- Monday: Morning Breakout Sessions 10:30am - 11:30am
- Monday: Round Table Sessions 11:30am - 1:00pm
- Monday: Afternoon Breakout Sessions 1:00pm - 2:00pm
- Monday: Afternoon Breakout Sessions 2:00pm - 3:00pm
- Monday: Afternoon Breakout Sessions 4:00pm - 5:00pm
- Tuesday: Morning Breakout Sessions 9:30am - 10:30am
- Tuesday: Morning Breakout Sessions 11:00am - 12:00pm
- Tuesday: Round Table Sessions 12:00pm - 1:15pm
- Tuesday: Afternoon Breakout Sessions: 1:15pm - 2:15pm
- Tuesday: Afternoon Breakout Sessions: 2:30pm - 3:30pm
10:30am - 11:30am
Best Practices in Education
The Service of Mentoring- Building Leaders Among Us
Conference Handout #1 Conference Handout #2
Schools within Great Hearts Academies are implementing a mentoring and student leadership program that shepherds every new student into the school with the guidance of an outstanding upperclassman. This session will explore specific purposes of the student mentoring program and ways the program has built a positive student community. Participants will examine a structural outline for a complete mentoring program including integration points and expectations for faculty and staff. Attendees will also take home a checklist of the resources necessary to start, scale, and sustain a student mentoring program within their schools.
Presenter(s): Robert Wagner and Alison Westerlind, Great Hearts Academies
Discrete Skills Inventory Cholla I
Presentation Pending
Presenter(s): Arizona Department of Education
Five Keys to Unlocking the Alphabetic Code: A Multi-Modal Approach to Beginning Reading Instruction
Conference Presentation Conference Handout
In this session we will explore the evidence-based principles of beginning reading including a strong language foundation; explicit, systematic instruction in the alphabetic code; application of the alphabetic code; integration of all language arts to support and surround reading instruction; immersion in visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile learning experiences; and motivation to establish a culture of joyful reading. Participants will learn about key principles in early reading instruction and the current research that supports them; participate in activities which illustrate these principles; and reflect on and apply these concepts to their own classrooms
Presenter(s): Laura Stewart, Rowland Reading Foundation
Data Driven Decisions
Using Data to Enhance the Quality of Student Learning Palo Verde II
During this session academic leaders will review how to designate data sources, create an assessment calendar, and disaggregate data for the decision making process. Today's call for accountability means educators must validate evidence that shows what they are doing is working. Three major questions will be addressed: Why is a data inventory chart that displays data sources important? Why is an assessment calendar a helpful tool? and How do you use disaggregated data to inform instruction? Participants will receive samples of a data inventory chart that identifies possible data sources, an assessment calendar, and a format of disaggregated data.
Presenter(s): Nancy Clark and Dr. Shirley Stow, Curriculum Alignment Associates
Exceptional Students
Special Education 101 for the Regular Education Teacher
Conference Presentation
The greater percentage of Special Education students are in the regular education classroom at least 80% of the day. Often, teachers do not have the time to provide the necessary support for these students while teaching the regular education students. Regular Education teachers ask, “How do I cover standards? How do I give attention to such a wide range of students? ” This session will offer teachers strategies to take back to their regular education classroom and implement immediately. We will also explain how to organize lessons so that everyone learns, helping teachers increase their effectiveness and reduce stress.
Presenter(s): Deborah Lashley and Laura Newcomb, AcademiCoaches
Financial Management
Strategic Budget Management
Conference Presentation
There are many techniques used in planning and managing budgets. The goal of this session is help schools think about financials holistically. Managing financials is much more than just establishing the federally regulated budget. How does a CFO think? What tools does a CFO use to tackle day to day money management concerns and still maintain financial integrity? These questions and many more will be answered in Strategic Budget Management. Through the seminar, participants will learn how to: develop tools and reporting that will allow them to manage their financials from a total revenue and expense perspective, make informed decisions based on financial results, and understand the benefits of strategic budgeting and financial management.
Presenter(s): Symone Opara, Mitaji Consulting
School Leadership
Tools to target school-wide and individual teacher needs
Conference Presentation Handout 1 Handout 2 Handout 3
Ideal for schools trying to close the achievement gap, this interactive session provides school leaders with training and a set of tools to target school-wide and individual teacher needs. Session attendees will learn how to conduct a school-wide needs assessment, identify evidence and analyze data using the school review toolkit. The tools also highlight specific areas where schools must succeed in order for students to excel.
Presenter(s): Glenn Liebeck, New York City Center for Charter School Excellence
Title II/Highly Qualified Teachers Panel Palo Verde IV
This panel discussion will explain the definition of Highly Qualified in the charter school context, address legal guidelines and reporting requirements and offer tips for growing your own highly qualified teachers. Attendees will also learn the best uses of Title II and other funding sources to improve teacher effectiveness.
Panelists: Jan Amator, Arizona Department of Education, Patricia Hardy, Arizona Department of Education, Kathy Wiebke, Arizona K-12 Center, Maryn Boess, Arizona Board of Regents
Community Outreach and Advocacy
Arizona Advocacy Update
Conference Presentation
Please join the Association’s advocacy team to learn about effective advocacy techniques. Find out how you can make your voice heard and educate legislators about charter schools. Tell the Association’s advocacy team what issues are of most concern to you and hear an update on 2009 legislative changes that could improve Arizona’s charter schools.
