2015 Blueprint for Excellence National Conference

2015 Blueprint for Excellence National Conference - Tailor Your Agenda

Conference Registration Process: Educator National Conference

We accept Credit Cards, Checks and Purchase Orders.

Step 1: Register to Attend Conference via Eventbrite (This Site)

Select the “Ticket Type” and “Quantity”

You may select to “Order Now” or select “Other Payment Options”

Purchase Orders or Checks - make sure to select “Other Payment Options”

Step 2: Reserve Lodging at Yacht and Beach Club

Reserve Park Tickets, Transportation and Make Dining Reservations via Disney's Group Reservation 407-939-4686.

LODGING INFORMAITON:

Yacht and Beach Club for $199 a night

Room Block Available: December 1 - 6th
Make reservations before the Room Block Ends: October 30th

After October 30, 2015---
Please call 407.939.4686 for availability.

PRESENTERS:

Concurrent Session Presenter:

Register to present during a Concurrent Session by completing the Concurrent Session Form: http://www.blueribbonschools.com/conferences

Scroll to the middle of page to complete the online form.

Blue Ribbon Schools: “Working Together to Create World Class Schools”

Presented by Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence, Inc.

Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Resorts

Walt Disney World® Resort, Florida

December 1-4, 2015

Tuesday, December 1 – Day One

11:00 AM

Registration – Cape Cod

1:00 PM – 5:30 PM

Disney’s Approach to Leadership Excellence

($325 extra charge- 30 Participants Only)

Disney Institute uses business insights and time-tested examples from the Disney organization to provide relevant illustrations and engaging stories that, with adaptation, can be applied across the public, private, and social sectors to inspire professionals to positively impact their organizations and the customers they serve. Connecting great leadership to improved performance is just one of the ways that Disney Institute helps organizations reimagine their results.

Session Chair: Susan Pearsall, Senior Facilitator, Disney Institute, Florida.

Location: GH Salon I

1:00 – 4:00 PM

Technology Tuesday Pre-Conference (included with registration) sponsored by Safari Montage

Session Description: Going Digital: Making the right decisions for a successful implementation.

A distinguished group of former educators provide a proven “soup to nuts” roadmap for moving a districtfrom a traditional learning platform to a digital learning platform. From infrastructuredesign to professional learning, these veterans are willing to share their successes (and mistakes) to help participants understand all of the nuances in making this dramatic shift. These thought leaders in technology will bring multiple perspectives on implementation. Their experiences from classroom teacher to Deputy Superintendent of the Stateprovide participants with real world experiences on change management, funding, professional learning, and policy development. This workshop will also help participants look strategically at infrastructure growth, getting and integrating common cartridge from publishers, and providing staff with professional development that is meaningful. Implementations from small, rural districts to very large “mega” districts in Georgia, Florida, and Alabamawill be discussed. This is a must attend workshop if you have any inclination of moving digital.

Presenters: Dr. Mike Hall, former Deputy Superintendent, Georgia Department of Education, Georgia; Dr. Tim Clark, former Instructional Technology Coordinator, Forsyth County Schools, Georgia; and George Perreault, former Director of Instructional Technology, Orange County Schools, Florida.

Session Chair: Dr. Mike Hall, former Deputy Superintendent, Georgia Department of Education, Georgia.

Location: GH Salon III-IV

2:30- Refreshments sponsored by Safari Montage – GH Salon III-IV

3:00 -5:00 PM

Exhibit Load In and Set Up

Location: GH Ballroom North

5:00 – 7:00 PM

BOLT Student Leadership Institute – Student Welcome/Parent Information Room

Location: Cape Cod A

Wednesday, December 2 – Day Two

7:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Conference Registration

Location: Cape Cod Registration

7:00 AM – 8:00 AM

Continental Breakfast and Exhibit Hall Opening – All Educators and Students

Location: GH Ballroom North

8:00 – 9:30 AM

Opening Session- GH Ballroom South

Master of Ceremonies- Craig Martin

Senior Advisor, BRSE

Assistant Superintendent, Reading Public Schools, Reading, MA

Student Ambassador- Peyton Malone

Buckhorn Middle School, New Market, AL

Presentation of Colors

Celebration High School Color Guard, Celebration, Florida

Chuck McGuirk, JROTC Instructor

Cadet Captain Nicholas Pavon

Cadet Major Raul Sanchez

Cadet Major Gerard Capdesuner

Commanding today's Color Guard is Cadet Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Biscocho

Pledge of Allegiance/National Anthem

Celebration K8 School Wind Ensemble

James K. Cochran, Band Director

Celebration, FL

Welcome- Dr. Judy Warden, CEO, BRSE

Purpose- Bart Teal, President, BRSE

Partnership- Office Depot Partner Welcome- Becki Schwietz

Keynote Address: Jayne Ellspermann, 2015 National Principal of the Year, and currently principal at West Port High School, Ocala, Florida. Jayne is also President-Elect, NASSP.

