I grew up in a bilingual program here in Buffalo, New York, and now it’s my privilege to support students and educators in bilingual programs as an instructional coach. Much of my work with educators focuses on dual language instruction and amplifying students’ home language – Spanish, in the case of our community. This year, […]

Leaders like you know how tough chronic student absenteeism is to tackle. Data shows that each chronically absent or at-risk student and family will benefit from individualized support at school. But to make a difference for all your students, you and your team need consistent, scalable processes. That’s why we’ve rounded up 5 data-driven tools […]

One of my most powerful experiences as a teacher came from a principal who believed in my capacity more than I did at the time. Even though I was new to her campus, she thought I would be a good fit for a leadership role. When she approached me, I thanked her for considering me, […]

Collaboration is one of the most essential pillars of teacher and student success. Authentic collaboration sparks a natural curiosity of how we can best impact student achievement and move learning forward. When I was a teacher, I felt most successful during the years that my Professional Learning Community engaged in authentic collaboration. We implemented nearly […]

More than 23 years ago, my journey in education began as a kindergarten teacher, where I discovered my passion for teaching young children to read. Right from the start, I noticed the diverse reading abilities among my students – some were just learning their letters while others could already decode words. At that time, the […]

Picture this: You’re a first-year math educator and your students are struggling with fractions. During your planning period, you decide to drop in on a fellow teacher’s classroom. When you arrive, their students are working independently on fractions in stations. Your class might not be ready for that, but you can see the students are […]

It seems like every space in education right now is full of chatter around emerging AI technologies, with some educators expressing enthusiasm and others expressing apprehension. In this moment of rapid change, it’s so important for leaders to remember that teachers are learners, too. We need to approach adult learners with a lot of choice, […]

My team and I are working toward big, multi-year learning goals for our elementary students. Last year, our teachers embraced professional growth, elevated our instruction and promoted so much student progress. We’ll keep pushing toward those goals this fall and embark on new professional learning journeys. As a principal, I can’t wait to jump in […]

When my principal first invited me to join Lincoln Middle School as an AP, she emphasized the importance of being a lead learner for our staff. She said, “We’re going to create a learning environment not only for students but also for teachers.”  Research has shown that the first three years of a teacher’s career […]

Five years ago, my school was one of the middle schools with the highest number of suspensions in the county. I know data demonstrates that suspensions just aren’t effective  for students, and as a principal I’ve seen it firsthand, too. When a student is repeatedly suspended, it’s easy for them to feel unwanted at school, […]