Featured Speakers
Dr. Luvelle Brown Dr. Luvelle Brown, currently serves as Superintendent of the Ithaca City School District (ICSD) in Ithaca, New York. Prior to coming to Ithaca, Dr. Brown held the position of Central Information Officer for the Albemarle County Public School District and Executive Director of the Division of School Improvement. Previously, he held various posts in public education: teacher, assistant principal, and principal. As Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Brown is focused on building a World Class organization. His strategy includes building partnerships with a wide range of organizations, embracing 21st century learning skills, utilizing technology tools, and fostering meaningful interactions within the ICSD team and with the community. |
|
 |
John Antonetti John Antonetti is former Director of K-12 Curriculum in the Sheridan School District in Arkansas. He served as supervisor of gifted programs in the 18 districts of the Northwest Arkansas Education Service Cooperative and has taught at all grade levels, kindergarten through high school. For the past eight years, he has been a workshop presenter, developer, and trainer for processes such as classroom walkthroughs, assessment and instructional analysis, coaching, research-based best practices, and systemic writing programs. In addition to his work in large, urban districts such as Ontario-Montclair, California and Horry County, South Carolina, Antonetti has partnered with teachers in smaller districts to bring about improved student achievement. While hands-on work in schools is his passion, he is also a popular keynote speaker. Teachers, administrators, and parents recognize his humor and parables as relevant examples of the power of teachers. Antonetti is author of the book, Writing as a Measure and Model of Thinking and co-author with Dr. Jim Garver of Focus on Learning: A Process for Personal and Collaborative Reflection. |
Dr. Derek Cabrera Dr. Derek Cabrera holds a PhD from Cornell University and is an internationally recognized expert in thinking skills and metacognition. As the author of six books and former professor at Cornell University, his theoretical models of “systems thinking” have made worldwide impact as the basis for individual learning and educational change – as well as organizational learning and design. He is founder of ThinkNation, a national movement for thinking. Derek currently holds a position at Cabrera Research Lab in Ithaca, New York. |
|
 |
Dr. Laura Cabrera Dr. Laura Cabrera is an author and a well-known educator, evaluator, and internationally recognized expert in parenting and education. Dr. Cabrera holds a B.S., M.P.A., and a PhD from Cornell University where she taught for many years. As the co-founder of Cabrera Research Lab in Ithaca, New York, she welcomes the opportunity to educate any audience on the imperative of teaching thinking skills and on how specific teaching methods help parents, teachers, and other professionals to reach their goals for their children, students, or employees. |
 |
Debra Calvino Ms. Calvino is the 2010 New York State Teacher of the Year. She began her teaching career as a high school special education teacher in 1981. She has been teaching high school mathematics since 1984 and in 2004 was appointed Mathematics Department Supervisor in the Valley Central School District. She develops curriculum and coordinates Academic Intervention Services for the mathematics department. She also conducts, organizes and plans mathematics professional learning communities within a data driven decision making framework. |
Dr. Dallas Dance Dr. S. Dallas Dance began his tenure as Superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools on July 1, 2012, with a focus on acceleration of student achievement and district and school improvement. His priorities include developing the district's five-year strategic plan; ensuring academic rigor while transitioning to the Common Core State Standards; focusing on professional growth and development for all employees; and ensuring timely, transparent, and clear internal and external communications. Prior to his appointment in Baltimore County, Dr. Dance served as one of three Chief School Officers responsible for the administration of nearly 300 schools in the Houston Independent School District (HISD), a finalist for the 2012 Broad Prize for Urban Education. Dr. Dance has served Virginia as Director of School Improvement for Chesterfield County Public Schools, Assistant Superintendent for Louisa County Public Schools, Principal and Assistant Principal at the middle and high school levels, and high school English teacher in Henrico County Public Schools |
|
 |
Katie Ferguson Katie has been dedicated to the teaching profession since she joined Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Magnet School of Math, Science, Technology, and Invention as a first grade teacher in 1998. In 2003-2004 Katie’s class participated in more than 10 videoconferences through Project VIEW. The videoconferences were with museums and institutes across the country such as the Buffalo Zoo and The Ocean Institute in California. Her work with videoconferencing was highlighted in a small excerpt in Teaching K-8, a magazine for education, the Daily Gazette, and in a case study by the Evaluation Consortium at the University at Albany. She was also awarded the Red Apple Quality of Life Award in 1998 and 1999. In 2007, Katie joined Jessie T. Zoller Elementary School staff as an integrated 2nd grade teacher where she still teaches today. Her work with independent literacy centers has often been observed by teachers throughout her district and others. In May, 2010, Katie was awarded Teacher of the Year by the Schenectady City School District, which led to her applying for the New York State Teacher of the Year. She was selected as New York State Teacher of the Year 2012. |
Greg Green Greg Green is a pioneer of education for his development and implementation of the “flipped school” model of teaching and learning. His work as a school administrator and re-design of today’s classrooms and schools have been well documented by many national media outlets and publications including CNN, Fast Company, New York Bloomberg News, E-School News, November Learning, Harvard’s Graduate School, District Magazine, Scholastic Administrator Magazine, and Canada’s Globe and Mail News. |
