Leadership

Jeff Byrnes is the former principal of Mountain Meadow Elementary in the White River School District in Buckley, Washington. With over 25 years of experience in elementary education, Jeff specializes in the implementation of professional learning communities and multitiered systems of supports.

Stephanie Discher serves as the director of elementary education for Wasatch County School District in Utah. With a sincere passion for empowering educators, she is dedicated to fostering a deep understanding of and appreciation for the professional learning community process.

Brad Rogers is currently the principal at Cadott Elementary School in Wisconsin. He has been an educator for 28 years and specializes in helping schools implement collaborative processes that lead to high levels of learning.

David (Cal) Callaway, EdD, is the deputy head of school at the International Community School of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. He has worked in international education since 1998 and has served as both a teacher and an administrator.

Nathan Manley serves as the assistant superintendent of instruction in the Neosho School District. During his nearly 20 years of experience, Nathan has also been a classroom teacher and principal, leading the development of five different professional learning community school recognitions.

Scott M. Beattie is the assistant superintendent for instruction of the Windsor Central School District in Windsor, New York. With over 15 years experience, he specializes in professional learning community and Community School implementation, technology integration, and K–12 career pathway development.

Rob J. Meyer is an experienced educator currently serving as the director of teaching and learning at Beaver Dam Unified School District in Wisconsin. With more than 18 years in education, he previously served as a teacher of social studies, an assistant principal at the secondary level, and a principal at the primary level.

James Rawls serves as a principal in a large metropolitan school district in Georgia. His passion for education is evident through his experience of more than 20 years in the field.

Explore how teacher teams can ensure equitable literacy learning so that every student masters essential reading standards. Jacqueline Heller and Paula Maeker, authors of Literacy in a PLC at Work®: Guiding Teams to Get Going and Get Better in K–6 Reading, will help literacy educators navigate the teaching, learning, assessment, and feedback cycle of reading through the lens of Professional Learning Communities (PLC) at Work.

As educators and leaders across the nation grapple with the challenge of changing policies, practices, and procedures to ensure high levels of learning for all students, the inability to effectively change the mindsets of colleagues, faculty, and staff is proving to be the biggest hurdle of all. Hence, in order for systems to change, outlooks will also need to change.