Presenter(s): Eileen Sigmund, Arizona Charter Schools Association; Jay Kaprosy, Veridus
Monday: Round Table Sessions
11:30am - 1:00pm
Best Practices in Education
Increasing Focus, Learning, and Motivation through Rhythmic Exercises Cholla I
Desert Marigold School actively engages in holistic, multi-sensory educational practices such as a series of balance, auditory and vision exercises that vary in complexity and are deeply rooted in rhythm. These exercises require full-body coordination and focused attention. Current Brain Research strongly supports the effectiveness of this program and our school has seen and documented significant increases in our students’ ability to focus, academic success and a subsequent growth in overall confidence and self-esteem. We have used this program with Kinder through 8th grade students from significantly handicapped through gifted children with impressive results. Attendees will see a live demonstration of exercises with some of our students which will be followed by active participation where attendees will be working with bean bags and balls to learn some of the fundamental Bal-A-Vis-X principles, rhythms, patterns and procedures.
Presenter(s): Laura Alvarado-Coady and Deana Douglas, Valley of the Sun Waldorf Education Association
Data Driven Decisions
Diagnosing and Providing Interventions for Reading Skill Deficits Palo Verde I
Accuracy and fluency are two foundational skills for being a successful reader. The session will provide information to determine whether or not a child is an accurate and fluent reader. If deficits are determined, participants will learn how to diagnose the specific needs and focus the intervention on those needs to increase individual student growth. Attendees will take home an Error Pattern Analysis worksheet for data analysis in their own schools.
Presenter(s): Diane Merkel, 95 Percent Group
Classroom Management
When Students Learn More, Test Scores Soar Cholla II
This workshop provides 11 specific teaching strategies that should be in every lesson so you can successfully teach all students grade-level work every day. The presentation is not just theory but focuses on nuts and bolts practices in real classrooms. Attendees will learn lesson design and delivery techniques that will improve the effectiveness of instruction in the classroom and be able to identify what effective instructional techniques look like when implemented in the classroom. In addition, they will be able to provide meaningful support to others to help students learn more and learn faster.
Presenter(s): Gordon Carlson and John Hollingsworth, DataWORKS Educational Research Inc.
Financial Management
Planning Guides for Implementing Educational Software Palo Verde II
Planning a technology implementation or upgrade? Attend this session to learn more about a Successful Implementation Plan, receive Implementation Planning Guides, understand how to monitoring student progress, and assign roles and responsibilities. These techniques are broadly valuable and can be used with any educational software.
Presenter(s): Josh Leitz, Backbone Communications
School Leadership
In the Beginning... We Created a Charter School Network
Conference Presentation
Arizona State University has created a model for improving public education by the creation of University Public Schools. The goal of University Public Schools is to establish charter schools, and partner with existing charter schools, to test best practices and educational innovations. Once proven worthy, ASU will share the successes with all schools in Arizona via a virtual innovation interchange center. This session will focus on how this initiative began and the many lessons we have learned in creating this new model of a charter school network.
Presenter(s): Sue Henderson and Larry Pieratt, Arizona State University
Shared Decision Making – Imagine Schools’ Joy at Work Philosophy
Conference Presentation
In this round table discussion you will hear how Imagine School leaders have created fun and successful schools by using the Joy at Work philosophy. The “fun” value requires extraordinary decentralization of decision making to teachers, staff and students to create a joy-filled school. Imagine Schools believes the key to an exciting, fulfilling environment is creating a place where all participants can be involved in education, economic and administrative decisions and take responsibility for the results. Come and learn how you can have Joy at Work.
Presenter(s): Monte Lange, Jason Archuleta, Heidi Schloesser, Freddie Villalon, Imagine Schools
1:00pm - 2:00pm
Best Practices in Education
Helping your ELL learn English with Manipulative Visual Language Ironwood
Manipulative Visual Language (MVL) is an innovative tool designed to help children master the English language. MVL presents the rules of grammar visually, enabling students to see, touch, and manipulate parts of speech using colorful, appealing shapes made of wood or plastic. It is a tool to assist teachers in presenting the parts of speech as taught in conjunction with whatever curriculum is in use in the school. MVL can also be used to represent the parts of speech in other languages, making it easier for students of foreign languages to see the similarities and differences in structure between their first and second languages.
Presenter(s): Dr. Angel Ramos, Sequoia School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Jimmy Gore, Gallaudet University
Do We Teach Students Inferior Reading Strategies and Expect Them to Become Superior Readers? Ocotillo
This presentation will help attendees (a) understand the causes and complexities of ineffective strategies and (b) provide practical help to teach skills necessary for successful decoding and reading comprehension based on systematic, synthetic methods recommended by The National Reading Panel. Learn ways for all teachers of all subjects at all grade levels to use systematic and synthetic phonics instruction using quick and efficient strategies to diagnose and correct problems related to decoding and encoding.
Presenter(s): Pat Doran, M.Ed., Rio Salado College
Data Driven Decisions
Success Measured: Teachers Who Take Responsibility for the End Result
Conference Presentation
As a teacher you have access to a plethora of student data, but what do you do next to help each child master the material and grow as a young person? Learn strategies displayed by some of the best schools in the state to leverage data in making strong child-centered decisions - and it's not always test score data!
Presenter(s): Rebecca Gau, Vice President for Research and School Quality, Arizona Charter Schools Association
Classroom Management
Learning Environments that Empower Both Students & Teachers
Conference Presentation
In this session, you'll discover how your classroom and school environments empower students to achieve their best. The four components of environment (physical, social, emotional, academic) will be explored. Attendees will leave this session with strategies to: balance academic and social components; teach "positive talk"; and institute an acknowledgment program. If you're ready to provide an environment that meets the academic, physical, social and emotional needs of your students, this session is for you!
