Breakout Sessions

2026 Breakout & Featured Sessions

Explore interactive workshops, featured conversations, and innovative learning experiences designed to help educators reflect, regroup, and reimagine education.

Register for the Summit

Wednesday, June 17

9:40–10:30 AM Breakout Sessions

Self-Leadership: How Teachers Reclaim Their Power and Purpose

Presenter: Jermaine Shakespeare
Empower teachers to reclaim their purpose through self-leadership. This session offers practical strategies to shift mindset, lead with intention, and make a greater impact on students and school culture.

Strand: Transformational Leadership and Systems Change

Disrupting the School-to-Prison Pipeline: A Public Health Approach to Equity and Prevention

Presenter: Dr. Pamela Sacks-Lawlar
Using a public health framework, this session examines the epidemiology of the School-to-Prison Pipeline, including root causes, risk factors, and long-term outcomes such as trauma, academic disruption, and reduced life opportunities

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

EconReads: Bringing Economics to Life Through Children’s Literature

Presenter: Ms. Donna Dempsey
EconReads uses children’s literature and hands-on activities to teach K–5 students economics and personal finance. Educators will gain ready-to-use, standards-aligned lessons and strategies to connect literacy with financial learning in engaging ways

Strand: Early Learning Foundations

What Students Carry: Partnering with Families to Support the Whole Child

Presenter: Mrs. Kylah Seabrooks
Explore how to build strong family partnerships, strengthen communication, and create culturally responsive environments that support the whole child. Gain strategies to build trust and strengthen school-home connections.

Strand: Community and Family Partnerships

10:40–11:30 AM Breakout Sessions

Is Your Coaching Program Delivering Results?

Presenter: Dr. Ildi Laczko-Kerr
Unsure whether your instructional coaching is working? This interactive session shows you how to evaluate impact, gather meaningful qualitative and quantitative data, and align coaching to your goals so your investment delivers real results.

Strand: Transformational Leadership and Systems Change

From Misread to Empowered: Seeing the Student Behind the Behavior

Presenter: Dr. LeTron Alexander
This session equips educators and leaders with practical, culturally responsive, trauma-informed
strategies for understanding student behavior and responding in ways that strengthen
connection, engagement, and success.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Unlocking the Joy of Writing: Proven Strategies to Inspire Reluctant Writers

Presenter: Mr. Adam Laningham
Many students struggle with writing as both a skill and an emotional task. This session provides
tools to reduce anxiety, strengthen resilience, and create supportive, process‑centered
classrooms that help all learners grow.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

What Students Carry: Partnering with Families to Support the Whole Child

Presenter: Dr. Bisi Alli
Explore how to build strong family partnerships, strengthen communication, and create culturally
responsive environments that support the whole child. Gain strategies to build trust and
strengthen school-home connections.

Strand: Community and Family Partnerships

1:30–2:20 PM Breakout Sessions
Perception and Perspective: Does Your Reality Need A Reality Check?

Presenter: Prof. Rico McCoy Burton
A fast‑paced session that shows how perception shapes our reality and influences our
interactions and relationships, with practical strategies to reflect, reframe, and reset when
assumptions lead us off track.

Strand: Educator Leadership and Growth

I Am Because We Are: Centering Black Student Voice Through StoryShare

Presenter: Cecilia Abarca & Amaya Ravenell
Step into StoryShare, an interactive literacy model centering student voice through writing and
performance. A replicable model implemented with middle-grade Black students at Utterback
Middle School in partnership with the University of Arizona.

Strand: Collaborative and Student-Centered Learning

The Most Dangerous Word in Education Isn’t Failure. It’s Potential.

Presenter: Dr. Ovett Chapman
“You have so much potential.” We say it all the time. But what if it delays support for Black
students? This session challenges that phrase and gives educators practical tools to change
what students receive now.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Keeping Our Voice: Culturally Responsive Teaching in the AI Era

Presenter: Dr. Ann Williamson
Explore how to use AI to support instruction while preserving culturally responsive teaching,
educator voice, and student identity. This session offers practical strategies to integrate
innovation without losing the human and cultural essence of teaching.
Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement
2:30–3:20 PM Breakout Sessions
Ditch the To-Do List: Build Your To-Be List for Real Impact

Presenter: Ms. Kathi Kulesza
Move beyond the relentless to-do list and discover how intentional, “to-be” leadership
transforms visibility, confidence, and impact. This breakout gives Black educators and aspiring
leaders the frameworks and action steps to lead unapologetically.

