Professional Learning Communities at Work®

Eric Burns is the principal at Lynn Lucas Middle School for Willis ISD in Willis, Texas. His focus is coaching collaborative teams through the PLC process and designing effective RTI systems to monitor student performance. He has received accolades including being named Hardy Elementary’s Teacher of the Year in 2012 and Willis Independent School District's Principal of the Year in 2020.

Jerrod Dastrup is the principal at Arrowhead Elementary School in Santa Clara, Utah. He is passionate about the Professional Learning Communities (PLC) at Work® process and specializes in motivating and supporting teachers and administrators in the areas of PLC, response to intervention (RTI), school culture, and data analysis.

Theodore Goergen, EdD, is the director of student activities at the award-winning Adlai E. Stevenson High School. A practitioner for nearly 20 years, he has served as a middle school and high school science teacher as well as a curriculum team leader.

Karly Ward is an experienced educational leader with over 17 years in teaching and administration. She specializes in visionary leadership, sustaining a healthy school environment, and ensuring system fidelity.

Beth Houf is principal of Fulton Middle School in central Missouri. Under her leadership, Fulton was recognized in 2019 as a Missouri Exemplary Professional Learning Community and a Model PLC.

Michael J. Maffoni, an educator since 1987, has a diverse background that includes experience as a teacher, principal, and central administrator in a variety of districts in Colorado. He also teaches courses in educational leadership as an affiliate faculty member at Regis University.

Education specialist Kristi S. Langley most recently served as a district-level director of professional learning communities and a director of data and assessment. She has repeatedly facilitated successful schoolwide implementation of the professional learning communities process for more than 25 years.