Fire up your teachers, administrators, and staff—and yourselves—for a strong and successful 2023-24 school year! Get inspired by creative and proven ways to motivate your team the entire school year. Learn about effective practices for supporting new teachers and ensuring they thrive. And re-think your strategies for substitutes with ideas for a better, more reliable supply of subs. In this event featuring school and district leaders and other expert guests, we will highlight high-level strategies—and some nitty gritty tactics, too—that will put your districts, schools, and teams on a strong footing for the year ahead.
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Agenda
2:00pm ET
Welcome and Introduction
We’ll review key takeaways from recent reporting on effective strategies and practices for starting the school year strong.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens is a reporter for Education Week who covers special education and school district management.
2:10pm ET
Interactive Session: Taking the Pulse on Leaders’ Outlook on the New School Year
In this interactive session, we will poll the audience on their outlook for the new school year, the big challenges they are anticipating, and how they feel more generally about their job as leaders. We’ll also look at how their responses compare to a survey of school and district leaders from the spring.
Sarah D. Sparks covers the teaching profession and pedagogy for Education Week.
2:20pm ET
Industry Perspective: Productivity & Staffing Strategies for K-12 Leaders
Sponsor content provided by Promethean
In this session, we will discuss how to empower your teachers and improve productivity by providing on-demand, engaging professional learning opportunities, utilizing innovative classroom technology, and creating a collaborative community of educators. By implementing these strategies, you can create a positive environment for teachers and improve student outcomes.
In this session, we will discuss how to empower your teachers and improve productivity by providing on-demand, engaging professional learning opportunities, utilizing innovative classroom technology, and creating a collaborative community of educators. By implementing these strategies, you can create a positive environment for teachers and improve student outcomes.
Andrea Silvestrini
Education Consultant for Western Pennsylvania and New York State,
Promethean
Andrea Silvestrini is the Promethean Education Consultant for Western Pennsylvania and New York State. She lives in Buffalo New York, where she taught as an English as New Language teacher for six years in the Buffalo Public schools, working with students from all over the world. Andrea is also a certified K-12 Instrumental Music teacher. She joined Promethean in March of 2022. Her favorite part of her role as an Education Consultant is being able to support and connect with so many incredible educators.
Thanks to her diverse classroom experiences with a wide variety of learners and ability levels, Andrea is able to deliver comprehensible and engaging trainings that will leave teachers motivated and inspired to explore the possibilities of their ActivPanels.
Thanks to her diverse classroom experiences with a wide variety of learners and ability levels, Andrea is able to deliver comprehensible and engaging trainings that will leave teachers motivated and inspired to explore the possibilities of their ActivPanels.
2:30pm ET
Panel Discussion: Effective Strategies for Supporting New Teachers
Many teachers quit within the first few years of starting the profession, a talent drain that hurts schools and students. But school and district leaders can do a lot to guard against high attribution among early-career educators. What do robust and effective supports for new and early-career teachers look like? In this session, experts will discuss mentoring models that work, how to leverage the strengths and knowledge new teachers have, and other ways leaders can make rookie and early-career teachers feel successful so that they’ll stay.
Lindsay Jonas
Coordinator of Professional Development ,
Illinois Association of School Personnel Administrators (IASPA)
Lindsay Jonas is the coordinator of professional development for the Illinois Association of School Personnel Administrators (IASPA). Prior to serving in this role, Lindsay served as the assistant superintendent for Human Resources in Kildeer Countryside School District 96 as well as assistant superintendent for Teaching and Learning in Community Unit School District 300, a large suburban school district in Illinois. Additionally, she has served as assistant superintendent of Title I Schools, director of professional development, middle school principal, and as a former middle school math and science teacher.
Heather Puhl
Mentor,
Caldwell County School System
Since 2010, Heather Puhl has been a full-time mentor for beginning teachers in grades Pre-K through 12 in the Caldwell County School System. Prior to that, she taught middle school math and science in NC for 12 years and served as an Instructional Coach for 2 years. She was awarded a NC Teaching Fellows Scholarship to attend East Carolina University. She received a BS in Middle Grades Education and a Master’s degree in Science Education from ECU in 1996 and 1999, respectively. She also completed the licensure requirements for School Administration from Appalachian State University in 2010. She has earned National Board Certification in Early Adolescence Math and has completed the renewal process to maintain her certification. She currently lives in the foothills of the NC mountains and has been working in the field of education for over 25 years.
3:15pm ET
Industry Perspective: Reclaiming Teacher Joy: Top Tips From Educational Leaders
Sponsor content provided by Lexia®
After years of disrupted learning and shifting responsibilities, many teachers continue to feel overwhelmed by balancing all the demands of the role. It’s time to help classroom educators reclaim their joy and find stability in teaching once again Join us to hear timely and applicable tips from current educational leaders to help all teachers realign and start the new school year strong.
After years of disrupted learning and shifting responsibilities, many teachers continue to feel overwhelmed by balancing all the demands of the role. It’s time to help classroom educators reclaim their joy and find stability in teaching once again Join us to hear timely and applicable tips from current educational leaders to help all teachers realign and start the new school year strong.
Cassandra Wheeler
Director of Lexia LETRS® state success
Cassandra Wheeler completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Alabama at Birmingham before returning home to Montgomery Public Schools and beginning her career as an educator at Morningview Elementary School. After earning her master’s degree and administrative certification, Wheeler joined the Alabama Reading Initiative, where she authored Alabama’s Reading First Initiative grant and managed Alabama’s statewide DIBELS® pilot. After serving the children of Alabama for 10 years, Wheeler expanded her outreach to impact students everywhere by joining the (then) Voyager Expanded Learning organization and, finally, Lexia®, where she serves as the first director of Lexia LETRS® state success.
3:25pm ET
Q&A: How to Foster a School Culture That Teachers and Staff Don’t Want to Leave
At Colleyville Middle School in Texas, teachers and staff say the collaborative and professional culture cultivated by their principal and other school leaders keeps them from leaving for other jobs that pay more or are closer to home. In this conversation with Principal David Arencibia, you’ll hear what he’s done to establish an environment that people don’t want to leave and what he does to keep his teachers and staff engaged and motivated.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens is a reporter for Education Week who covers special education and school district management.
David Arencibia
Principal,
Colleyville Middle School, Colleyville, TX
Dr. David Arencibia is a highly regarded educator with over two decades of experience as a school leader, dedicated to building cultures of success that prioritize high standards and positive culture. As a secondary principal, teacher, and athletics coordinator, he has achieved remarkable results as an educator. His school has been recognized as one of the Best Schools in Texas and the country by Newsweek and US News & World Report. David’s leadership skills have accelerated the school’s progress, making it a Nationally Recognized Model Campus, Texas School to Watch, and National PTA School of Excellence with more PTA members than students. He understands the importance of building strong teams with shared vision and values, resulting in high employee satisfaction and engagement. Education Week has featured David in articles on building a positive culture and teacher retention. He was named the 2022 Texas Secondary Principal of the Year and a finalist for National Secondary Principal of the Year in 2023. He was also a finalist for 2022 Texan of the year by the Dallas Morning News.
3:55pm ET
Interactive Session: Building a Reliable, High-Quality Pool of Substitutes
What are your biggest challenges with substitute teacher staffing? What kind of help are you looking for? We invite you to share your experiences managing substitute teaching staff and get concrete ideas for how to improve the quality and supply of substitute teachers.
Sarah D. Sparks covers the teaching profession and pedagogy for Education Week.
4:05pm ET
Closing Thoughts
Hear the big takeaways from the Forum.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens is a reporter for Education Week who covers special education and school district management.