Strand: Educator Leadership and Growth

Black Children Deserve More Than Survival: Reimagining Schools as
Places of Belonging, Brilliance, and Liberation

Presenter: Rev LaShauna Austria, Karinda Robuck & Mtende Roll
Black children deserve schools that honor their identity, cultivate their brilliance, and support
their full humanity. This interactive session invites educators, leaders, nonprofit partners, and
community advocates to reflect, regroup, and reimagine

Strand: Transformational Leadership and Systems Change

Keeping Our Voice: Culturally Responsive Teaching in the AI Era

Presenter: Cedric Collins & Berdetta Hodge
The presentation explores key elements of effective partnerships, including open
communication, mutual respect, and cultural responsiveness.

Strand: Community and Family Partnerships

When Students See Themselves: Identity‑Affirming Practices for Success

Presenter: Christopher Blane
Learning begins with students’ lived experiences. This session explores identity‑affirming
practices like storytelling and prior knowledge activation that connect content to reality, build
belonging, and empower all learners to succeed.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Thursday, June 18

9:40–10:30 AM Breakout Sessions

The Seven Silent Barriers: What Disrupts Connection and Communication
and How to Remove It

Presenter: Prof. Rico McCoy Burton
A fast‑paced session that shows how perception shapes our reality and influences our
interactions and relationships, with practical strategies to reflect, reframe, and reset when
assumptions lead us off track.

Strand: Educator Leadership and Growth

Knowledge is Power: Teaching for Instructional Equity

Presenter: Dr. Joyce Jamerson
Liberated living starts with dreaming big and building motivation, skills, & knowledge. Close
literacy gaps with strategic moves and resource audits on cultural depth, knowledge building,
and differentiation to develop skilled readers and leaders!

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Early Identification, Intervention, and Equity: Addressing the Urgent Need for Holistic Support for Young Black Boys

Presenter: Comel Belin, PhD
This presentation examines the urgent need for early identification and intervention for young
Black boys in schools. It explores how behavioral concerns are often misinterpreted, leading to
exclusionary discipline and delayed access to supports.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Building Resilience in Schools: Practical Mental Health Strategies for Teachers and Students

Presenter: Cedric Collins
This presentation provides practical mental health strategies to support the well-being of
teachers and students. Participants will explore techniques for stress management, resilience
building, mindfulness, and creating supportive school environments. The session emphasizes
proactive approaches that promote emotional wellness, improve communication, and strengthen
academic and social success across school communities.

Strand: Community and Family Partnerships

10:40–11:30 AM Breakout Sessions
From Classroom Practice to Instructional Leadership: How Aspiring
Leaders Influence Teaching and Learning

Presenter: Dr. Pamela Chandler
Strong leadership begins with strong teaching. This session explores how educators build
leadership influence through effective instructional practices that increase student engagement,
strengthen collaboration, and support schoolwide improvement.

Strand: Teach to Lead Passages

Together We Rise—The Power of Afrocentric Playlists in Classrooms

Presenter: Alisa Johnson, M.Ed
This presentation explores the value of integrating Afrocentric playlists in the classroom to
cultivate an inclusive, high engagement learning environment that encourages students to rise,
engage critically with lyrics and explore Black excellence.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Regulated Adults, Regulated Classrooms: The Missing Link in Student Behavior

Presenter: Kylah Seabrooks
Create safe, supportive classrooms by strengthening adult regulation. Learn trauma-informed
and restorative strategies to de-escalate behavior, support student well-being, and build a
positive, resilient classroom culture.

Strand: Safety, Health, and Wellness

Rooted in Brilliance: Cultivating Culturally Responsive Classrooms from Early Learning to Leadership

Presenter: Janet Wright-Moore
Start early. Start rooted. Start right. This high-energy session centers culturally responsive
practice as the foundation for excellence. Affirm identity, nurture brilliance, and ensure Black
children and all children thrive from the start.