9:30- 10:15 AM -VISIT THE EXHIBITS and NETWORKING

10:15 – 11:15 AM

CONCUURENT SESSION A

Session Description: How to Become a Blue Ribbon Lighthouse School of Excellence

The Blueprint for Excellence is a comprehensive school assessment designed to assist all schools at all levels. The process assesses the quality of school programs and assists in developing a school-wide action plan to ensure measurable student achievement and school improvement. Learn more about the process and learn about one school’s experience utilizing the process for improvement.

Presenters: Steve O’Brien and Laura Morgan, BRSE Senior Leadership Staff

Session Chair: Ed Bernetich, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Senior Leadership Team, Ohio.

Location: GH Ballroom South

Session Description: Mission Possible: Academics, Accountability and Achievement! Award WinningTurnaround Principal, Stephanie Johnson presents “Mission Possible: Academics, Accountability, and Achievement” with best practices, protocols, and procedures essential to leading complex change in school turnaround.

Presenter: Stephanie Johnson, Maynard Jackson High School, Georgia.

Session Chair: Judy Warden Ed.D., CEO, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence, Georgia.

Location: GH Salon I

Session Description:A House Undivided. This session will describe the transformation the campus went through as we went from a traditional model of campus culture and we created a house system using Walt Disney's 2000 teacher of the year Ron Clark as a guide.

Presenters: James Howard, Principal; Brittany Quails, Teacher; Tina Pham, Teacher; and Montreal Williams, Teacher, Parsons School, Texas.

Session Chair: Melissa Veasy-Lindsey, Principal, Monte Sano Elementary School, Alabama.

Location: GH Salon II

Session Description: Building our Leaders of Tomorrow (BOLT) Elementary School Students (Elementary School Students- ONLY). Conference attendees are welcome to stop in and see our Student Leadership Institute in Action! BOLT -Focus is on developing student leaders by building leadership skills, creating abilities to overcome obstacles, and encouraging teamwork!

Session Chair: Pollyanna Buff, Elementary School Leader, BRSE Leadership Institute, South Carolina.

Location: GH Salon III

Session Description : The Power of Teaching: Using Data & Common-Sense.

The teacher has the power within his or her classroom to maximize instruction, enhanced by available data. Direct Instruction and the time allocated to instruction are vital components to successful pedagogue. By utilizing student assessment data, identifying and addressing student weaknesses, and reevaluating, student growth and achievement are inevitable. This simple approach was implemented in our school with almost instantaneous and ongoing success.

Presenters:Brad Ennen, Principal; and Dan Webster, Teacher, Jackson Township Elementary School; and Jeff Fritz, Superindendent, Clay Community Schools, Indiana.

Session Chair: Mark Minskey, Chief of Staff, Madison County Schools, Alabama.

Location: GH Salon IV

Session Description: Protocols in Practice.This session will focus on how teachers can effectively use and plan for their Professional Learning Time (PLT). Teachers will learn how to establish group norms, develop and use student work protocols in a systematic and timely fashion in order to improve student achievement and teacher effectiveness.

Presenters: Donna Drizin, Principal; Marna Caintic, Special Education Teacher; Cindy Crayder, Reading Specialist; and Rachel Milleo, Reading Specialist, Whitemarsh Elementary School, Pennsylvania.

Session Chair: Rocky Sugameli, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Senior Leadership Team, Arizona.

Location: Cape Cod A

Session Description:Community Partnership Through Community Instructional Rounds. There is no better way to create advocacy for your school than to invite your community to be a part of the academic process! Come see how inviting stakeholders to observe and critique instruction can reap dividends for partnerships, volunteerism, and positive school perception.

Presenter: Scott Weeks, Principal, Owens Crossroads Elementary, Alabama.

Session Chair: Katie Morgan, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Senior Leadership Team, South Carolina.

Location: Cape Cod B

Session Description: Charming Students Into Reading A Series.Do your students love to read books and have a plan to read an entire series? If not, then come and learn all about our strategy that has taken our students to high achievement.