Presenter(s): Susan Simon, Desert Star Community School
Financial Management
New Auditing Standards and How They Impact You Desert Bloom Casita
Attendees will leave the session with a general understanding of how to compile and prepare financial statements in order to comply with the new SAS 112 Requirement. The presenters will introduce an overview of the Heinfeld, Meech & Co., P.C. interpretation of SAS 112. Attendees will receive a checklist for compiling the financial statements, review the checklist during the presentation and learn tips about which items they will need to prepare in order to support their financial statements. Attendees will also benefit from a discussion of internal controls over financial reporting, including best practice scenarios for small to large charter schools.
Presenter(s): Heather Jones, Heinfeld Meech & Co.
Regulatory and Compliance
Balancing the Interests of Your Employee, Your School, and the Law Palo Verde II
This session focuses on winning strategies to manage employee overtime and discrimination issues. Learn why an employee's title does not determine overtime pay. Recognize the difference between a reasonable disability accommodation and an unnecessary or impossible request. Finally, understand how good intentions can lead to claims of racial or national origin discrimination.
Presenter(s): Jill Osborne, Udall, Shumway, & Lyons
School Leadership
Answers to Top Five Most Frequently Asked Questions… With Anonymous Q&A on Questions You Have But Are Too Afraid to Ask Cholla I
Meet with staff from the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools and find out background information and answers to frequently asked questions. Get your toughest questions answered through a live Q&A forum where attendees will have the opportunity to submit question cards to presenters throughout the session.
Presenter(s): DeAnna Rowe and Martha Morgan, Arizona State Board for Charter Schools
Community Outreach and Advocacy
Marketing 101: Designing Your Brand & Creating Demand
Conference Presentation
This interactive session will walk you through steps for developing a strong school message, provide strategies for building an effective student recruitment program, and share proven best practices in community outreach and grassroots marketing to help you fill your classrooms to maximum capacity. Hear from local leaders whose innovative ideas have generated dynamic student growth and long term sustainability for their schools.
Presenter(s): Andrea Plucker
2:00pm - 3:00pm
Best Practices in Education
Classroom Engagement Measures: Detailed observational tools to use when observing your own and each other’s teaching
Handout 1 Handout 2 Handout 3
Systematically evaluate your students’ behavior and achievement by understanding certain actions that occur in the classroom. For example, how do you assess student engagement, adapt your teaching strategies, and measure improvement? How can you ensure that your students come ready and prepared for class? This session will provide detailed observational tools that teachers can use in peer observations to strengthen various teaching strategies.
Presenter(s): Glenn Liebeck, New York City center for Charter School Excellence
Trouble Spots in Math Ironwood
This entertaining and enlightening session is designed to stimulate thinking, relative to several of the traditional “trouble spots” in math. Topics discussed may include “Division of Fractions” (using that mindless rule), “Equations and Inequalities” (an inquiry approach), “Percent” (using logic, not tricks), “Problem-Solving” (critical thinking skills), or others as suggested by the audience.
Presenter(s): Tom Clark, VideoText Interactive
Classroom Management
Cat-a-pults, Bezoars and More! Cholla I
Whether you are teaching about ancient civilizations, photosynthesis or how to write a story, it is a daily challenge to engage and motivate your students. In this hands-on, interdisciplinary session, we will use intriguing objects, toys and tools to explore ways to engage your students, assess prior knowledge and build inquiry skills. This session is appropriate for teachers of all grades and subjects.
Presenter(s): Dianne McKee, Arizona Science Center
Financial Management
Best Practices in Business Policies and Procedures Cholla II
Policies & Procedures aren’t dirty words. This session will explain the difference between a policy and a procedure, and outline examples of both that have helped Great Hearts Academies improve business practices. The session will also outline why it is vitally important that procedures are established and illustrate how well-defined procedures with proper policies will lead to a structured environment, efficient operation, and greater employee effectiveness.
Presenter(s): Doug Alf and Kelly Snyder, Great Hearts Academies
School Leadership
Meaningful Job-Embedded Professional Development Palo Verde III
Imagine Schools at Cortez Park has implemented an innovative and effective professional learning community. In this session, we will discuss how we have made the journey from unplanned, one shot in-services relatively unrelated to student achievement, to brighter days of focused, data-driven professional learning that clearly impact student growth. The umbrella of Professional Development Learning Academy (PDLA) has clarified the purpose of using data-driven instruction to minimize the gap between data collection and utilization of the information to guide collegial collaboration. This discussion will focus on the importance of developing a historical perspective of the school, using data in developing SMART goals to drive instruction, and tools and techniques that will help keep faculty focused on the established goals.
Presenter(s): Jeniffer Skoczen- 2nd grade ELD, Kathy Troutman-Media Center/Reading Specialist, Cathy Scovil-3rd grade, Paul Woodhull- Technology Lab, Carla Hughes-Middle School Math, and Heidi Koski-2nd grade.
Conference Presentation
This session presents a case study of one area high school. Frustrated from the persistence of the achievement gap in the AP English program at an urban High School (despite recruitment and campaign efforts) the English department looked to a systemic change to help narrow the gap and revive a program. The goal of this de-tracking initiative was to determine if a change in the structure of the program would produce the desired results. Attendees will learn about de-tracking and its implications. This could help them make systemic and instructional decisions to decrease the achievement gap at their schools.
