Presenters
Steve Ventura
Steve Ventura is the president and lead consultant at Advanced Collaborative Solutions. He is a highly motivational and knowledgeable speaker who approaches high-stakes professional development armed with practical, research-based strategies. Steve is a former elementary and secondary teacher as well as both a school and district-level administrator. Steve has published multiple books and articles, and regularly presents and keynotes at major global education events.
Pedro Antonio Noguera, Ph.D.
Pedro Noguera is a Distinguished Professor of Education at the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. Prior to joining the faculty at UCLA he served as a tenured professor and holder of endowed chairs at New York University (2003 - 2015), Harvard University (2000 - 2003) and the University of California, Berkeley (1990 - 2000). He is the author of eleven books and over 200 articles and monographs. He will engage us in a conversation about equity and deeper learning and its impact on student achievement.
Bonnie Bishop
Bonnie Bishop is nationally recognized for over 40 years of work improving teacher efficacy and student achievement. The hallmark of her work in education was to inspire excellence in teachers and their students using holistic and mindful teaching strategies. Through her studies in Mindful Meditation, she came to realize how mindfulness practices could be implemented to enhance teaching and learning in classrooms. As the Director of The Mindful Circle, Bonnie works closely with her colleagues to present highly-motivational and interactive seminars and workshops that give participants opportunities to build a personal practice for increased awareness and well-being while sharing their wisdom and experience.
Angela Buckingham
Angela Buckingham is a teacher, instructional coach, PLC team coach, and Texas Lesson Study Facilitator who has over 15 years of experience exploring and researching how to improve student learning and teacher efficacy. She believes in both the partnership approach to coaching and in the power of collaborative learning. Angela is driven by her passion for teacher agency, student advocacy, and social justice. She credits the coaches, teachers, and students she’s worked with over the years in developing her own ability to listen, learn, and grow. She is the co-creator of both Cards for Coaching and Cards for Coaching PLC Edition and loves to collaborate on ideas to support learning.
Elena Sammon
Elena Sammon is a secondary ELA teacher, instructional coach, PLC team coach, and a coach of coaches. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from The University of Texas at San Antonio, and she has over 16 years of experience in education. She is the co-creator of Cards for Coaching PLC Edition, and her passions include research, collaborating and learning with fellow educators, and student empowerment.
Michelle Slaton
Michelle’s teaching career began in Houston, Texas in 1986. When she became an ESOL Teacher in 2006, the role included leading professional learning related to best instructional practices for English Learners. She has presented at the Kennesaw State University ESOL Conference multiple times and in 2016, she was offered the position of Forsyth County Schools’ first ESOL Coach, supporting K-12 educators and leading professional learning district wide. Ranking just behind spending time with her family, her next greatest pleasure is supporting students by leading educators in professional learning that is highly engaging, effective and fun.