Visualize the worst presentation that you have ever been a part of as an adult learner. Now visualize the best one. No doubt there is a considerable difference between the two professional learning opportunities. Learn the answers to three basic questions: What are strategies that I can use to make my professional development experience unforgettable? What are techniques that result in sustained adult behavior change? What are 10 things that keep adults living well beyond the age of 80?

Participants will:

• Ascertain why it can be so difficult for adults to change their behavior and determine the order of change when asking adults to implement new behaviors;
• Examine six principles of adult learning theory to use with faculty and staff in professional learning;
• Experience 10 characteristics of quality professional learning to apply when implementing professional development; and
• Plan your next professional learning experience using an original template while incorporating brain-based strategies that take advantage of how all adult and student brains learn best.

Much of the resistance to grading reform can be anticipated and avoided by uniting stakeholders in collaborative reform efforts. Learn about critical aspects of the change process, how to engage stakeholders as partners in change efforts, and how to gather meaningful evidence on effects. Leave with evidence-based strategies for ensuring the successful implementation of fair, accurate, and equitable grading policies and practices.

Participants will:

• Explore the advantages and shortcomings of different grading methods and their implications for classroom policy and practice;
• Learn evidence-based strategies for implementing grading and reporting reforms that ensure stakeholders’ support and make grades fairer, more accurate, more meaningful, and more equitable; and
• Develop guidelines for implementing effective standards-based and competency-based grading policies and practices at all grade levels.

For Centuries, we have cultivated a “box” in education. The kids who fit in it? They thrive. The kids who don’t? They’re lucky to survive. In this uplifting and practical session, join award-winning principal and best-selling author Pete Hall in an exploration of the top 5 reasons kids disengage, struggle, and drop out of school…and examine the highest-yield strategies for connecting, supporting, and altering the trajectory of our most precious and fragile students...while we still have them!

Participants will:

• Identify the underlying causes for kids who struggle in school;
• Analyze an array of strategies for building connections, igniting curiosity, and/or enhancing the relevance of education for kids who struggle in school; and
• Apply their learning to a "case study" student (from their own setting) to create a proactive plan that matches their needs.

Most coaches and school leaders want to coach well, but sustained, weeks-long coaching cycles aren’t always possible. When time is limited, what actually works? Drawing on 30+ years of research, Jim Knight introduces Fast-Track Instructional Coaching, a four-conversation framework that distills the essential elements of effective coaching into a practical, structured approach that fits real school schedules. Learn how to help teachers gain a clear picture of their classroom reality, set meaningful, student-centered goals, and make measurable improvements in student learning, all within just a few conversations. 

Participants will:

• Identify the key elements of Fast-Track Instructional Coaching and how they differ from traditional coaching cycles;
• Apply a four-conversation framework to support teacher growth when time is limited;
• Use strategies to help teachers analyze classroom reality and set meaningful, student-centered goals; and
• Develop approaches for achieving measurable improvements in teaching practice and student learning within short coaching interactions.

Explore how school leaders can move beyond traditional attendance campaigns to build systems that increase student engagement and daily attendance. Examine practical strategies that combine culture, incentives, data monitoring, and relationship-driven leadership to address absenteeism. Leave with a framework and ready-to-use tools that help schools strengthen belonging, improve attendance habits, and create sustainable systems that support student success.

Participants will:

• Identify key factors that influence student attendance and engagement in elementary and secondary school settings;
• Analyze attendance data to recognize patterns of absenteeism and determine targeted intervention strategies;
• Design a practical, school-based attendance framework that integrates incentives, relationships, and culture-building practices; and
• Apply leadership strategies to implement sustainable attendance systems that promote student belonging and improve daily attendance habits.

Explore key principles from the science of learning to bridge research and practice, equipping teachers with evidence-informed strategies that strengthen instruction, improve student outcomes, and transform systemwide practices. Examine foundational findings from cognitive science, apply them in real classrooms, and learn how to empower teachers, cultivate a strong educator workforce, and create a high-impact learning environment that attracts, develops, and retains top talent.

• Articulate a simple model of the mind to ground their understanding of how learning occurs;
• Identify key learning science principles that support instructional effectiveness;
• Analyze components of successful evidence-to-practice implementation in teacher induction and professional learning; and
• Develop a theory of change plan outlining initial steps to build capacity for evidence-informed professional learning in their school or district.

Explore how Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools leveraged improvement science to strengthen math curriculum implementation through Learning Forward’s Curriculum-Based Professional Learning (CBPL) Network. Learn how CBPL helps educators fully utilize high-quality, standards-aligned instructional materials to maximize student access and opportunity. Leave with practical resources and protocols and real examples to guide next steps, make mid-course adjustments, and reflect on teacher and student impact.

• Learn how the Learning Forward CBPL Network and Metro Nashville’s Open Up Resources (OUR) Network use collaborative inquiry and improvement strategies to support curriculum implementation across varied educator experience levels;
• Examine how continuous improvement strategies strengthen curriculum-based professional learning and support effective implementation of high-quality instructional materials;
• Explore improvement science tools such as fishbone diagrams, interrelationship digraphs, and change idea generators; and
• Consider practical measures and how they can be applied to participants’ own professional learning contexts.
   

Explore a four-level framework that can help your school move from a single-leader model to a shared leadership model, and learn how Texas districts have implemented redesigned roles to support growth and development for teachers. Discover how incorporating job-embedded professional learning into daily practice resulted in measurable gains in student achievement and significant improvements in teacher retention. Leave with strategies and tools to redesign leadership structures that prioritize continuous learning.

• Build an understanding of the four-level leadership framework to create a shared leadership model and how this work directly connects to the Learning Forward Standards for Professional Learning;
• Hear real world examples from Texas school districts that have piloted and scaled this model across their campuses to support teacher growth and student learning;
• Investigate the leadership levels at your own campuses to identify where improvements may be needed; and
• Gain tools, templates and strategies to thoughtfully redesign roles to better support teacher growth and student success.

Share structures and strategies for supporting leaders through professional learning networks that enhance a sustainable culture centered on collaboration, high?quality professional learning, and solving common challenges. Guide participants through our journey of cultivating deliberate collaborative cultures and designing professional learning that is responsive to leaders’ needs. Present our approach for building leadership efficacy that strengthens support for students and teachers within their own school systems.

Participants will evaluate structured systems and processes that support the development of collaborative learning networks, the design of high?quality professional learning, and the creation of opportunities for leaders to collaboratively solve problems of practice. Participants will leave with ready?to?use protocols and tools that can be immediately implemented within their own school systems to strengthen collaboration and instructional leadership. Participants will reflect and tune current practices and processes to determine concrete next steps for strengthening their own leadership capacity as well as the capacity of others within their organization.

Explore a fresh approach to understanding and improving classroom instruction through product collections. Find out how these sets of student work provide a window into actual learning and provide meaningful feedback for continued success. Leave with a clear process for collecting and using student work to guide instruction, practical ideas for piloting this approach on your own campus, and strategies for fostering reflective conversations that strengthen teaching and learning.

• Analyze sample collections, discuss strategies for implementation, and see how this practice connects directly to high-impact instructional techniques;
• Learn how to collect and use real student work to see what’s actually happening in your classroom; and
• Apply this approach to identify learning patterns, guide targeted feedback, and support teacher reflection and growth.

Explore how peer observations can serve as professional learning in action by helping beginning teachers learn from real classrooms in a supportive, nonevaluative way. Practice a clear peer observation cycle that includes preparation, observation, debrief, and next steps, supported by practical tools and reflection protocols. Leave with ready-to-use strategies that help new teachers notice effective instructional moves, connect learning to their own practice, and identify one actionable step for growth.

Participants will:

• Understand the full peer observation cycle and how it supports new-teacher growth through preparation, observation, reflection, and follow-up;
• Learn how to plan and schedule peer observations in partnership with campus leadership to ensure meaningful, growth-focused learning experiences;
• Use observation and reflection tools that help mentees capture key instructional look-fors and connect what they see to their own classroom practice; and
• Practice effective debrief strategies that guide new teachers to analyze their learning, identify one actionable next step, and apply insights to strengthen instruction over time.
   