Presenter(s): Dr. Kimberly LaPrade, Grand Canyon University
The Structure for a Successful Core Knowledge Charter School Ocotillo
Interested in building or enhancing a Core Knowledge school? Walk through four structural elements of a successful Core Knowledge school including:
1. Organizational Structure
2. The Academic Structure
3. The Accountability Structure
4. The School Climate & Community
Don’t miss this informative session and live Q&A with two of Arizona’s nationally recognized charter school leaders, Greg and Pam Miller, founders of Blue Ribbon Award-winning Challenge Charter School.
Presenter(s): Greg and Pam Miller, Challenge Charter School
Community Outreach and Advocacy
Getting Policy and Politics to Align: Charter Schools and Their Impact
Conference Presentation Handout
With over 4,000 charters across the country, the charter school community can have a powerful voice. Hear from national experts on how they have utilized this voice, engaging in advocacy efforts to enact legislative change, and learn about current initiatives that impact you.
4:00pm - 5:00pm
Best Practices in Education
Sensory Connections in the Classroom
Conference Presentation
Sensory connections build the foundation of interactions necessary to achieve quality and success in school and in life. Learn the importance of early brain development and how to design opportunities for true learning that occurs when multi-sensory experiences, ideas, and activities create emotionally-based responses to stimulation within the environment.
Presenter(s): Lori Dixon, Performance Learning Systems
I am not a poet: Reaching and empowering the chronically unsuccessful student… with free verse
Conference Handout
Learn how to take the pressure off writing and build and feed an enthusiastic, creative atmosphere that transforms students and effects improvement in the rest of their work. Initial inductive teaching strategies allow teachers and students to entirely skip the refusal/denial stage students often get stuck in when faced with poetry, and to move directly to a notably more useful stage: being the master of the language. Experiencing success here - for every student - translates immediately across all written genres, improving student scores on AIMS Writing assessments and the AZ State 6 Trait Writing Rubrics, with emphasis on voice, word choice and the ever-elusive sentence fluency.
Presenter(s): Eleanor Morel, ACP Charter High School
Growth by Design: A guide for planning the future of your charter school Palo Verde I
We will present an interactive seminar to inform and discuss planning for charter school growth and expansion. Discussions will cover such operational categories as governance, finances, marketing, facilities, and regulation. We will facilitate discussions related to developing goals, objectives, and growth plans using participant input and specific case studies. Participants will be exposed to the various topics related to growth planning, will develop rudimentary goals/ planning worksheet, and will take away a general guide to growth planning.
Presenter(s): Terry Warren and Tracy Banker, Warren & Banker, PLC.
Exceptional Students
I Can Modify! Cholla I
Some of the biggest challenges in the classroom are modifying assignments and making appropriate accommodations for the students with special needs. Whether you are a general education teacher, a special education teacher, or an instructional assistant, this session will provide you with hands-on activities, specific tools, and creative strategies to turn standard-based, grade-level instruction and assignments into relevant material for your students with disabilities. Feel free to bring assignments you would like to use as examples or simply join our team of special educators as we empower you to know that “You Can Modify”.
Presenter(s): Judy Belkis, STEPS
Financial Management
Arizona State Retirement System Programs
Handout 1 Handout 2 Handout 3
Hear an overview of the benefits and qualifications of ASRS membership and understand ASRS member employer responsibilities. This session will cover reporting requirements, definition of compensation and membership and other benefits available. Attendees will learn more about retirement benefit calculation, leaving employment prior to retirement, service purchase and survivor benefits and discuss a comparison of Defined Benefit (ASRS) plans and Defined Contribution (401k) plans.
Presenter(s): Mark Muraoka, Arizona State Retirement System
Prop 301 Funds: There’s a Hole in the Bucket
Ever think you were in compliance with Classroom Site Fund only to learn from your auditor that you are not? This session will delve into the details behind properly accounting for your proposition 301 funds so that there are no more surprises. If your aim is to obtain “yes” answers to all the Classroom Site Fund questions on the Compliance Questionnaire, this is the class for you!
Presenter(s): Michele Diamond, Diamond Financial Solutions
Regulatory and Compliance
Let's Fight for Inquiry Science Teaching and Learning! Palo Verde III
Help your students excel beyond their standardized tests; teach critical thinking. This session will offer teachers many curriculum ideas for integrating inquiry investigations in both arts and sciences that will prepare students for their tomorrow.
Success starts with a school leader - and for charter schools, the school leader's longevity and flexibility are key to a healthy school climate and culture. Learn the key characteristics of highly effective charter school leaders, and specific examples and suggestions for how to become a Leader with a Purpose.
Presenter(s): James Manley, Northern Arizona University
School Leadership
Success Measured: A Leader With a Purpose
Presenter(s): Rebecca Gau, Arizona Charter Schools Association
Recruiting and Hiring Highly Effective Teachers Panel Palo Verde IV
Learn the secrets of leaders who have recruited and built talented and diverse teams. From recruiting reservoirs of choice to interesting interview questions to red flags you should avoid, this session will offer valuable insight into the art of recruiting and hiring successfully.