Presenters: Kathleen Decker, Principal; Christine Herbert, Theme Coordinator, and Miadora Nelson, Teacher, Walter Bracken STEAM Academy, Nevada.

Session Chair: Stephanie Cole, Teacher, Monte Sano Elementary School, Alabama.

Location: Cape Cod C

Session Description: Building our Leaders of Tomorrow (BOLT) Middle School Students (Middle School Students- ONLY). Conference attendees are welcome to stop in and see our Student Leadership Institute in Action! BOLT -Focus is on developing student leaders by building leadership skills, creating abilities to overcome obstacles, and encouraging teamwork!

Session Chair: Christine Voigt, Middle School Leader, BRSE Leadership Institute, Texas.

Location: Cape Cod D

Session Description: 2013 and 2014 National Blue Ribbon School Recipients. Let’s hear it for middle schools! This presentation will focus on sharing the unique attributes our two middle schools (Savannah Christian Middle School and The First Academy- Orlando, Florida) highlighted in applying for the Blue Ribbon Award of Excellence. Helpful suggestions and ideas will be shared by both principals with pictures and video clips of our schools during the session!

Presenters: Mike Crosby, Principal, Allyson Faircloth, Teacher and Krystal Gill, Teacher, Savannah Christian Middle School. Dr. Luci Higgins, Principal, Director of Curriculum & Instruction K4-12 and Middle School Principal, The First Academy - Orlando, Florida.

Session Chair: Scott Stewart, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Senior Leadership Team, Ohio.

Location: Hampton Room

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM

CONCURRENT SESSION B

Session Description: Unleash the Power of Student Voice to Develop a Culture of Learning, After this session, you will have the tools to implement school-wide student-led conferences using a 1:1 platform. We implemented student-led conferences in our school many years ago to empower our students to “own their learning.” This fall, with a digital initiative that placed Chromebooks in each student's hands, we modified our program to highlight our students’ abilities to “show what they know.” Parent feedback has been OVER THE TOP!! We can share our process and show how this experience further enhances the STUDENTS FIRST culture at our school!

Presenters: Sheryll Harper, Principal; Michelle Crawford, Teacher; and Sheila Toth, Teacher, Discovery Middle School, Indiana.

Session Chair: Ed Bernetich, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Senior Leadership Team, Ohio.

Location: GH North Ballroom Classroom

Session Description: Moving from Differentiation to Personalization Using Rigor & Relevance. Increased complexity, breadth, and depth in content, process, and product are key to meeting students where they are and teaching to their potential. Explore strategies to use with students in your class today and the Personalized Learning tool of tomorrow that will help you truly personalize instruction for each student in ways that are both efficient, effective and truly empower you as a teacher.

Presenter: Penny Reinart, K-12 Curriculum & Instruction Lead Consultant, Office Depot, Inc.

Session Chair: Andrea Turner, Lead Consultant, Growth Strategy| Office Depot, Inc., Florida.

Location: GH Salon I

Session Description The PETTL Project: Bringing P-12 and Higher Ed Together in Kentucky(A Servant as Leader Model).This presentation will illustrate the collaborative school improvement model that has been developed in Kentucky by an education cooperative. Called PETLL (Perpetual Excellence in Teaching, Leading, and Learning), this process brings P-12 partners together with faculty from several colleges and universities in working with school principals and faculty to facilitate needed change.
The PETLL Team spends a day observing classroom "practice", developing recommendations, and then facilitating a school "blueprint" with the school's staff. Teachers also identify specific talents they want to spend more time developing as the school year unfolds. The PETLL Team follows up with two to four recurring visits to assure the school remains focused on its plan for ongoing improvement in teaching/learning effectiveness in every classroom. The PETLL Team model is immersed in the philosophy of servant leadership, as members of each team lend voluntary support to colleagues.

Presenters: Dr. Rocky Wallace, past Award Winning National Blue Ribbon Principal, and Dr. Mike Hylen, Associate Professor, Asbury University, Kentucky.

Session Chair: Dr. Rocky Wallace, past Award Winning National Blue Ribbon Principal, Kentucky.

Location: GH Salon II

Session Description: Using Computer Science to Spark Innovation in the Classroom.Computer Science is being called the "next language." Find out how to integrate computer science into the curriculum, and allow students to use computer science to create innovative projects.

Presenter: Faith Plunkett, Teacher, Entertainment Technology Academy, Alabama.

Session Chair: Faith Plunkett, Teacher, Entertainment Technology Academy, Alabama.