Coaching is a powerful form of professional learning that strengthens educator practice and advances collective responsibility for student learning. This session explores coaching in the presence of difference, emphasizing how identity, perspective, and context shape coaching interactions. Participants will examine how intentional awareness and collaborative inquiry deepen learning, strengthen relationships, and support continuous improvement for all educators and students.

Examine how identity, lived experience, and context shape coaching interactions and why coaching in the presence of difference is essential to equitable and effective professional learning. Grounded in a commitment to continuous improvement for all adults and students, this session positions coaching as a powerful approach to strengthening educator practice and advancing equity. Apply coaching strategies that intentionally attend to self, coachee, and context, recognizing that coaching is not neutral and must be responsive to the cultural, organizational, and relational environments in which educators and learners work. These practices foster collaboration across perspectives and prioritize learning for all educators. Identify common roadblocks to coaching across differences and use data, reflection, and collaborative inquiry to move coaching beyond surface-level compliance toward deeper instructional and organizational change, reinforcing shared responsibility for improving learning. Assess how high-quality coaching impacts both the coach and the coachee, and identify specific coaching skills that require ongoing refinement to strengthen professional practice and improve outcomes for educators, students, and the communities they serve.

A sense of belonging within a school community is perhaps our most powerful tool to promote student resilience, intensify academic engagement, enhance academic achievement, and improve attendance while reducing behavior problems, substance use and suicidal ideation. Unfortunately, our schools are experiencing a belonging crisis. Drawing upon research from brain science, social sciences, education and 30 years of practice within schools, this workshop will help participants uncover the positive impact of a belonging community on students and staff, discuss factors that threaten a student's sense of belonging and provide strategies that can be implemented immediately to create a belonging community for children and staff in our classrooms and in our schools.

Identify the specific ways that belonging can enhance student achievement and staff and student well-being. Describe systemic causes for the erosion of belonging in school for both students and staff. Implement tangible strategies to increase student and staff belonging in schools. Reflect on individual and school-based practices that impact student and staff experiences of belonging.

Explore how gamification transforms Check-In Check-Out into a student-owned, relationship-driven Tier 2 system. Learn how missions, levels, choice, and progress tracking increase engagement while maintaining strong MTSS data practices. Apply practical strategies from the SPACE framework to strengthen relationships, improve behavior outcomes, and build Tier 2 supports students and staff believe in.

• Understand how gamification principles strengthen Check-In Check-Out by increasing student ownership, motivation, and consistency while preserving MTSS data integrity. • Identify why traditional Tier 2 systems lose momentum and describe specific design elements that re-engage students and staff. • Apply practical strategies such as missions, levels, reflection, and progress tracking to redesign or enhance existing CICO systems. • Implement a gamified Tier 2 framework, using SPACE as a model, to improve relationships, equity, and sustainable behavior outcomes in their own school context.

Utilizing the 2026 edition of the National Association of School Principal's A Principal’s Guide to Early Learning and the Early Grades, build a strong foundation of knowledge to guide Pre-K and early childhood programs in alignment with K-3 learning. Deepen your understanding of developmentally appropriate practice, and strengthen instructional leadership while exploring practical strategies to support coherent, high-quality early learning experiences that meet the needs of young children and their families.

Participants will:

• Deepen your knowledge of high-quality early childhood practices to intentionally strengthen leadership, planning, and decision-making across Pre-K-3 settings;
• Explore research-based, ready-to-implement strategies that support principals and educators leading early childhood initiatives; and
• Learn how to engage with a network of principal leaders committed to elevating their voices and advancing effective early childhood practices in their schools and communities.
   

Discover how one district designed instructional impact teams to anchor a coherent professional learning system. Examine structures, protocols, and an instructional playbook that create time, tools, and culture for shared teacher and leader learning. Apply practical templates and design moves to strengthen collaborative teams, build collective efficacy, and document impact on instruction and student learning.

Participants will:

• Analyze how instructional impact teams function as the backbone of a coherent professional learning system that amplifies student and adult learning, and identify parallels and gaps in your own context;
• Learn how to design or refine a collaborative team structure, including time, roles, protocols, and use of an instructional playbook, to support ongoing, job-embedded learning for teachers and leaders; and
• Assess culture conditions (trust, psychological safety, clarity of purpose) needed to launch and sustain this work and plan concrete leadership moves to strengthen collective efficacy.
   

Learn how instructional rounds create a shared, non-evaluative approach to improving teaching and learning across schools. Examine the core components of instructional rounds, including developing a problem of practice, observing instruction, and analyzing patterns of practice. Apply protocols and tools that support collaborative learning, strengthen instructional coherence, and inform next steps for school and district improvement.

Participants will:

• Leave with a clear understanding of what each part of the instructional rounds process entails. This includes creating a problem of practice, non-evaluative observation of instruction, identification of patterns, and collaborative analysis of findings leading to next steps that improve instructional coherence and student learning outcomes; 
• Be able to develop a plan for effective implementation of all instructional rounds components to positively impact student achievement in their school or district; and 
• Know how to utilize protocols, tools, and relevant texts when instituting instructional rounds to support shared learning, strengthen instructional coherence, and inform immediate actions for school and district improvement.

Data is only as powerful as the instruction it informs. Examine how a middle school building coach, math specialist, and district math coach partner with grade-level teams to transform assessment data into actionable instructional decisions. Participants explore high-impact, replicable routines for collaborative meetings that support targeted small-group instruction and lead to measurable student growth.

Participants will:

• Learn to interpret formative and summative middle school math assessment data in ways that prioritize standards and clarify instructional next steps;
• Be able to use data visualization to identify trends, group students by learning needs, and design differentiated small-group instruction aligned to targeted standards;
• Understand how to analyze data patterns over time to determine whether core instructional programs are meeting student needs or whether instructional adjustments and supplementation are needed; and
• Know how to apply a replicable planning routine that supports ongoing progress monitoring, instructional coherence, and improved alignment between data and instruction.
   

Embrace the role of coaching leader, catalyzing learning and growth to unlock the potential of others. Understand the leadership habits and mindset shifts you need to move from being the center of all decision-making to becoming the developer of other leaders. Distinguish between directive and inquiry-based leadership, gain clarity on when each is more effective, and learn to promote a collaborative culture of psychological safety, innovation and adaptive thinking.

• Understand why leading with questions strengthens leadership effectiveness. They will embrace the concept of the Coaching Leader, the leader who catalyzes learning and growth by using powerful inquiry to unlock potential and unleash confidence of others. Embracing this transformative model of leadership requires shifts and adaptations and participants will set the foundation for this deeply challenging and rewarding work. • Sharpen their skillset for formulating powerful questions and understand the power of inquiry to clarify thinking, surface assumptions, expand options and support accountability This skillset, coupled with the mindset of facilitating growth and learning, promotes a collaborative culture of psychological safety, innovation and adaptive thinking. • Understand what personal leadership habits and mindset shifts they need to make to move from being the center of all decision-making to becoming the developer of other leaders. They will be able to distinguish between directive and inquiry-based leadership and gain clarity on when each is more effective. •Develop their capacity to function as a Coaching Leader who delegates responsibility to others and deepens their ability to build trust, foster engagement, positively impact ownership and intentionally cultivate an inclusive environment for learning and growth.

Examine a four-year district-partner collaboration that built sustainable equity infrastructure through strategic investment in both external expertise and internal educator leadership. Experience key professional learning activities from Diversity Equity Inclusion Belonging modules, Saturday Academies, and Train-the-Trainer institutes while hearing directly from educators who evolved from participants to facilitators. Apply a replicable framework for securing funding, compensating educator leaders, and building lasting capacity in your own context.