|
 |
Marguerite Izzo Ms. Izzo, whose teaching career spans over 30 years, is a full time fifth grade teacher, specializing in English Language Arts, in the Malverne School District, Malverne, New York. She has taught Social Studies grades 7-12, Reading, and all subjects in grades one through six. Ms. Izzo is an adjunct professor of education at Adelphi University, and co-director of the Malverne Teacher Center. Ms. Izzo is the 2007 New York State Teacher of the Year and a member of the Teacher Leader Standards Consortium. She has been the teacher member of the delegation representing the United States at the International Summit on the Teaching Profession (2010 and 2011). |
 |
Dr. Jim Johnson James H. Johnson Jr. is the William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of strategy and entrepreneurship and director of the Urban Investment Strategies Center. His research interests include community and economic development, the effects of demographic changes on the U.S. workplace, interethnic minority conflict in advanced industrial societies, urban poverty and public policy in urban America, and workforce diversity issues. Dr. Johnson and Dr. John D. Kasarda coauthored “The Economic Impact of the African American Population on the State of North Carolina" and a study on the economic impact of North Carolina’s Hispanic population. With support from the Russell Sage Foundation, Dr. Johnson published research on the economic impact of Sept. 11 on U.S. metropolitan communities. Currently he is researching the economic and employment impact of white-collar job shifts offshore on U.S. competitiveness. Dr. Johnson examines the causes and consequences of growing inequality in American society, particularly as it affects socially and economically disadvantaged youth; entrepreneurial approaches to poverty alleviation, job creation, and community development; interethnic minority conflict in advanced industrial societies; and business demography and workforce diversity issues. Fast Company profiled him in "Hopes and Dreams." He has published more than 100 scholarly research articles and three research monographs and has co-edited four theme issues of scholarly journals. His latest book is Prismatic Metropolis: Inequality in Los Angles. He received his PhD from Michigan State University, his MS from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and his BS from North Carolina Central University |
|
Richard Kiely In 2002, he received his PhD from Cornell, and in 2005 was recognized nationally as a John Glenn Scholar in Service-Learning for his longitudinal research that led to the development of a transformative service-learning model. From 2002-2006, he was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Lifelong Education, Policy and Administration in the College of Education at the University of Georgia where he taught courses in curriculum planning, learning theory, service-learning and community development. |
|
|
Eric Machan Howd Eric Machan Howd works as an Instructional Designer for Cornell's Academic Technologies Department. He is also the Service Manager for Cornell's ePortfolio Consultation Service. Eric has been working in higher education for twenty years … as a student, a teacher (both online and face-face courses), a workshop facilitator, an innovator, a consultant, a distance learning administrator and a faculty trainer. He believes in the power of reflection in learning and teaching and uses ePortfolios as a base in his current teaching curriculum in Technical Writing (at Ithaca College). |
|
 |
Joshua Parker In May of 2011, Mr. Parker was selected as Baltimore County Teacher of the year and in October, was announced as Maryland's Teacher of the Year for the 2011 - 2012 school yars. Mr. Parker is the first Baltimore County teacher in over 40 years to receive this prestigious honor. Mr. Parker's exceptional tutelage, leadership, and enthusiasm to shape the future goes beyond the classroom – he has organized a middle school all-male reading club; directed a top-ten finishing Black Saga Team; coached a boys’ junior varsity basketball team; coordinated a summer program directed at engaging local youth; and implemented a comprehensive after-school program at two middle schools. He is, undoubtedly, an exemplary role model for his students and many colleagues at Windsor Mill Middle School. |
 |
Josh Stumpenhorst Josh Stumpenhorst is a 6th grade Language Arts and Social Science teacher at Lincoln Junior High School in Naperville, IL. Josh is credited for starting “Innovation Days” based on the motivation theories written by Daniel Pink where students choose and drive their learning activities. In addition to Pink’s acknowledgment of Stumpenhorst’s work, Josh has helped numerous other classrooms around the country and internationally to start their own Innovation Days. His work has been recognized by the International Society of Technology Educators as they named Josh a member of their “Emerging Leaders Class of 2011”. Josh has also been recognized as the Illinois Computer Educators, “Educator of the Year” for 2012, and he is the 2012 Illinois Teacher of the Year. He is an active blogger at Stump the Teacher and his work there has received recognition through numerous EduBlog Awards nominations. |
 |
Paul Tough Paul Tough challenges our culture’s belief that intelligence, endlessly measured by test scores, is the sole indicator of value in our education system. In How Children Succeed, he ushers in a tidal change in thinking and argues that non-cognitive skills—or, character—are better indicators of success: curiosity, conscientiousness, optimism, self-control, and grit. A contributing writer to the New York Times Magazine, Paul Tough is also the author of Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America, which focuses on the steps necessary to improve the lives and education of underserved children. Through the case study of the Harlem Children's Zone, Tough describes the inspiring struggle to establish a way to combat poverty that could be replicated nationwide. Tough has also contributed to This American Life and The New Yorker, where he has honed his focus upon education, poverty, parenting, and politics. |
