Director for Exceptional Learning

• Jul 2021 - Present

K-12 Curriculum Coordinator

• Jul 2019 - Jul 2021

Staff Development Specialist

• Oct 2017 - Jul 2019

Consultant & Business Owner

• Sep 1996 - Jun 2018

Design and deliver client-focused products and services to improve how people experience, apply, and measure learning. Client sampling: • Second Avenue Learning: Partnered with clients and subject matter experts to provide innovative, digital learning solutions. • Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics: Explored factors influencing college success in mathematics • Stanford University: Co-developed national teacher standards for teaching of science • WestEd: Aligned SAT, NAEP and ACCUPLACER as foundation for the Common Core State Standards • Rich Products: Created high-impact internal and external communications and training materials to promote products, services, and procedures • New York State Education Department: Co-wrote NYS Student Learning Standards for English Language Arts and English as a Second Language, K-12 • SUNY Research Foundation: Studied impact of Common Core Standards and assessments on classroom instruction • Western New York Education Consortium: Evaluated effectiveness of program aimed at improving teacher and student performance in seven school districts • The Community Place: Aligned community provider's curricula to the New York State Standards for Rochester City Schools Show less

Assistant Professor

• Jul 2011 - Jun 2016

Prepared diverse teaching force in K-12 humanities, STEM, and literacy while translating theory and publishing research to reform educational policy and practice in K-12 and higher education settings. • Positively impacted over 400 teachers who in turn impact thousands of students learning in our nation’s schools • Published and presented groundbreaking work focused on gamification and educational reform in international, national, and state peer-reviewed journals and conferences • Attracted a high number of undergraduates to attend Brockport to pursue their Masters degree • Earned “exemplary” instructional effectiveness student ratings on a consistent basis • Nominated by students for Faculty-Student Engagement and Academic Advising Awards • Awarded highly competitive and prestigious NYS grants to pursue research Show less

Instructional Specialist & Coach, Special Education Support Services

• Jul 2009 - Jul 2011

Planned and facilitated highly effective job-embedded professional development and just-in-time support that improved teachers’ instructional practices. • Built high functioning, cross-collaborative instructional teams of 5-15 to implement innovative and highly effective curriculum and assessment practices • Increased Regent exam passing scores by 250% for students attending alternative and special education programs • Communicated, interpreted, and enforced important practices, policies, and regulations to promote productive relationships and minimize legal risk for all stakeholders. Show less

K-12 English Language Arts Curriculum Supervisor

• Jul 2007 - Jul 2009

Managed, directed, and evaluated K-12 English / Language Arts personnel, curriculum, instruction, and assessment across multiple buildings; made data actionable in ways that met learners’ needs, monitored progress, and achieved desired results. • Selected, trained, and evaluated teams of 10-25 educators to create a culture of collaboration and success • Oversaw employee review process to assure effective goal setting, progress monitoring, and performance appraisal for 50 direct reports in multiple locations • Coordinated all aspects of national, state, and local English / Language Arts testing for 8,700 students • Developed innovative approaches to data collection, analysis, reporting, warehousing, and use of data leading to insights used to improve student performance on state and local assessments • Boosted district-wide efforts to align curriculum and instruction with clear and worthy learning targets and create rigorous and valid assessments Show less

Assistant Professor, K-12 Social Studies Education

• Aug 2001 - Jul 2006

Prepared diverse teaching force in K-12 humanities while translating theory and publishing research to reform educational policy and practice in K-12 and higher education settings. • Led efforts that earned national accreditation of the undergraduate social studies teacher certification program. • Coordinated efforts between School of Education and its school partners to design, deliver, and evaluate field experiences reflective of research-based practices. Show less

Instructor & Student Teaching Supervisor

• Aug 1997 - Aug 2001

• Conceived and helped organize the University at Buffalo’s first “Mentoring Institute” in the summer of 2001 which included co-development of the first “Supervision and Mentoring of Teachers” course for Student Teacher supervisors • Supervised student teachers in a rural school district / Seneca Nation of Indians program which integrated new Apple® technology and received a Computerworld Smithsonian Award for literacy and cultural integration Show less