Analyze a multi-year framework for progressing from school-based equity teams to district-wide capacity building Experience and evaluate key professional learning activities that develop culturally responsive dispositions and practices Identify strategies for securing funding and compensating educators to lead and sustain equity work Assess organizational readiness and design an initial action plan for implementing sustainable equity professional learning

Teacher leaders are powerful levers for continuous improvement when their learning is intentionally designed as part of a coherent professional learning system. Examine a district-university partnership and the Utah Education Policy Center’s Leadership and Inquiry for Transformation (LIFT) series to see how research-informed inquiry cycles and job-embedded learning drive improvement. Leave with a research-informed draft design for teacher leader learning to support continuous improvement in your context.

Participants will:

• Understand how teacher leaders function as a critical system lever for advancing coherent professional learning and continuous improvement aligned to school and district improvement plans and the Learning Forward Standards for Professional Learning;
• Analyze how a district-university partnership intentionally designed the LIFT series using a research-informed framework to strengthen alignment, inquiry, and job-embedded learning for teacher leaders;
• Experience and apply an inquiry-based process used by teacher leaders to examine evidence, monitor implementation of improvement strategies, and facilitate instructional conversations that support educator practice and student learning; and
• Design an initial action plan to adapt tools, structures, and evidence-based practices from the LIFT model to strengthen teacher leader professional learning systems in your own school or district context.

Explore the transformative power of cognitive ownership by reframing the instructional hierarchy to center student voice and agency. Analyze a spectrum of inquiry approaches to strategically shift the teacher’s role from information source to architect of student-led discovery. Develop scaffolds centered on serving all students as well as practical protocols that empower every learner to ask the "next" question and assume full ownership of their intellectual growth.

Participants will:

• Distinguish between direct, structured, guided, open, and discovery inquiry to select the most effective approach for specific learning targets;
• Apply research-based strategies to create a culture where student voice and agency, rather than mere compliance, power the learning experience;
• Master the art of the facilitated return knowing when to step in to guide the conversation and when to step back to let students lead the discovery; and
• Evaluate how inquiry scaffolds remove barriers for diverse learners, ensuring that student-led does not mean left to chance.
   

Power your team conversations! Analyze real classroom data to uncover what student performance reveals about instruction across proficiency levels. Facilitate powerful, structured team conversations to identify high-leverage Tier 1 strategies for common challenges while creating actionable plans that translate insights into targeted tiered instruction and support. Leave with a ready-to-use digital resource designed to streamline data compilation and amplify your analysis.

Participants will:

• Synthesize research through collaborative conversations to unify understanding of Tier 1 instruction within the multi-tiered system of supports framework;
• Experience collaborative, structured data conversations using a provided data protocol that highlights effective Tier 1 strategies and shared instructional challenges;
• Identify and align research-based instructional strategies using a Tier 1 resource to address common learning needs revealed through data analysis; and
• Strategize implementation of high-level instructional practices within the data analysis process.
   

Explore the National Writing Project’s narrative writing-focused Coach.Teach.Write program, including information about instructional resources and coaching cycles. Hear from writing project coaches who have implemented this program in districts across the country, and find out how to implement the program in your district. Learn about program resources, and reflect on ways your organization uses coaching to support the implementation of new programs.

Participants will:

• Learn approaches for coaching teachers on effective writing instruction in a range of teaching contexts;
• Explore possibilities for integrating evidence-based writing practices into district curriculum; and
• Reflect on strategies for using narrative writing to increase student engagement.
   

Teacher sustainability starts with sustainable induction. This session examines system-to-teacher aligned induction practices that foster teacher growth and boost student learning. Practitioners will leave with practical ideas to build on existing work and make intentional moves that actually matter. Participants will learn alongside districts of varying sizes, exploring concrete strategies, leadership levers, and implementation structures that strengthen induction, grow internal capacity, and create lasting impact from day one.

-identify key features of effective teacher induction aligned to Learning Forward’s standards and understand how strong induction supports educator growth, student learning, and district improvement. -examine real examples of induction practices from districts of different sizes and describe how these practices are implemented to improve teaching practice and teacher retention. -leave with a clear, actionable next step and simple measures they can use to monitor early impact on educator performance and student learning.

If your students flounder, flail or fight when expected to participate, this entertaining, interactive session will help you chart a course to smooth sailing – helping you overcome common blockades for all types of learners, even when they appear resistant or reluctant. Join the crew as we learn, practice, and experience a multitude of practical, research-based techniques to empower your lessons and your learners. Unlock the secrets to success that will increase student participation and content-based talk in whole-class discussions, random calling, and partner activities, filling your treasure chest with strategies that you can take away and use for yourself or the teachers you support the moment you set foot back in your schools and classrooms.

-Identify, understand, and empathize with student fears and challenges that may lead to the perception of being "resistant" or "reluctant" -Learn and be able to immediately apply at least 5 strategies to increase student talk and participation without creating anxiety or distress -Facilitate and structure a learning environment in which students are supported and challenged to grow while holding firm expectations for participation and engagement Participants can apply techniques from this session in any learning environment to support the needs of all learners - holding high standards for personal accountability without cornering or confrontation.

Drive greater retention by exploring a differentiated induction structure that supports both new educators and mentors. This session unpacks how to navigate varied preparation paths, covering both instructional frameworks and interpersonal dynamics. Join this interactive collaboration to identify the most impactful ways to build a "true" induction program that effectively sustains your staff.

Participants will begin by examining the intersection of recent research on educator induction models and teacher efficacy, gaining the evidence-based insights needed to ground their own programming. We will unpack how a differentiated structure can proactively support the increasingly varied paths of educator preparation, from alternative certification to traditional routes. Beyond theory, attendees will acquire a multifaceted coaching toolkit. You will learn strategies to guide new educators through technical instructional framework implementation while simultaneously equipping them to navigate complex professional dynamics and school culture. Mirroring our own training model, this interactive session prioritizes connectivity. Participants will not just listen, but collaborate to design their own induction experience that is immediately scalable at the district, campus, or team level. Ultimately, attendees will leave with a concrete blueprint for a 'true' induction program—one that maximizes impact and leads to greater retention of both mentors and new educators.

Consider 6 key steps to antiracist school leadership. Discuss strategic implementation with a diverse group of colleagues. Develop a vision that can be easily articulated, grounded in research and district data, supported by curricula and instruction, and evaluated via a variety of data points.

Participants will consider 6 key steps in antiracist school leadership. Participants will consider how antiracist school leaders educate themselves, commit to the mission, develop professional learning plans, embrace resistance, elevate antiracist curricula and instruction, and evaluate their antiracist impact. Also, participants will identify the current state of your organization and how you can chart a path toward your desired state, which leads to more equitable outcomes for students and their families.

Explore classroom-tested tools for supporting teachers to reset their classroom culture. Assess classroom conditions, prepare strategies to improve target areas, and experiment with a student-facing RESET script template that enables educators and students to collaboratively solve problems and improve classroom culture. Walk away ready to support colleagues and kids to create positive, productive classroom cultures in which everyone feels ownership and everyone succeeds.

Participants will assess current conditions in classrooms they support. Participants will explore strategies and experiment with scripts that they can use with students to collaboratively improve classroom conditions. Participants will unpack opportunities to explore these tools with teachers they support in order to foster positive, productive classroom cultures.

Imagine a whole-school literacy approach that dramatically boosts student achievement: PSAT benchmarks jumping from 77% to 88%, STAR Reading proficiency soaring from 57% to 93%, while simultaneously improving attendance, behavior, and teacher collective efficacy. Join us to discover how our teacher-led Secondary Literacy Leadership Council made this possible. Walk away with actionable strategies to replicate our success, empowering your educators and transforming student outcomes through collaborative, coherent professional learning.

As a result of attending this session, participants will walk away with concrete action steps to take at the system and building level. Participants will: -Examine how secondary teachers of all subjects can identify and implement high-leverage reading, writing, and speaking routines, such as partner reading, sentence expansion, and routines to improve secondary literacy outcomes. -Act to build teacher-leaders through a Literacy Leadership Council model to guide and refine teaching practices so that students read, write, and speak every day and in every class. -Examine the steps taken by Instructional Leaders at the Central Office and Building level to create a culture where all teachers see themselves as agents for Secondary Literacy Success -Engage with structured protocols and authentic classroom videos to facilitate the "Teachers Teaching Teachers" (TTT) model, enabling practical, peer-led professional learning within their own schools.