Location: GH Salon III

Session Description POWER HOUR- Empower Your Students Raise Student Achievement: Power Hour is an opportunity to empower students to use their time to support their personal learning. Teachers are empowered to creatively use Power Hour to meet their students’ needs. In this presentation participants will see how they can use their school day creatively with a focus on student achievement. The session will show how to identify data to support change and how to go about using change to create a positive culture.

Presenter: Jayne Ellspermann, 2015 National Principal of the Year, and currently principal at West Port High School, Ocala, Florida. Jayne is also the President-Elect for NASSP.

Session Chair: Bart Teal, President, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence, South Carolina.

Location: GH Salon IV

Session Description: Creating meaningful professional development to foster a professional learning community. Often times when teachers hear the words professional development administrators in turn hear complaints flowing in the halls. Whether your school is made up of veteran teachers, new teachers, or a combination of both it can be challenging to plan meaningful professional development. In order to plan purposeful learning opportunities administrators must include teachers in the planning process as well as discussions of the schools vision and mission. Once a vision is determined it is important that teachers are given the time and resources to learn as well as discuss and plan for new initiatives. Professional development should utilize differentiated instructional strategies to ensure that teachers are having their individual needs and concerns addressed. Teachers cannot be given a one size fits all professional development program. Professional development must be viewed as a long-range plan that allows teachers to develop a deep understanding of the schools vision and how to implement new initiatives in the classroom. If administrators take the time to create a clear plan and present the faculty with an organized timeline than professional development days transform from a teachers burden to their gift.

Presenters: Rebecca Zimmerman, Principal, andLaura Swerdzewski, Assistant Principal, St. Mary’s Elementary School, Maryland.

Session Chair: Melissa Veasy-Lindsey, Principal, Monte Sano Elementary School, Alabama.

Location: Cape Cod B

Session Description Hakuna Matatta: Taking the Worry Out of K-2 STEM Integration Giant, 3D structures filled with students, students programming ozobots, traps to catch the gingerbread man, kid created hover crafts-these are a few of the exciting projects you might see on any given day in the STEM Lab at Calera Elementary. At Calera Elementary School, STEM is where Kindergarten through Second graders learn to work together, problem solve and think critically while applying the curriculum through exciting engineering challenges and science experiments. Our priority, however, is to inspire curiosity that cultivates a love of learning, especially in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Our mission is to prepare students to face the challenges of the 21st century making them so comfortable with taking risks that no amount of difficulty will scare them away from the STEM they loved in Kindergarten. Imagine the amazing things our fearless, limitless, passionate learners will do with their futures! Learn about how we got started, where we are at, and in what direction we are headed. We will share our implementation strategies and provide links to resources that have guided our program and will help you in the development of yours!

Presenters: Denise Taylor, STEM Facilitator and National Board Certified Teacher and Sonya Eggleston, STEM Facilitator and Technology Specialist, Calera Elementary School, Alabama

Session Chair: Stephanie Cole, Teacher, Monte Sano Elementary School, Alabama.

Location: Cape Cod C

Session Description Attitude is Everything: Creating a Culture of Success, Do your students LOVE coming to school everyday? Come see and hear what Riverton Elementary does to create a culture that is engaging, inspiring, and fun. Walk away with concrete ideas to implement in your own school to create this type of culture.

Presenters:Teresa Keel and Kim Gulledge, Instructional Coaches and Merry Gaylor, Carla Brown, and Mary Elmer, Teachers, 2015 Blue Ribbon Lighthouse School of Excellence, Riverton Elementary School, Alabama.

Session Chair: Scott Weeks. Principal, Owens Cross Roads Elementary School, Alabama.

Location: Hampton Room

12:45 PM – 2:00 PM Lunch

Location: GH South Ballroom

Master of Ceremonies- Craig Martin

Senior Advisor, BRSE

Assistant Superintendent, Reading Public Schools, Reading, Massachusetts

Keynote Speaker Travis Allen, I-School Initiative, Atlanta, Georgia

Travis Allen is a young visionary promoting digital learning in the classroom. Travis is quickly becoming one of the most influential leaders of the emerging digital learning movement.

2:15 – 3:15 PM

CONCURRENT SESSION C

Session Description: Leadership: From Compliance to Capacity Building. In an era of accountability and new standards, Craig Martin (a recipient of the AMLE Distinguished Educator Award) believes it is essential for our profession to move beyond mere compliance and for educators to shape a collective vision beneficial for all students. By reimagining teacher collaboration and creating a “leader-leader dynamic,” school culture can be transformed to improve student learning, establish shared leadership, and harness the collective expertise of all staff. By empowering educators in determining essential student outcomes and the best ways to measure progress toward those goals, we can also begin to move beyond the current focus on standardized assessments as the primary measure of school success.