Presenter(s): Dr. Peter Bezanson, Great Hearts Academies; Margo O’Neill, Villa Montessori; Pam and Greg Miller, Challenge Charter School
Back To Top
Tuesday: Morning Breakout Session
9:30am - 10:30am
Best Practices in Education
Engaging Gifted and Advanced Learners in the Classroom: Practical Instructional Strategies Palo Verde I
Learn practical instructional methods, processes, and procedures to engage all learners – particularly your gifted and advanced learners. Taken together, these strategies will lead to qualitative improvements in the ability of your students to think critically, creatively, and problem-solve – skills crucial for both academic success and lifelong learning. Participants will:
· Raise their expectations for achievement and future outcomes for all learners through capitalizing on their strengths and potential;
· Become talent scouts for actively identifying talent and potential in all learners;
· Engage in practical and engaging instructional activities, and receive templates and strategies to assist in differentiating instruction;
· Become champions for providing access to rigorous, challenging, and relevant curriculum for all learners
Presenter(s): Peter C. Laing, Arizona Dept. of Education; Jaime A. Castellano, Ed.D., Arizona Dept. of Education
Success Measured: The Montessori Model
Conference Presentation
Learn from Khalsa Montessori School, one of the top three schools recognized to Success Measured research, about the Montessori model and its impact on individual student growth. The session will discuss the Montessori perspective of the classroom triad: the child, the teacher, and the environment; as well as examine the principles and rationale of a Montessori classroom: freedom, structure, order, nature and reality, hands-on materials, and community life. We will also discuss Montessori’s planes of development; the integrated cultural curriculum; and how the laws of work, independence, attention, will, imagination, and spiritual life manifest within multi-age classrooms. In addition, participants will learn how our school aligns Montessori curriculum to state academic standards.
Presenter(s): Khalsa Montessori Elementary School
Data Driven Decisions
Mapping Your Curriculum to Support Data Driven Decisions Palo Verde II
This interactive workshop will show how schools worldwide are using the curriculum mapping process to engage teachers in professional learning communities to look at curriculum data. The session will cover how to review the taught curriculum, assessed curriculum, alignment to standards, and scope and sequence. Participants will work in small groups and take away handouts on the key steps to implementing mapping, a checklist of how to form professional learning communities to review and discuss curriculum and sample learning logs. The workshop will draw on examples for charter and other schools around the country. Participants will leave with a plan for key steps in implementing curriculum mapping in their schools.
Presenter(s): Janet Burreson, Rubicon International
Exceptional Students
Getting to Know Students with Special Needs Cholla I
Participants will experience a variety of disability awareness simulations. For a brief moment they will experience the feelings of frustration, anxiety, and tension that often times accompany a child with disabilities. Strategies and tools to help students alleviate these feelings will be discussed and hand outs provided for participants. A brief description of the 13 IDEA disabilities (characteristics, causes and effects) will also be provided. Participants will gain a clearer understanding of the learning obstacles that children with special needs must overcome, and what teachers can do to create a safe and comfortable learning environment for ALL students.
Presenter(s): Beth Hoffman, Rio Salado College
Financial Management
Leave No Dollar Behind: Maximizing Participation in NCLB Programs
Conference Presentation Handout 1
Maximizing participation in NCLB programs can be a challenge for charter school leaders, considering all the other responsibilities they hold. Learn about all the NCLB programs, uses of funds, and ways to maximize their impact for your school.
Presenter(s): Michelle Doyle, Catapult Learning
Board Governance
Best Practices in Charter School Board Governance
Conference Presentation
Regardless of the charter school's organizational structure, all charter schools must have a Governing Board that is responsible for policy decisions for the school. We will look at board structures (and potential legal issues related to those structures), by-laws and policies that will assist in effective board governance, defining and dividing tasks among board members to enhance decision-making processes, and ensuring compliance with the charter contract, and Open Meeting Law.
Presenter(s): Deanna Rader and Ellis Carter, Fennemore Craig
School Leadership
Building Leadership Capacity Palo Verde III
Teachers, Administrators, and Teacher Leaders will learn how self-actualization will enhance the development of leadership capacity and style. The research of Linda Lambert will be sharted including an assessment and a logical plan for enhancing leadership capacity in yourself and others. This interactive seminar will include strategies for understanding the most important elements of leadership as well as a discussion of what leadership is not.
Presenter(s): Marie Grey, Learning Keys
Introducing Critical Friends Groups as a Teacher Support Community Palo Verde IV
The mission of the Salt River Critical Friends Group is to provide a framework for collaborative and reflective teaching in order to impact student learning. Critical Friends Groups (CFG) is characterized by: an active communication structure, the de-privatization of practice, a spirit of shared responsibility and mutual support for the learning of all students. First developed by the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University, the CFG process focuses on developing collegial relationships and encouraging reflective practice. This session will focus on 1) How a CFG works, 2) The Power of Protocols, and 3) Some of the bumps and successes experienced the first year at Salt River High School.
Presenter(s): Susan Cameron, Salt River High School
Community Outreach and Advocacy
Communicating about Charters with the News Media Desert Bloom
In this session, we will go over the basics to garnering positive PR for a school. We will also talk about how to react to negative stories in the media. Attendees will gain the following from the session: 1. Pitching the media 2. Crisis Communications and reacting to negative press 3. How to draft a press release 4. Dealing with the media.
11:00am - 12:00pm
Best Practices in Education
Building a Dynamic Kindergarten
Conference Presentation
Many kindergarten teachers work hard to provide an active, dynamic learning environment for their students. But while many students are doing several worksheets every day, they are not often building knowledge and vocabulary through in-depth studies of real and meaningful subjects such as the human body, the animal kingdom, geography, and US history. Attendees will assess their own practices to determine their actual worksheet use, length of studies and use of themes, etc. Attendees will reflect together as a mini-learning community on their practices and goals and share ideas and resources. Research recommendations and ideas for standards-driven, hands-on activities that focus on meaningful science and social studies will be presented.