This session explores how an urban high school in Pawtucket, Rhode Island redesigned professional learning around collaborative teacher teams focused on grade-level, challenging instruction for all students. We will engage participants in experiencing what these reinvented team meetings look like for teachers, coaches, and building leaders. Participants will understand how this approach supports equitable instructional improvement and can be adapted in participants’ own schools.

Reframe equity as the organizing principle for designing professional learning and improving instruction. Examine how a shared vision of grade-level, high-quality instruction can anchor district and school improvement efforts. Analyze how collaborative teacher teams use shared instructional work to learn, adapt, and improve practice together. Experience and reflect on team-based processes for designing, testing, and studying instructional practices that can be transferred to participants’ own contexts.

Professional learning experiences offer an incredible opportunity to empower educators to stretch their practice. However, too often, these events are one-size, fits all episodes. Together, we will explore a professional learning design cycle focused on priming, ushering, launching, socially constructing, and extending the learning loop beyond face-to-face engagements. We will examine ways to promote social construction during professional learning and consider the integral role reflection plays in the growth process. Participants will leave with tools and processes to guide their professional learning planning and facilitation to craft true experiences - not just events.

- Utilize the "PULSE" professional learning design cycle focused on priming, ushering, launching, socially constructing, and extending the learning loop to design and facilitate meaningful and personalized professional learning experiences. - Examine ways to promote social construction during professional learning, including collaborating with text and video, sharing strategies and examples, applying learning, and reflecting. - Consider how you might extend the learning loop between synchronous professional learning engagements by stretching participants' learning in-person as well as virtually.

This energizing, research-informed session invites participants to move beyond isolated acts of self-care and toward a collective, systemwide approach to educator wellness. Using Kanold and Boogren’s Educator Wellness Framework, participants will reflect on their own well-being, examine how adult wellness impacts professional learning, and leave with practical, team-friendly strategies that foster sustainable habits, deepen collaboration, and ultimately strengthen outcomes in schools and systems for adults, teams, and students.

Participants will deepen their understanding of how educator wellness serves as a catalyst for professional learning that is collaborative, sustainable, and systemwide. Grounded in Kanold and Boogren’s Educator Wellness Framework, this session will help participants: * Examine the connection between collective educator wellness and the conditions necessary for high-quality professional learning, exploring how attention to adult well-being strengthens relational trust, collaborative networks, and team efficacy across schools and systems. * Identify practical strategies and micro-habits within each dimension of wellness that teams can implement together to support one another, reduce burnout, and foster environments where educators feel energized to learn and grow collectively. *. Assess current wellness practices within their professional communities, recognizing gaps, strengths, and opportunities to create more united, wellness-centered adult learning cultures. *. Develop an action-oriented plan for integrating wellness practices into coaching, PLCs, and schoolwide learning structures to ensure that adults, and therefore students, benefit from connected, thriving professional learning communities. These outcomes support the conference theme by reinforcing that wellness is not an individual endeavor but a collective commitment that unites educators and elevates learning for all.

Unite with the Hawaii Teacher Induction Center (HTIC) to examine a systemic induction model that connects state, district, and school leaders into a unified support network. Analyze concrete, data-driven tools and culturally responsive mentoring protocols designed to foster educator belonging and collective success. Acquire actionable strategies to turn isolated mentoring efforts into a robust, sustainable system that accelerates teacher effectiveness and retention.

-Identify systemic supports—from state-level advocacy to school-level implementation—necessary to unite stakeholders for teacher retention. -Examine high-leverage mentoring tools and data-collection protocols that inform professional learning and drive instructional growth. -Analyze the roles of program stakeholders in building a culture of collaborative inquiry and collective responsibility for student success. -Design actionable strategies aligned with Professional Learning Standards that utilize cultural contexts to ensure inclusive support and belonging for all educators.

Understand how institutional norms from an industrial-age model of public education have enabled a culture of teaching and learning that is often devoid of student thinking. Explore how the Building Thinking Classrooms approach transforms classrooms from places where students mimic to spaces where students think. Leave with resources to help you begin implementation (or support implementation) of the approach in your school or district.

Participants will:

• Understand what it takes to get students thinking in a math classroom.
• Recognize what thinking in a math classroom looks like.
• Be able to begin the process of building a thinking classroom.
• Be able to support teachers in building a thinking classroom.
   

Explore how effective leaders utilize advanced coaching skills to identify core issues and strategically scale their involvement when organizational challenges arise. Use interactive self-assessments, authentic coaching scenarios, and small-group discussions to master four advanced coaching skills designed to diagnose the appropriate level of intervention. Learn how this approach equips leaders to amplify their impact and empower their teams to drive sustainable solutions.

Participants will:

• Be able to strategically differentiate between a colleague’s genuine problem (requiring intervention) and a preference (an opportunity for advanced coaching);
• Using a decision tree, small group discussions, and case studies, master using impactful metaphors, addressing the inner critic, aligning core values, and leveraging the power of permission; and
• Develop a personalized action plan to address a specific challenge, allowing you to apply your new coaching skills in an upcoming conversation.
   

Wellbeing cannot thrive in silos. This session explores how self-awareness, strong professional relationships, and shared ownership strengthen collective wellness across roles. Participants examine how understanding emotions and intentionally empowering educator wellbeing moves schools beyond fragmented initiatives toward coherent, aligned practices. These practices deepen culture and collaboration, support the whole person, and sustain meaningful learning and leadership over time.

Participants will examine how self-awareness and collective wellness influence professional relationships and school and organizational culture. They will understand how isolated initiatives limit impact, while collaboration and shared responsibility strengthen both personal and professional effectiveness. Through interactive activities and reflection, participants will identify one actionable strategy to enhance professional relationships and foster collective ownership in their context. They will engage colleagues in dialogue that promotes emotional awareness, supports well-being, and encourages mutual accountability. By connecting self-awareness to shared responsibility, participants will leave equipped to move beyond fragmented efforts, implement coherent wellness practices, and cultivate a culture that supports whole-educator growth and teacher retention. This session provides practical tools and strategies that empower educators to strengthen relationships, sustain collective wellbeing, and positively impact both teaching and learning outcomes across their schools or districts.

Reveal the secrets behind building authentic leadership credibility. Explore actionable approaches that foster trust, strengthen communication, and create an atmosphere where staff feel inspired and empowered. Implement techniques that turn everyday leadership into something extraordinary.

Participants will be able to: • Explain the connection between teacher credibility and leader credibility and why both matter for professional learning. • Identify leadership behaviors that build or erode trust during professional learning initiatives. • Apply credibility-building strategies that increase engagement, clarity, and follow-through. • Reflect on their own “behind the scenes” leadership moves and their impact on adult learning. • Commit to one leadership action that strengthens credibility and supports collective efficacy.

Although principals often receive the same training and resources, leadership impact varies widely. This session examines the unwritten leadership practices high-impact principals demonstrate and how leadership intentionally develops these behaviors through feedback, reflection, and targeted support. Participants will explore climate and cultural implications and leave with practical tools to coach, monitor, and strengthen leadership practices.

Identify key unwritten leadership practices that distinguish high-impact principals from their peers. Analyze how these practices influence school culture, instructional quality, and adult learning. Apply a leadership self-assessment tool to reflect on their own leadership behaviors and blind spots. Develop strategies to intentionally teach and coach these practices with school leadership teams.

Implementing new High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) is complex work that requires more than just "sticking to the script." This session equips teachers and leaders with practical methods to monitor curriculum implementation and student response in real-time. We will move beyond lagging indicators (summative assessments) to design "right now" measures that inform weekly planning and facilitate solution-oriented collaboration.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to: Shift the focus from "judging teacher performance" to "learning about curriculum implementation." Develop a "Family of Measures" (Process, Outcome, and Balancing) specifically for a unit of study or instructional shift. Use run charts to track the fidelity of instruction and student engagement, facilitating data-driven discussions in PLCs.

