE), the Illinois Reading Council (IRC), and the Illinois Association of Teachers of English (IATE) since 2014.