Presenter:Craig Martin, Assistant Superintendent of Reading Public Schools, and Senior Advisor, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence, Massachusetts

Session Chair: Aaron King, Principal, Huntsville High School, Alabama.

Location:GH Ballroom North Classroom

Session Description Keys to the Principal’s Office: The Successful Key Leader, Insight and strategies that reflect those characteristics and qualities of a successful school principal. A nationally recognized school principal shares a real world view of how leadership and engagement can develop a model school culture and program.

Presenter:Danny Shaw, Assessment Team, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Team, South Carolina.

Session Chair: Scott Weeks, Principal, Owens Cross Roads Elementary School, Alabama.

Location: GH Salon I

Session Description Changing School Culture Using Brain Compatible Learning: A Recipe For School Success.Do you want your students to enjoy school while also being challenged and engaged in their work? Do you want them to achieve at higher levels than ever before? Then consider brain-compatible learning! Learn the common sense, research based strategies this three time National Blue Ribbon School and Blue Ribbon Lighthouse School used to improve student achievement while creating a kid friendly, teacher friendly learning environment. The challenge for today's educators is to plan, design, and create environments that foster maximum student learning and development. This session will discuss changing a school's culture and the successes, benefits, and implementation of brain-compatible learning environments.

Presenter: Johnny Calder, retired principal Forestbrook Elementary School, Triple National Blue Ribbon School; and National Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Lighthouse, South Carolina.

Session Chair: Dr. Rocky Wallace, past Award Winning National Blue Ribbon Principal, Kentucky.

Location: GH Salon II

Session Description –Empowering Our Schools to be Great. This session will provide vital information for any school leaders that are trying to make efficient change in their schools. In today’s educational settings, nothing is more important than Professional dialogue and collaboration. This presentation can serve as a model to assist in providing a framework for school reform. Scott’s presentation will focus on how to create a daily schedule that will provide the flexibility that school’s need to be successful. Specifically, Scott will share information on how to create more time for Student Intervention, Professional Collaboration, Personalization and Capacity Building within your building. Scott Stewart is a senior member of the Blue Ribbon Assessment Team and has worked with over 100 schools in the Unites States, China and Germany. Scott has been instrumental in changing the school day schedules in over 40 Middle and High Schools throughout the United States. Scott has been a secondary Principal for over 15 years and served as Principal for three Blue Ribbon Schools. He was most successful at New Albany High School in Columbus Ohio. New Albany earned the National Blue Ribbon Award, the Lighthouse Award and the Intel 21st Century School of Distinction Award.

Presenter: Scott L. Stewart, Director of Principals Resource Network of Central Ohio; Field Coordinator for the Bright Fellows Program, The Ohio State University Fisher School of Business, Ohio.

Session Chair:Ed Bernetich, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Senior Leadership Team, Ohio

Location: GH Salon IV

Session Description:A District Teacher of the Year Shares Strategies that Work. The Teacher of the Year from Orange County Public Schools, Florida, will share strategies to increase student engagement and academic achievement. Student achievement increases when teachers use learning goals, student self-monitoring, chunking of content and mini-assessments using a reteach/retest intervention. The presenter will share how to do this within a highly engaging classroom using LDC modules, encouraging a growth mindset and implementing strategies from Teach Like a Pirate.

Presenters: Lainie Clowers-Gwynne, Teacher and Dr. Stefanie C. Shames, Principal, Maitland Middle School, Florida.

Session Chair: Tamala Martin. Assistant Superintendent, Boyd County Schools, Kentucky.

Location: Cape Cod A

Session Description The Standards Based Classroom: It's Not What We Teach, It's How We Teach It! This engaging session will walk educators through the importance of a standards - based classroom. Educators will focus on:
•Classroom environment being structured to give students adequate time, space, and materials to learn
•Learning activities are student-centered
•Lessons are designed to address specific concepts or skills identified by standards
•Lessons emphasize inquiry and build problem solving skills
•Assessment is a varied, on-going process, designed to evaluate both student progress and teacher effectiveness.

Presenters:Stacy Barnette, Lead Teacher, and Tracey Carson, Kimberly Hayes and Jody Stewart, Teachers, Madison Creek Elementary School, Tennessee.

Session Chair: Mark Minskey, Chief of Staff, Madison County Schools, Alabama.