Engaging in collaborative instructional change takes time but drives growth for students and teachers. Participants will engage as learners with a literacy change package for student-centered instruction tested and refined by secondary teachers in a network for school improvement, reflecting on how to adapt it to their contexts. They will then analyze data linking the package to achievement growth.

Participants will develop a shared understanding of the research underlying the use of the student-centered instruction change package as a driver for students’ growth as readers and writers. Participants will develop a shared understanding of the use of Networked Improvement Communities for teacher collaboration and reflection and their roles in driving instructional change. Participants will know multiple ways to assess the level of implementation of the tests of change and how to relate that to student outcomes. Participants will be able to adapt the test of change (student-centered practices) to a range of situations where participants would benefit from talk and discussions.

How can data support reflection and growth without diminishing teacher agency? This interactive session invites coaches to explore how data can be used with teachers rather than to them. Participants will experience a coaching process that centers teacher voice, choice, and inquiry, practice creating reflective data displays, and leave with practical tools for fostering meaningful, teacher-driven coaching conversations that foster instructional improvement within complex systems.

Identify coaching practices that center teacher voice and choice when establishing an instructional focus, ensuring alignment between educator priorities and system improvement goals. Analyze instructional or classroom data to determine what evidence best supports reflective dialogue and professional learning rather than evaluative feedback. Apply inquiry-based questioning strategies, informed by coaching research, that empower educators to make meaning from data and determine next instructional steps. Plan coaching conversations that intentionally create space for educator reflection, sensemaking, and choice while supporting sustained changes in instructional practice.

Evaluate ways students and staff use AI for knowledge acquisition, writing, creative work, and monitoring then debate which uses go too far. Investigate AI-related legal cases to apply lessons-learned and develop effective policies. Generate action plans to engage with stakeholders and effectively navigate AI ethics and policy in your schools.

Participants will (1) debate acceptable and unacceptable uses of AI for students and staff, (2) determine key components of AI-related legal cases, and (3) develop their own action plans to engage with key stakeholders to support AI discussions, guidance, and policies to effectively balance innovation and ethics in their school communities.

Explore how a South Side Chicago school serving primarily Black students and a growing population of Latinx and newcomer multilingual learners built an instructional leadership team that drives measurable improvement through professional learning plans and inquiry-based learning cycles. Examine a practitioner-led case study highlighting leadership moves, equity-centered scaffolds, and data routines. Leave with practical tools and cycle templates adaptable to your setting.

Participants will:
Analyze a practitioner-led case study showing how a principal and instructional coach led instructional leadership team learning cycles tied to a professional learning plan.
- Identify specific leadership moves, facilitation routines, and practical tools that translated professional learning into classroom practice.
- Examine how scaffolds for access, language development, and belonging were embedded into cycles to strengthen rigor and equity.
- Evaluate multiple evidence sources used to monitor impact, including walkthrough data, teacher artifacts, and student discourse indicators.
- Draft a transferable leadership learning cycle and team implementation plan for their own context.

Examine why traditional and standards-based grading practices often fall short in preparing students for learning beyond school. Engage with a practical framework that supports educators and systems in progressing toward competency-based grading through intentional, additive practices. Apply tools and learning designs that strengthen student agency, improve instructional decision-making, and support sustainable grading change within classrooms, schools, and districts.

Analyze grading and assessment practices along a continuum from traditional to standards-based to competency-based, identifying leverage points for improving instructional coherence and student learning. Apply a progression framework to examine discrete, additive grading practices and participate in learning activities that model how educators and teams can advance competency-based grading within their own contexts. Design next-step strategies that support teachers and school leaders in implementing and sustaining grading practices that promote student agency, transfer of learning, and confidence beyond the classroom. Identify how professional learning structures (e.g., PLCs, collaborative inquiry, shared tools) can be used to support consistent, system-level implementation.

Reimagine pedagogy across K–university and all content areas through a Human-Centered Teaching Framework grounded in Voice & Agency, Dignity-Driven Systems, Rigorous & Relevant Learning, and Global Citizenship & Justice. Examine practical strategies for designing learning spaces that cultivate belonging, critical thinking, stamina, and ethical engagement. Leave with concrete tools to align curriculum, assessment, and AI integration to protect authorship, deepen rigor, and sustain joy.

Understand and articulate the four domains of the Human-Centered Teaching Framework: Voice & Agency, Dignity-Driven Systems, Rigorous & Relevant Learning, and Global Citizenship & Justice and how they apply across K–university and all content areas. Design or refine a lesson, assessment, or classroom routine that cultivates authorship, belonging, intellectual stamina, and disciplinary rigor while protecting dignity and curiosity. Apply deep listening and equity-centered inquiry to examine how current classroom or institutional practices (e.g., grading, feedback, participation structures, AI use) either expand or constrain voice and agency. Integrate human-centered approaches into daily practice by aligning curriculum, instructional moves, and technology use to foster critical thinking, ethical engagement, and meaningful learning in diverse educational contexts.

It's tempting for supervisors to use ChatGPT and other AI tools in their evaluations of teachers. However, this can degrade the process and be a big turnoff for teachers. This workshop will suggest three ways that AI can be used to enhance and deepen the process, with a focus on coaching to improve teaching and learning.

- Understand the problems involved in using AI in the teacher evaluation process - See the power of face-to-face coaching based on multiple classroom visits - Explore using AI to prepare for difficult conversations, analyze the details of a full lesson, and summarize feedback conversations.

Fuel your passion for professional learning by discovering the power of Standards for Professional Learning with this introductory session. The standards point the way to improving student outcomes by drawing on research of system, school, and educator content, processes and conditions that lead to success. This session provides a formal introduction to Standards for Professional Learning while connecting them to real world scenarios and current educator practices – all while engaging in best practices for adult learning.

• Identify the key components of high-quality professional learning presented in the Standards for Professional Learning • Connect evidence-based theories to daily practices around professional learning • Analyze current professional learning practices against the Standards for Professional Learning

Examining student work provides powerful evidence of how students think, learn, and make meaning. In this session you will engage in a type of curriculum-based professional learning that elevates everyday conversations about student work, strengthens instructional decisions, and improves both student learning and professional practice. Learn to use a structured, collaborative descriptive review process to analyze work against content standards and uncover implications for instruction. Leave the session ready to apply the protocol.

1) Learn the alignment between curriculum-based professional learning and the Standards for Professional Learning (especially Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment; Culture of Collaborative Inquiry; and Implementation)
2) Collaboratively examine student work to reveal how students think, learn, and make meaning of content and process.
3) Apply a structured descriptive review protocol to analyze student work against content standards and identify instructional implications.
4) Determine practical ways to implement the protocol within their own instructional context.

Explore five research-based strategies administrators can use to create conditions for novice educator success, including belonging, targeted professional development, mentorship, peer observation, and workload management. Examine practical structures for school-based mentoring and differentiated supports that address the diverse needs of new educators while uniting them for learning across roles and pathways. Apply actionable tools and planning ideas to strengthen retention, instructional practice, and school culture within participants’ own contexts.

Identify the five key strategies for creating conditions for new educator success. Explore and share strategies for creating and supporting well-structured school-based mentoring programs. Brainstorm authentic supports specific to your location. Understand the diverse needs of different types of new educators you may have in your school.

Explore how professional learning can use AI to strengthen differentiation through empathy and intentional instructional design. Apply Tomlinson’s framework to generate, evaluate, and refine differentiated content, process, and products while preserving teacher judgment and equity. Design an AI supported instructional component that reduces planning burden and improves student access in your classroom or school.