Strand: Early Learning Foundations

1:30–2:20 PM Breakout Sessions
It’s Not Trendy—It’s Foundational: Building Coherent Leadership Systems
That Turn Vision into Results

Presenter: Racquel Stephenson
Equity isn’t trendy-it’s foundational. Learn how to move beyond initiative overload, align
priorities, and lead with clarity to create culturally responsive, high-impact systems that center
Black student excellence.

Strand: Transformational Leadership and Systems Change

Investing in Their Future

Presenter: Donna Dempsey
Explore how investing using the Stock Market Game builds critical thinking, teamwork, and
financial literacy. Learn to engage students with real-world investing using ready-to-use
resources—no investing experience needed.

Strand: Cultivating Student Gifts and Talents

Literacy as Liberation: Culturally Responsive Literacy for Adolescent Success

Presenter: Dr. Lynn Daniel
Empower adolescent learners with culturally responsive literacy strategies grounded in research
and real classroom practice. Learn high‑impact approaches that build language, affirm identity,
and expand access to academic success.

Strand: Culturally Responsive Practices that Advances Academic Achievement

Beyond the Classroom: Building Community-Centered Schools That Empower Black Students

Presenter: Jermaine Shakespeare
Explore how schools can become community-centered hubs that empower Black students.
Learn practical strategies for family engagement, mentorship, and partnerships that support
student success beyond the classroom.

Strand: Community and Family Partnerships

To Be Seen is To Be Valued

Presenter: Anahi Montelongo Nevarez As a queer, first-gen Latina, I want to share my journey to showcase the power of Black and Brown solidarity. We’ll explore how mutual support inspires youth to believe in their potential,
flourish as learners, and thrive within their community.

Strand: Cultivating Student Gifts and Talents

2:30–3:30 PM Breakout Sessions
Early Learning Collaborative
Featured Session | Presented in Partnership with First Things First

The Early Learning Collaborative is a featured session at the 2026 Annual designed to bring
together PreK–3rd grade educators for meaningful collaborative discussions focused on
strengthening support for young learners during their foundational years.
Facilitated by Dr. Evandra Catherine, researcher and professor at Arizona State University, and
Jevin Hodge, President of Booker T. Washington Child Development & Family Services, this
interactive session will include PreK–3rd grade educators and partners from across Arizona
engaging in collaborative conversations focused on supporting students with diverse
experiences, learning needs, and levels of readiness.
As students begin state testing in 3rd grade, the session is designed to strengthen collaboration
across the early learning continuum and support long-term student success through stronger
instructional, developmental, and family partnerships.
This featured session is intended to elevate educator voice, foster meaningful collaboration, and
help establish an ongoing cohort of educators committed to continued partnership throughout
the school year.

Featured Session: Gifted Education Table Talks — Equity, Advocacy, and Access
Led by Jessica Zimmerman and Zel Fowler

In partnership with Arizona Association for Gifted and Talented, this featured interactive session
brings educators, administrators, specialists, counselors, and advocates together for
collaborative table talk discussions focused on advancing equitable gifted education practices
across Arizona schools.
Participants will explore critical issues impacting gifted and advanced learners, including
equitable identification and access, support for multilingual and English Learner students,
twice-exceptional (2e) learners, culturally responsive practices, and systemic barriers that often
prevent underserved students from fully participating in gifted programming and advanced
learning opportunities.
Through facilitated discussions and shared problem-solving, attendees will reflect on current
challenges, examine policy and practice implications, and help identify strategies to strengthen
advocacy, collaboration, and student-centered support systems for gifted learners from diverse
backgrounds.
Designed to move beyond conversation toward action, this session will also help inform future
collaboration and continued dialogue focused on expanding equity, access, and excellence in
gifted education across Arizona.

Dreamscape Learn Experience

Led by Richard Yarbough

Step into the future of education through an immersive Dreamscape Learn experience designed
to reimagine student engagement, innovation, and access in learning. Participants will explore
how virtual reality and experiential learning are transforming classrooms by allowing students to
journey inside scientific concepts, historical settings, and interactive environments that bring
learning to life.
Attendees will gain insight into how immersive technology can increase student engagement,
expand access to innovative learning opportunities, and inspire students to see themselves as
explorers, creators, and problem-solvers.
This experience reflects the Summit’s commitment to innovation, equity, and expanding what is
possible for students and schools

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