Presenter(s): Dana Dellinger, Imagine Schools at Rosefield
BASIS Schools: Creating a Culture of Student Accountability
One of the primary elements in building a successful school is cultivating assets within the students that make them successful individuals. This session will outline how BASIS strives to cultivate self-reliance among students as early as 5th grade. The goal is not to simply make students responsible for knowing certain information, but to make them responsible and accountable for their own education.
Presenter(s): Dr. Michael Block, BASIS Schools
Mathematical Problem Solving – (An Inquiry-Based Approach) Ironwood
In this workshop, you will learn how to teach the five analysis-questions that must be asked to solve algebraic reasoning problems. The correct answers to these questions are guaranteed to lead students to the relation (equation or inequality) they must solve in order to find the answer to the problem.
Presenter(s): Tom Clark, VideoText Interactive
Data Driven Decisions
Individualized Education Plans for all students
Conference Presentation
This presentation will provide school administrators and teachers with practical techniques for implementing data driven instruction. It has never been as important as now to provide quality, individualized instruction so schools and students can meet state and national standards. Gathering data is generally not difficult but many educators struggle with how to use the data they collect in order to improve instructional practices and interventions for their learners. Creating a truly data-driven instructional program necessitates the examination of existing programs and curriculum in order to determine individual and overall effectiveness. Attendees will learn: 1) The ingredients necessary to craft meaningful Individualized Education Plans for each of their students 2)How to create a quality master schedule that meets the needs of all students 3) Proven intervention strategies that will maximize student success and achievement.
Presenter(s): Kerry Clark, South Ridge High School
Exceptional Students
I Can Modify! Palo Verde II
Some of the biggest challenges in the classroom are modifying assignments and making appropriate accommodations for the students with special needs. Whether you are a general education teacher, a special education teacher, or an instructional assistant, this session will provide you with hands-on activities, specific tools, and creative strategies to turn standard-based, grade-level instruction and assignments into relevant material for your students with disabilities. Feel free to bring assignments you would like to use as examples or simply join our team of special educators as we empower you to know that “You Can Modify”.
Presenter(s): Judy Belkis, STEPS
Classroom Management
REACH for Excellence Palo Verde IV
Conference Presentation
Presenter(s): Sue Douglas, Mesa Arts Academy
Financial Management
Facilities Financing Panel: Beating the Credit Crunch Cholla I
The credit crunch has impacted the life of every individual and business in America including charter schools. This session aims to inform the participant about the state of the market and the availability of credit to charter schools for the acquisition and construction of facilities and capital projects and evaluate some alternative funding sources to meet charter school needs. Professionals representing the legal, banking, construction and financing industries will speak to the impact of the credit crunch from their professional perspective and what actions each industry sector is doing to facilitate the growth of the charter movement.
Presenter(s): William Gelm, Buckley King, John Snider, RBC Capital, Pat Tanabe, Wells Fargo, Michele Diamond, Charter Building Fund
Board Governance
The Seven Outs: Strategic Planning Made Easy for Charter Schools Cholla II
Are you tired of writing strategic plans that result in little more than dead trees and an unused three-ring binder? Join national charter schools expert Brian Carpenter for this workshop which is titled after his new book, The Seven Outs. Brian will walk you through an easy to remember strategic planning process that can lead your school to greater achievements. The book on which this workshop is based is the only strategic planning book written exclusively for charter schools and it answers key questions, such as what the board should do, versus what the executive should do. All participants will receive a complimentary deck of 28 cards (an $8 value) which contain the key points of the book and the workshop. You can use the deck to review the key points again and again.
Presenter(s): Brian Carpenter, National Charter Schools Institute
School Leadership
Leading the Leaders: Support for Site-Level Administrators
Conference Presentation
One of the most common concerns among administrators is that they lack support and have no guidance as they work with their teaching staff. This presentation will provide the participants with information to help them address the most critical areas for school level administrators as they work to create the best learning environment for their students. This workshop is designed to help administrators both improve student achievement and maintain the momentum of a successful school.
Presenter(s): Jack Rowe, Phoenix Advantage Charter School
Back To Top
12:00pm - 1:15pm
Stock Market Game: Grades 4-12
The Stock Market Game (SMG)is a comprehensive educational program based on a real-life simulation of the stock market. SMG teaches about the U.S. economic system while reinforcing basic economics, math, business, language arts, social studies, personal finance and more! Students in teams receive a virtual $100,000 to invest in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Student trades take place in real time, just like the actual stock market. SMG has been correlated to the Arizona Standards in 6 core academic subjects for grades 4-12.
Presenter(s): Dr. David Katz, Arizona Council on Economic Education
Middle School Genetics Made Easy, Interesting and Fun?
Conference Presentation
Okay, maybe not easy, but interesting and fun? Definitely. “Joe may have Marfan’s syndrome” is an example of one of the many engaging activities teachers will add to their toolbox. Students are asked to advise Joe after building the concepts of heritability, nature v. nurture, and analyzing pedigree charts of Joe’s family. Join us for this hands-on overview and discover some better methods and materials to teach genetic concepts. Key learning objectives: * Experience an engaging science issue * Become a part of an inquiry experience * Do the science, use the evidence and write the advise to solving the problem.
Presenter(s): Mike Twilling, LabAids
Classroom Management
Learning Environment Matters Palo Verde III
Planning and design factors are critical components of learner- and teacher-centered classrooms. How to achieve the right balance in any learning environment is central to success whether renovating a building or building a new facility. By understanding learning styles, seeing the classroom through the eyes of students becomes much more focused and clear. We will discuss design elements that respond directly to different learning-style strengths and the supporting research, as well as other factors in the physical environment that easily can affect student success, motivation and behavior.