Analyze how empathy driven differentiation grounded in Tomlinson’s framework and aligned to ISTE Educator Standards and the ISTE+ASCD Transformational Learning Principles supports the Learning Forward standards for Equity and Outcomes by expanding access to rigorous, student centered instruction. Apply the Learning Designs and Implementation standards by using AI as a professional learning tool to design differentiated content, process, and product that connect learning to the learner, cultivate belonging, and prioritize authentic learning experiences. Evaluate instructional decisions using evidence based practices to ensure AI supported differentiation strengthens educator performance, promotes inclusive learning environments, and advances the ASCD principles of reflection, agency, and expertise development. Transfer learning into practice by creating a differentiated instructional component that can be implemented in classrooms, professional learning communities, or district planning structures to improve student achievement, educator effectiveness, and school or district improvement.

AI has forced educators to reflect on their teaching and learning practices, especially when it comes to academic integrity and student engagement. In this session, participants will see classroom-tested, research-based strategies for designing cheat-resistant assignments and how to foster sustainable cultures of academic integrity without sacrificing rigor. Case studies and activities provide participants practical strategies for designing and grading authentic, uncheatable assessments in classrooms of every grade level.

Through demonstration, case studies, and interactive activities, participants will leave this session with the mindset and practical strategies they need to design assessments that a) are uncheatable by design and b) disincentivize the desire for students to cheat to begin with. Some takeaways include: Understanding the reasons why students cheat and the ways traditional assessment strategies encourage academic dishonesty The role that student agency, curiosity, and purpose play in disincentivizing cheating, and what the practical application of these mindsets looks like in a class assignment (case studies). How to use multimodal, multimedia assignments to design uncheatable, student-centered assignments. When and where to use them, and how to ensure full coverage of the curriculum. How to design and grade their own authentic assignments, including standards alignment, and development of rubrics and alternative grading methods.

Explore how instructional coaches can use data and reflective questioning to shift conversations from informal check-ins to focused professional learning. Engage in tools and structures that support goal setting, noticing strengths, and identifying next steps for teacher growth. Practice these approaches through collaborative activities to prepare for coaching conversations that translate reflection into action.

Identify strategies for using data as an entry point to shift coaching conversations from informal check-ins to focused reflection on instructional practice. Facilitate conversations that move from relationship-building to intentional reflection on instructional practice and manageable next steps. Analyze how strengths-based feedback can be leveraged to support areas of growth without increasing defensiveness. Create a concrete plan for moving a current or upcoming coaching conversation toward implementation and instructional change.

How is AI-supported professional learning helping educators? Engage with leaders from Washington State University, Wisconsin’s Cooperative Educational Service Agency #4, Metro Nashville Public Schools, and the American Institutes for Research to learn how AI is being used to strengthen instruction and assessment, based on real classroom experience. Hear about research on AI’s impacts for teachers and students. Gain tools, frameworks, and more to support implementing effective AI-enabled professional learning.

• Understand how AI-supported professional learning is being used across research, district, and regional service contexts to strengthen core teaching work, including assessment design, Tier 1 instruction, and lesson planning. • Explain practical, field-tested approaches for implementing AI responsibly, including how to define and evaluate evidence of student learning, support educator roles within AI-enabled systems, and avoid common pitfalls that limit engagement and adoption. • Examine examples of AI-enabled professional learning models—such as structured assessment design workflows, district-led pilots, and yearlong teacher learning experiences—to identify design features that support educator learning, collaboration, and application in practice. • Apply cross-project lessons learned to inform decisions about selecting, piloting, or refining AI-supported professional learning in participants’ own schools, districts, or partner organizations, with attention to scalability, educator experience, and instructional impact.

Consider how to write about your professional learning insights, experiences, and journeys for publication. Identify writing goals and ideas, gain strategies and tips for communicating effectively and compellingly to an educator and/or policymaker audience, practice writing in response to prompts, and give and receive feedback from peers and facilitators. Examine submission processes and guidelines for The Learning Professional and other publications.

Understand strategies for communicating insights, experiences, and stories about professional learning; Identify topics and messages specific to their work; Practice writing for an audience of educators and/or policymakers; Give and receive feedback from peers on quick-write drafts; Explore publication venues; and Set a writing goal and make an action plan.

How do districts move from intentions to results? Experience how Maize USD 266 utilizes the 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX) to align building goals into one unified district vision. Explore the 4DX framework to overcome the "whirlwind," focus on what matters most, and leave with tools to round up your team and build collective capacity for sustainable change.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to: 1. Identify the difference between the “whirlwind” of urgent tasks and strategic priorities to determine where to focus district efforts and select a Wildly Important Goal (WIG) for their district that drives the greatest impact on student learning and organizational success. 2. Apply lead measures and the Logic Model to create actionable steps that track progress toward their WIG. 3. Plan next steps for building collective capacity.

Explore how educational neuroscience and the Learning Forward Standards equip instructional leaders, coaches, and teacher leaders to elevate teaching, learning, and professional development. Experience brain-based, adult-learning strategies that deepen understanding of how the brain learns from an educator-leader perspective and strengthen engagement, transfer, and achievement. Apply research-aligned practices to design and implement brain-aligned learning environments that accelerate educator effectiveness and drive school and district improvement.

Understand core principles of educational neuroscience and their alignment to the Learning Forward Standards, enabling leaders to make research-informed decisions that strengthen instructional design, professional learning systems, and schoolwide improvement efforts. Apply brain-based, experiential learning strategies to real instructional or professional learning scenarios, modeling high-quality adult learning that enhances educator performance, deepens engagement, and increases the transfer of learning to classrooms. Analyze current school or district practices through the lens of how the brain learns, allowing instructional leaders, coaches, and teacher leaders to identify system-level opportunities to advance student achievement and support sustained educator growth. Develop actionable next steps for implementing brain-aligned learning environments and professional learning structures, including early indicators of impact and emerging data collection methods that support continuous improvement across classrooms, teams, and districts.

Explore a research-informed framework designed to transform educator fatigue into sustained energy while analyzing the consequences of exhausted educators on the learning environment. Apply the "Empowerment Compass" to foster efficacy and agency, building lasting resilience powered by reflection and coaching. Develop an action plan to turn everyday interactions into growth opportunities on your journey from exhausted to empowered.

Analyze the systemic consequences of the "Exhausted" state versus the "Fully Empowered" state to identify specific areas for growth within their setting. Evaluate their current school or district environment against the five essential conditions for growth: vision, commitment, leadership, structure, and collaboration. Learn and practice conversational coaching techniques, including deep listening and thoughtful questioning, to foster trust and collective capacity. Develop an action plan using the "Empowerment Compass" to turn everyday interactions into growth opportunities, fueling a continuous journey of reflection and professional renewal.

This session examines how alternative education can disrupt long-standing narratives of failure and fundamentally redefine what success looks like for Black male students. Grounded in the lived experiences of Black boys and the educators who serve them, participants will explore why alternative learning environments often succeed where traditional systems fall short—particularly in fostering engagement, authentic relationships, and culturally responsive, affirming support. The session highlights essential design elements of effective alternative schools, including smaller and more personalized learning environments, flexible instructional models, restorative and relationship-centered discipline practices, and cultural structures that prioritize growth, dignity, and accountability over punishment. Participants will analyze how these elements create conditions where Black male students are not merely retained, but empowered to thrive academically and socially. Attendees will also confront common misconceptions surrounding alternative education, challenging deficit-based assumptions that frame these settings as last resorts rather than innovative pathways. Through discussion and reflection, participants will examine how alternative schools can serve as incubators for academic achievement, leadership development, identity affirmation, and postsecondary readiness. Designed for educators, administrators, and policymakers, this session invites participants to critically rethink traditional measures of success and reconsider how equity-centered approaches in alternative education can transform outcomes for Black male students—and, by extension, the broader educational landscape

1. Analyze how alternative education models disrupt deficit-based narratives and redefine success for Black male students through culturally responsive and relationship-centered practices. 2. Identify key design elements of effective alternative learning environments—including instructional flexibility, restorative structures, and personalized supports—that contribute to improved engagement and academic outcomes. 3. Evaluate common misconceptions about alternative education and distinguish between punitive placements and equity-driven, innovation-focused models. 4. Develop an equity-centered lens for policy and practice that prioritizes growth, dignity, and access to opportunity when serving Black male students.

