Assessment

Dr. Jill Kind is the director of learning and achievement for Osseo Area Schools in a diverse suburb of Minneapolis. Her areas of focus are curriculum, assessment and standards-based instruction, and grading at the secondary or system levels.

Lucy Pearson, assistant principal at John E. Flynn/A Marzano Academy, brings over a decade of experience as a teacher, special education interventionist, and instructional coach. She is committed to building strong relationships with students and families.

Despite our best efforts, progress remains elusive with traditional remediation. It's time to rethink the approach. This webinar explores acceleration—a proactive, strengths-based model that empowers all students to achieve at or above grade level. This isn't just about closing gaps; it's about building a future where every student thrives.

During this hands-on training designed for school or districtwide teams, general and special educators will discover how to utilize PLC best practices to develop collaborative partnerships and identify high-leverage structures and strategies that will level the playing field, accelerate learning, and support success for all students.

Melissa Dickson, EdM, is an outstanding presenter and educator. She is passionate about providing teachers with research-based ideas and strategies that they implement immediately. In her decades as an educator, Melissa has been a literacy coach, staff developer, site-based team leader, mentor teacher, inclusion teacher, classroom teacher, and early childhood teacher.

Anisa Baker-Busby, EdD, serves as an elementary school principal in middle Georgia. She has over 16 years of experience working in high-poverty schools as an elementary teacher and administrator.

Matt Townsley, EdD, is an associate professor of educational leadership at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He is a former district administrator and teacher in Solon Community Schools, also in Iowa, where he led curriculum, assessment, and school-improvement initiatives, all under the umbrella of a professional learning community philosophy.

Learn how to balance traditional written assessments with performance tasks and conversations, and how to harness the power of tablets and smartphones to capture digital evidence of students' learning.

Dawn Caruso, EdD, is a former district administrator of assessment and accountability in Florida. She also served as a virtual school administrator as well as a literacy coach at the state and school level.

Haley Vogel, EdD, is assistant principal at Pine Island Academy in St. Johns County, Florida. Her more than 20 years of experience in education includes six years as a school leader and 13 years teaching. She is passionate about working with teacher teams to rethink assessment.