Presenter(s): Molly Smith, ThinkSMART Planning, Inc.
Understanding Financial Reports Cholla II
Have you ever asked “What do all these numbers mean? Why do we spend so much time on finances? How did we get here? What is my Business Manager saying?” This session will address these questions and many more. You will leave with a basic understanding of how your school is funded, the major expenditures, and how these impact your ability to accomplish your mission statement. The session will also help you understand what your roles and responsibilities are as a board member.
Presenter(s): Doug Alf, Great Hearts Academies
School Leadership
If you build it… they will SUCCEED Palo Verde IV
Looking for tangible ideas on how to… Increase AIMS Scores? Decrease dropout rate? Increase graduation rate? Make AYP? Save money by decreasing the number of fifth year seniors? Decrease class size? Minimize credit recovery obstacles? Don’t miss this jam packed 45 minutes presentation! We’ll present an effective, research based and data driven method for running either credit recovery or credit acceleration program at your school. You’ll leave with a written starter plan in hand filled with innovative ideas PLUS you’ll make valuable contacts in this session to help make this type of program work even with limited resources! What makes this seminar so unique? It discusses a different type of curriculum and delivery method that decreases classroom distractions and allows students to move at their own pace through the curriculum. The presenters will discuss maximizing your school resources, capitalizing on school partnerships, and overcoming the David and Goliath like scenario that most schools feel they are up against in the educational world.
Presenter(s): Jennifer Blackstone, Dr. Beth Collins, Marmy Kodras, Blueprint Education
Tuesday: Afternoon Breakout Sessions
1:15pm - 2:15pm
Best Practices in Education
Design and Delivery of Engaging Lessons Cholla I
Presenter(s): Marie Grey, Learning Keys
Socratic Teaching Across the Curriculum Palo Verde II
How is the Socratic Method of instruction distinguished from traditional lecture/presentation in both practice and results? How do we create a classroom environment rich in student/teacher and student/student dialogue, and how does this approach manifest itself across the curriculum – from seminars over literature, history, and philosophy, to high school mathematics and science classrooms? Join us for this panel discussion with representatives from Great Hearts Academies and The Humanities and Sciences Academy who will describe the practice and benefits of Socratic teaching at their schools.
Presenter(s): Kiann Mapes and Reginald Johnson, Great Hearts Academies; Andy Tafoya, The Humanities and Sciences Academy
The Nuts and Bolts of Teaching the 6 Traits of Writing for Instruction
Conference Presentation
The 6 Traits of Writing helps us to prioritize, focus and individualize our writing instruction and supports rich instruction. 6 Traits of Writing complements and enhances writing-reading workshops and writing in the content areas. We show students how writers use the traits in various genres and we make explicit not only the features of good writing, but also the techniques those writers use to craft their messages for audiences. This interactive session, for beginners and experienced teachers of the 6 Traits, will provide an overview of the 6 Traits of Writing as well as offer tips and strategies for teaching each trait to students K-6. A list of books and websites for 6 Traits support will be provided.
Presenter(s): Ardas Wachter-Grene, Rowland Reading Foundation
Classroom Management
Identifying and Breaking Down the 3 Barriers to Learning Palo Verde III
Attendees will learn how to teach under-achieving and under-performing children at any grade level to learn by giving them the strategies for Learning-to-Learn. Three barriers exist in all learning and the child needs to learn how to identify and overcome these barriers. Participants will learn first hand how Learning-to-Learn works and how the strategies can be applied to close the gaps in reading and math deficiencies for each child through individualized instruction in the classroom. Assessments, both pre and post, are included in the handouts.
Presenter(s): Sue Douglas, Mesa Arts Academy
Financial Management
The Triangle of Tension: How Leaders Find the Right Trade-offs to Make Ends Meet Ironwood
This session explores the three largest factors in a charter school’s ability to maintain financial stability—Personnel costs, Facilities Costs and Enrollment Revenue. Most charter school offer smaller class sizes. Unfortunately, smaller class sizes mean lower revenues. At the same time, many charter schools either have to find their own facilities or occupy older facilities with higher-than-average maintenance costs. To complicate matters, charters have to compete with other schools for teachers. This session shows how operators can balance this delicate equation over the short term and for the long haul. For example, how does a charter determine market salary? Is it based on the region, the district, or other charter schools? Should you include private school salaries in the comparison? What is the right amount to invest in a building versus remodeling or repairing a facility? Are there ways to manage the budget and maintain small class sizes? Are class size determined relative to traditional schools or driven by educational philosophy? What happens when you have to compromise? Every charter school lives with the triangle of tension. How can you make the best of it?
Presenter(s): Peter Hilts and Doug Hering, the Classical Academy
Regulatory and Compliance
Arizona’s New Employer Sanctions Law – What You Need to Know
Conference Presentation Handout
The presentation will discuss Arizona's new (Jan. 1, 2008) Employer Sanctions law: a brief history of the law and what led to it; what the law requires of employers; sanctions for non-compliance; how to protect against complaints and what will happen if one is filed against an employer; problems with the law; recent legislative changes to the law (May 1, 2008), and the status of a federal court case challenging the law. This topic always generates a large number of questions, and as a result there is generally a great deal of audience participation.
Presenter(s): Roger Hall, Buckley King
Board Governance
Board Recruitment: Strategies for Identifying and Engaging Effective Board Members Cholla II
Cholla II Wish there was a Match.com™ or e-Harmony™ for finding good board members? Join Ed Roth, of the National Charter Schools Institute, for an interactive and dynamic session where you will learn proven strategies for identifying and interviewing potential candidates. Asking the right questions will help identify the right people to best serve your school – and more importantly your students.