Redesign middle school math collaborative planning by harnessing a research-backed tool to bring the formative assessment cycle to life—slashing grading time, lightening cognitive load, and turning data into action. Experience data reports that surface student thinking, replacing lengthy data meetings with focused conversations about what students need. Transform team planning from curriculum-driven checklists into learning-centered collaboration where educators leverage collective strengths to create responsive pathways so every student feels seen.

Lead a transformed model of collaborative planning in middle school math by guiding teams through the full formative assessment cycle—from designing tight, purposeful tasks to using student evidence to plan responsive instruction. Coach teachers to create formative assessments that matter, generating clear, actionable data that reduces grading lift and replaces lengthy data meetings with focused, high-leverage instructional conversations. Use powerful, instruction-ready data reports as a launch point for team dialogue about which students need what and why, shifting the work from analyzing spreadsheets to making decisions about learning. Unlock the true power of collaboration by leveraging teacher assets and instructional strengths to design responsive moves and customized learning pathways so students feel seen and supported.

Drive systemic change by shifting professional learning from administrative compliance to shared teacher ownership. Examine how our "PLATT" model distributes leadership to align district goals with individual teacher growth. Adapt our specific tools, rubrics, and facilitation strategies to implement a high-quality, job-embedded learning ecosystem that measurably impacts student outcomes.

Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to: Identify the strategic steps for creating a Professional Learning and Training Team (PLATT) to lead and implement professional learning aligned to districtwide areas of focus. Analyze a 4-layered framework for differentiating professional learning across a district, from new-teacher induction to expert-led action research. Examine key artifacts, including a "PL Playbook" and "Site-Based PL Expectations," “Learning Library” designed to ensure consistency and quality in all learning environments. Adapt tools and protocols from our playbook to build educator capacity and drive PL alignment with their own district's strategic goals.

Engaging principals in effective practices that bring joy to their school communities is the key to any school's success. This session illuminates the practical role that principals play in their schools’ success from instructional coherence to the technical aspects of school management. We reconceptualize the principals’ role as one that requires specific skills to be developed and offers practical, real-world activities with which they interact, analyze, and grapple. Finally, we offer pragmatic ways that principals can improve their schools through engaging activities, access to evidence-based resources, and real-world leadership practice opportunities.

Participants will leave this session with a clearer definition of system coherence and develop deeper competence about their own leadership capabilities and the elements necessary for designing a joyful, successful school. Specifically, participants will... 1. Learn about our "Every Single Student Mindset" and how we help principals focus on five core learning conditions: affirming student identities, creating supportive and collaborative learning environments, fostering caring educators, implementing responsive teaching practices, and building equitable systems. 2. Participate in learning that promotes deep self-reflection, that encourages them to confront systemic practices, and influences them to take courageous, audacious actions to promote joyful, successful schools. 3. Access resources that give them the tools to move from belief to action. Our resources use concrete examples and we embed practical exercises designed for immediate application in your school.

This session explores how shifting from transactional practices to transformational, hospitality-driven leadership can improve teacher retention. Drawing on principles from the book Unreasonable Hospitality, participants will examine research-based strategies that help educators feel valued, supported, and connected to purpose. Attendees will leave with practical, people-centered approaches for building school cultures where teachers feel their work matters—and choose to stay.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to: - Understand the research connecting teacher retention to school culture, leadership practices, and feelings of value, belonging, and purpose, and how these align with the principles outlined in the book Unreasonable Hospitality. - Identify the difference between transactional and transformational approaches to teacher support, and recognize everyday leadership behaviors that either contribute to burnout or foster long-term commitment. - Apply hospitality-driven strategies to their own roles by designing intentional practices that help teachers feel seen, appreciated, and supported beyond compliance and compensation. - Develop at least one actionable idea to shift their school or district culture toward a retention-focused model that prioritizes relationships, trust, and meaningful recognition.

Analyze seven core cognitive brain functions to bridge the gap between the science of learning and the classroom foundations of effective, daily instruction. Integrate "sticky" techniques—including background knowledge, visuals, and storytelling—to transform complex content into unforgettable student mastery that lasts long after the bell rings. Utilize AI-tools to design research-based mini-lessons that empower all teachers to deliver high-impact, engaging instruction in their classrooms the very next day.

Explain the seven core cognitive brain functions to understand how the science of learning dictates how students receive and store new information. Transform passive lecture moments into active lessons by embedding impactful engagement structures that prevent cognitive fatigue and increase "stickiness." Build a bridge between immediate student engagement and long-term retention using research-based strategies that support learners at all readiness levels. Construct a strategic action plan using AI-powered tools and an instructional toolbox to refine lesson delivery, ensuring classroom routines prioritize student talk and visual processing for immediate next-day use.

When students read like writers—examining how authors organize & develop their ideas and use language—they strengthen comprehension and writing skills. Using literature as the foundation, participants will learn a practical four-step method: start with a text, model techniques, guide practice, and support application. Drawing upon the proven, research-based connection between reading and writing, this approach teaches students to analyze & annotate author's craft, recognize genre, and apply strategies in their own writing.

1. understand a practical, four-step method to teach writing skills with consistency and clarity 2. identify strategies for deeper text comprehension and improved writing 3. leave with ready-to-use tools that build confidence, inform responses to text, and support all learners—equipping students with essential skills for meaningful learning across subjects 4. use knowledge to close literacy gaps, align reading and writing instruction, and raise achievement—directly supporting student learning goals and driving measurable improvement across and between grade levels

Discover how one school district reimagined teacher leadership to empower educators to grow their skills and assume leadership roles while remaining in the classroom. Through a multi-year partnership with outside consultants, the district aligned teacher and administrator leadership development with LCAP goals, creating site- and district-based instructional leadership teams that support coherent professional learning and improved student outcomes.

Learn how one district intentionally redesigned teacher leadership roles to expand educator influence, expertise, and impact while keeping teachers in the classroom. Examine how teacher and principal leadership structures were reimagined to create coherent, sustainable instructional systems across sites. Understand how a multi-year partnership with external consultants supported capacity-building, leadership development, and alignment between LCAP priorities and school-based goals. Explore proven leadership models and structures that strengthened collaboration, clarified instructional focus, and supported consistent practice across the district. Identify practical, adaptable strategies to grow teacher leadership, increase instructional coherence, and improve student outcomes in their own context.

Explore how a large district leveraged paraeducators as hidden experts to address professional learning presenter shortages while building a Grow-Your-Own teacher certification pipeline. Examine the design of a paraeducator presenter academy that develops facilitation skills, builds professional expertise, and identifies future certified teachers. Apply a scalable framework to expand internal capacity, strengthen retention, and grow educators from within your own system.

-Understand how district leaders can intentionally develop paraeducators as professional learning leaders to expand presenter capacity while creating pathways into teacher certification and Grow Your Own programs. -Identify the leadership structures, systems, and conditions necessary to design and sustain a paraeducator presenter academy that is job-embedded, role-specific, and scalable across multiple campuses. -Analyze how leveraging internal expertise strengthens collective efficacy, improves retention, and addresses both professional learning and teacher shortages in large and complex systems. -Apply a leadership planning framework to assess their own context and outline next steps for building internal leadership pipelines that grow professional learning capacity and future teachers from within.

Learn to lead teachers in using AI strategically to create mathematics lesson plans that guide practice and include differentiation tools and strategies while maintaining mathematical rigor. Develop lesson plans using structured templates, discovering where AI excels as a planning tool and where teacher pedagogical expertise remains essential. Leave with facilitator-ready templates, customizable prompts, and protocols you can use to lead collaborative lesson planning in your context.

