Professional Learning Communities

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.

Christine Johnson is the principal of Meadow Lane Elementary school in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. With 20 years of experience in public education, she has successfully improved high-poverty schools through the Professional Learning Communities at Work® process.

Katie Kreimer Hall, EdD, is the supervisor of curriculum and professional development for Fort Smith Public Schools. Previously an administrator in high-poverty schools, she is passionate about building self-efficacy in teachers through the professional learning community process to increase student achievement.

Angela Veatch, a National Board Certified Teacher with over 25 years in education, serves as an instructional specialist for Fort Smith Public Schools. She is passionate about visible learning, learning by doing, and strengthening teacher efficacy through the PLC process.

Kristi Napoli is the principal at Golden Hills Elementary School, a Model Professional Learning Community at Work® school in Northern California. With over 20 years of experience, she’s found success in collaborative teams, the professional learning community process, and multitiered systems of support.

Paula Maeker is an educator, consultant, and advocate for learner-centered education. She has more than twenty-three years’ experience as an elementary teacher, literacy specialist, instructional coach, Title 1 program coordinator, campus administrator, director of elementary literacy, and director of instructional design.

Nathaniel Provencio is associate superintendent in Prince William County, Virginia. Under his leadership, Minnieville Elementary School was recognized as a Model Professional Learning Community and was the 2019 winner of the prestigious DuFour Award.

Josh McMahon, EdD, is the assistant superintendent of education programs for Morton District 201 in Illinois. Previously, he served as principal of Morton West High School.

Mary Shay, EdD, is a Colorado-based educational leader, practitioner, and researcher with almost 30 years of experience in public education. She specializes in effective leadership to maximize the collaborative capacity of teams, thereby enhancing student achievement and learning.

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.