To know me is to know my passion for ensuring Educators know and receive evidence based support and practices in their classrooms. My career began at the height of ultimate creative expression and thematic construction, and I honestly don't recall reading the case studies students are now required to read for my college literacy methods courses. At first, I felt robbed of critical information and training, but to wallow in those pits seemed a complete waste of time. At the height of discovering ways to place resources in the hands of my favorite people (teachers), the Dollar General Literacy Grant appeared. My hopes included a train the trainer model for explicit phonics instruction utilizing UFLI Foundations Phonics. If you had told me 3 years ago the grant would result in 95 Instructional Leaders/Coaches/Teachers embarking on a journey to educate multiple educators in their districts (over 1530) plus their peers and additional support staff, with a touch on over 31,000 students to date, I would have instantly shut you down. The biggest bonus is not only the student growth, but the relationships of community established along the way. So many of us look forward to reconnecting and sharing our success stories across districts and providing each other with support and resources. The best times are when they say, "Can you believe the growth?" And then we laugh and celebrate the success of all. Over the course of the last three years of training support & partnerships, Paras & Support Staff have been embraced and included. Instructional Assistants are often overlooked Rockstars deserving of their own time and training to meet the needs they encounter on the daily. I have lost track of the data indicating how many students they are now assisting but the occasional emails of growth are an indication things are going well. It has been a joy to be a part of this ripple of change - and if you are trying to figure it all out yourself, start here with Dr. Holly Lane!
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