Presenter(s): Ed Roth, National Charter Schools Institute
School Leadership
Success Measured: A Culture That Promotes Teamwork Palo Verde IV
Create the critical infrastructure and pathways to allow your teachers the professional time for collaboration - time that is useful, planned, and self-designed. Learn from the latest Association research findings in Success Measured how globally competitive Arizona charter schools have created dynamic teams within their school community.
Presenter(s): Marcella Gemelli, Ph.D. Associate Director for Research and School Quality, Arizona Charter Schools Association
Technology enabled standards, reporting and interventions Desert Bloom
Using technology which enables the mapping of curriculum and the tagging of assessments to standards and indicators, schools can more efficiently overcome the continuous challenges related to differentiating instruction based on individual student need. By utilizing technology to create real time interventions for students who fall below defined proficiency levels , teachers can efficiently act upon live data and differentiate instruction to better accomplish student mastery of content. This session will talk about best practices, recent advances and effective interventions related to student performance.
Presenter(s): David Zeiler, Provost Systems, an EdisonLearning Company
Community Outreach and Advocacy
Honing Your Media Message… Live from Carefree Suite 4236
This session will offer 20-minute individual training sessions for charter community members to put their media skills into practice and receive coaching from media relations experts. Schedule your session early at the Conference Information Center.
2:30pm - 3:30pm
Best Practices in Education
How to Have a Life After School
Conference Presentation
This workshop is packed with practical tips to help teachers address some of the most vexing issues they face on a daily basis while still maintaining a life outside of school. Learn simple ways to manage a classroom full of students without expending costly amounts of energy, how to get the hundreds of daily chores necessary in every classroom done by someone else, how to collect data easily and what to do with it once it is collected, and how to engage parents in school activities.
Presenter(s): Jack Rowe, Phoenix Advantage Charter School
Data Driven Decisions
Success Measured: A Process For Solving Problems Palo Verde II
As a teacher you have access to a plethora of student data, but what do you do next to help each child master the material and grow as a young person? Learn strategies displayed by some of the best schools in the state to leverage data in making strong child-centered decisions - and it's not always test score data!
Presenter(s): Rebecca Gau, Vice President for Research and School Quality, Arizona Charter Schools Association
Exceptional Students
SPED Regulatory and Compliance Overview
Conference Presentation Handout
This session will provide an overview of Arizona Department of Education’s individualized monitoring system for special education. Participants will learn how performance indicator data impacts the development and focus of their monitoring. This overview will include a description of the monitoring model and the required elements for compliance.
Presenter(s): Barbara Parsons, ADE ESS Program Specialist
Financial Management
Strategic Compensation: Overcoming the Failings of Pure Merit Pay Ironwood
Merit pay systems can be subjective and confusing, but step-and-lane models can reward behaviors that don’t fit your school’s values and goals. There is an emerging wave of second-generation systems that incorporates performance as one part of a strategic, differentiated pay system. The best systems recognize performance, longevity, inflation, value added, market factors, and leadership to create a system where teachers know what they can expect from the school both now and in the future. Students, staff and the school benefit from systems that create transparency for teachers and add value to the school’s mission. Join us for an interactive working session facilitated by veteran school leaders who have developed and implemented innovative salary systems to hire and retain excellent teachers. Participants will apply ten principles by practicing a process they can use to help transition their schools to a strategic compensation model.
Presenter(s): Peter Hilts and Doug Hering, the Classical Academy
Regulatory and Compliance
Charter School Renewal Process Cholla I
State Board for Charter School staff will provide up-to-date information on the development of the renewal process. Topics to be covered include historical compliance - what the data tells us, the renewal application - who submits what and when, and renewal application criteria.
Presenter(s): Martha Morgan and DeAnna Rowe, Arizona State Board for Charter Schools
Board Governance
The Five Dysfunctions of Charter School Boards Cholla II
Ever spend an hour in a board meeting talking about paint colors for new classrooms or grass cutting services? Former superintendent and charter school board member, Brian Carpenter has. As the CEO of the National Charter Schools Institute, Brian is on a crusade to end this kind of board dysfunction in charter schools. You’ll be challenged to improve your board leadership while laughing at real examples of boards aspiring to new heights of mediocrity. As a nationally known governance consultant and author, Brian works with charter schools across the country in strengthening their governance capacity. A free eight-page monograph is included with the workshop.
Presenter(s): Brian Carpenter, National Charter Schools Institute
Modeling Instruction: An Innovative Approach That Engages Students and Raises Test Scores Palo Verde IV
Modeling Instruction assists students in understanding the physical world by constructing and using scientific models to describe, to explain, to predict and to control physical phenomena. The teacher sets the stage for student activities, typically with a demonstration and class discussion, to establish common understanding of a question to be asked of nature. Then, in small groups, students collaborate in planning and conducting experiments to answer or clarify the question. Learn how to establish a discourse community that allows you, as the facilitator, a chance to listen to the conceptual awareness of your students and guide them by utilizing basic conceptual tools.
Presenter(s): Rosanne Magarelli and Jane Jackson, Arizona State University
Community Outreach and Advocacy
Honing Your Media Message… Live from Carefree
Conference Presentation
This session will offer 20-minute individual training sessions, scheduled in advance, for charter community members to put their media skills into practice and receive coaching from media relations experts.
Presenter(s): Gary Larson, Larson Communications, Stephanie Grisham, Arizona Charter Schools Association
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