Understand where AI excels and where teacher expertise is essential in mathematics lesson planning, including AI strengths in generating examples and differentiation strategies, and the critical role of teacher judgment in maintaining cognitive demand, making pedagogical decisions, and addressing equity. Be able to use a structured lesson planning system with templates and enhancement prompts to create or refine mathematics lessons based on high-quality curriculum and facilitate this process with teachers in collaborative planning settings. Be able to evaluate AI-generated lessons using quality criteria (language clarity, reasoning opportunities, differentiation) and coach teachers in refining lessons through targeted prompting and collaborative revision. Apply these tools and protocols to support ongoing mathematics professional learning in their contexts, including use in PLCs, coaching cycles, and curriculum implementation efforts.

Strengthen professional learning leadership and facilitation to build equity-centered Communities of Practice through intentional accountability and inclusive facilitation. Examine and practice approaches to addressing harm, and explore reflection and mindfulness strategies that support relational trust. Gain concrete tools, facilitation protocols, and decision-making frameworks for immediate application to improve engagement, belonging, and learning culture in virtual and in-person community of practice settings.

Learn to distinguish between calling in and calling out, and identify appropriate contexts for each approach when addressing harm, bias, or misalignment in professional learning spaces. Discuss and apply equity-centered facilitation strategies, including shared agreements, structured accountability practices, and inclusive communication techniques, to strengthen belonging and psychological safety in Communities of Practice. See demonstrations and then practice mindfulness-based facilitation moves (e.g., pausing, grounding, intentional language) to respond to challenging moments with clarity, regulation, and relational care. Discuss in small groups a design and plan for actionable next steps, including ready-to-use language, meeting structures, and follow-up strategies, that can be implemented immediately in virtual, hybrid, or in-person professional learning contexts.

Much of today’s classroom practice is shaped by norms from an industrial-age model of education, often resulting in learning environments where students mimic rather than think. In this workshop, participants will explore over 15 years of research on transforming classrooms into spaces that foster deep student thinking. Through interactive experiences and practical examples, educators will learn strategies to move from task completion to meaningful engagement and critical thinking.

Participants will:

• Recognize what thinking looks like in a math classroom; 
• Understand what it takes to foster student thinking in math; 
• Begin the process of building a thinking classroom; and 
• Support teachers in creating and sustaining thinking classrooms.

Many teachers are simply and understandably burning out! The fire and passion that once sparked for teaching are simply becoming extinguished. Is it any wonder? All teachers are being asked to do is appropriately manage students while engaging the brains of those students in quality curriculum. They are also asked to meet the physical, social, and emotional needs of those same students and all while simultaneously attempting to maintain some semblance of a quality personal life. In this highly-engaging workshop, educators will not only learn how to restore their passion for teaching, they will also explore 12 brain-based principles for avoiding burnout, increasing optimism, and supporting physical well-being.

Participants will:

• Identify the factors that contribute to teacher burnout and learn how to determine purpose and restore the passion inherent in the profession;
• Discover the correlation between humor, optimism, games, and increased immunity;
• Value the importance of quality nutrition, exercise, and sleep to support physical well-being; and
• Create a classroom that engenders optimal student success. 

Examine how leaders can design schools that center voice, identity, and belonging while coaching for agency among both students and educators. Explore the Pedagogies of Voice framework and leadership strategies that cultivate agency and support equitable participation in learning. Apply practical tools for professional learning and instructional leadership that help educators leverage the framework to build classrooms and school cultures where voice drives learning.

Participants will:

• Analyze how student voice, identity, and belonging influence agency and learning outcomes, and identify leadership moves that cultivate these conditions across classrooms and schools;
• Apply the Pedagogies of Voice framework to design professional learning and coaching structures that support educators in cultivating agency for both students and teachers;
• Develop practical strategies for coaching educators to strengthen disciplinary thinking and equitable participation through voice-centered instructional practices; and 
• Design actionable next steps for implementing voice-driven learning cultures within their own schools or districts.

Recommended book (optional): https://www.corwin.com/books/pedagogies-of-voice-288927

Support skilled teachers in mentoring colleagues by applying a structured Mentoring Cycle that strengthens new teacher practice. Examine and apply strategies for diagnosing mentees’ needs, providing targeted coaching, and monitoring progress to measure growth and impact. Learn and practice skills to build strong, trust-based relationships and communicate effectively with beginning teachers. Apply adult learning theory and insights into the new teacher mindset to the mentoring role, and design a mentoring support plan that accelerates knowledge, skills, and instructional growth.

Participants will:

• Learn the “why” behind mentoring and the impact mentoring can have on new teachers;
• Understand and apply mentor roles, responsibilities, expectations, and key attributes in their work with new teachers;
• Recognize and apply strategies from the Mentor Cycle framework for developing new teachers’ knowledge and skills; and
• Apply tools and strategies that establish trust between a mentor and a new teacher to build strong, learning-focused relationships.

The true power of coaching lies in coaching the person, not the problem. When coaches help clients surface and explore their deep-seated beliefs, they unlock meaningful insights and innovative thinking—leading to new approaches to challenges and lasting changes in behavior. Experienced coaches will strengthen their ability to consistently create high-trust conversations, recognize opportunities for shifts in thinking, and move beyond surface-level dialogue to foster meaningful changes in educator practice.

Participants will:

• Clearly articulate the concept of “coaching the person, not the problem” and its potential to foster meaningful changes in thinking and behavior; 
• Increase their ability to recognize opportunities to invite clients to examine underlying beliefs during coaching conversations; 
• Learn strategies for deepening safety and trust in coaching interactions to create a receptive environment for exploring limiting beliefs; and 
• Practice using safe, respectful language when challenging assumptions and beliefs.

Develop clarity on the purpose and foundational steps for instructional coaches, with an emphasis on the importance of building relationships through coaching to enhance teacher practice. Explore strategies to improve instruction, promoting student growth and achievement for all learners. Collaborate and reflect with others to gain confidence in establishing impactful coaching relationships and driving instructional improvement in your setting.

Participants will:

• Define the purpose and responsibilities of instructional coaches; 
• Identify initial steps for building coaching relationships and fostering trust;
• Explore strategies for enhancing initial instruction to boost student growth and achievement; and
• Increase confidence and clarity in navigating the coaching role within current systems.

What does truly effective instructional coaching look like—and how does it translate into better outcomes for students? This session distills three decades of research and practice into a clear, actionable framework for coaching that works. Explore the beliefs that drive effective coaching, the skills that foster strong learning partnerships, and the expertise needed to support teachers’ growth. Be introduced to a simple, powerful coaching cycle that helps teachers adopt and refine new strategies to improve student engagement, achievement, and well-being. Leave with practical tools, proven strategies, and access to curated resources to support your next steps.

Participants will:

• Describe the core beliefs, skills, and knowledge that underpin effective instructional coaching;
• Apply a structured coaching cycle to support teachers in implementing and refining new instructional strategies;
• Identify practices that strengthen collaborative, trust-based coaching partnerships; and
• Access and utilize research-based resources to support ongoing coaching and professional learning.

Gain step-by-step guidance to maximize collaborative learning time for teachers to solve specific student learning challenges by implementing a five-stage cycle of teacher-led professional learning. Examine a process for using student data to craft student and educator learning goals leading to learning plans, implementation steps, and progress monitoring. Focus on the role of learning teams in implementing high quality instruction and what that means for student and educator learning goals.

Participants will:

• Make the connection between collaborative, teacher-led learning and improved instruction and student learning;
• Take steps to launch a learning team cycle with five key stages and examine how to implement each with specific strategies and supporting protocols;
• Adapt the cycle to fit specific school and district calendars and initiatives; and
• Leave with a road map to focus on the day-to-day actions in classrooms among students, educators, and instructional materials for maximum impact.

Hard conversations and candid feedback are unavoidable in healthy schools - yet many educators feel unprepared to either give or receive feedback well. This session builds skills for engaging directly and productively, helping participants offer clear, professional feedback while receiving input with greater emotional regulation and less defensiveness.

Participants will:

• Prepare for and engage in hard conversations using clear, responsible, and professional communication strategies;
• Offer candid feedback in ways that maintain relationships while addressing concerns directly;
• Recognize and regulate emotional responses when conversations become challenging; and
• Receive feedback with less defensiveness and greater curiosity.