ABOUT THE PRESENTERS

Dr. Ross Greene

Dr. Greene is currently adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Virginia Tech and adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Science at the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia, after having served on the faculty at Harvard Medical School for over 20 years.

He has also been on the faculty in the Departments of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at University of Massachusetts Medical Center and in the Department of Education at Tufts University. Dr. Greene's non-profit organization - Lives in the Balance – which aims to disseminate the CPS model through free web-based programming and to support and advocate on behalf of behaviorally challenging kids and their parents, teachers, and other caregivers is dear to his heart and is of greater importance to him than his titles.

Dr. Patrick Carney

Dr. Carney is a Fellow of the Canadian Psychological Association, an honour awarded to him in recognition of his outstanding service and contributions to the field of educational psychology. Dr. Carney is a passionate spokesperson and advocate for positive mental health for all students.

His dedication and leadership in this field is reflected in the many roles he has played, including President of the Association of Chief Psychologists with Ontario School Boards and two terms as President of the Canadian Association of School Psychologists.

A Queen’s University grad originally, he obtained his doctorate degree from the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta and has worked for many years as a psychologist in Alberta and then with the Simcoe Muskoka CDSB in Ontario. He has published extensively and provided workshops across Canada and internationally.

Dr. Jac J. W. Andrews

Dr. Jac J.W. Andrews is a Registered Psychologist in the Province of Alberta and is currently a Professor and the Chair of School and Applied Child Psychology at the Werklund School of Education within the University of Calgary.

Over the years, his scholarly/research focus has been with respect to the areas of special (inclusive) education, effective teaching, social skills intervention, psycho-educational assessment and intervention, educational (school) psychology, child and adolescent psychopathology, clinical reasoning in school psychology, and approaches to teaching and learning.

Among his many publications, he has co-authored/edited three textbooks with Judy Lupart entitled The Inclusive Classroom Educating Exceptional Children (1993), The Inclusive Classroom: Educating Exceptional Children: Second Edition (2000) and Diversity Education:Understanding and Addressing Student Diversity (2015) which have all been published by Nelson Canada (Education).

Kimberly Barthel

Kim Barthel is an award-winning occupational therapist, world-renowned speaker, trans-disciplinary teacher and best-selling author, actively supporting function and healing in many cultures. A pioneer in reinforcing the importance of relationship, she is known for blending the science of cutting-edge developments in neurobiology with the art of compassionate inquiry.

With 35+ years as an OT, Kim’s passionate interests include Complex Behaviour, Mental Health, Attachment, Sensory Processing and Trauma-Informed Practice. Kim’s mission is to support the conscious evolution of the human spirit.

Dr. Stuart Shanker

Dr. Stuart Shanker (D.Phil) is a Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Psychology, the CEO of The MEHRIT Centre, Ltd., and founder and Scientific Director of Self-Reg Global Inc. One of his manybooks, “Calm, Alert and Learning: Classroom Strategies for Self-Regulation (2012)”, is a top-selling educational publication in Canada., Self-Reg: How to Help Your Child (and You) Break the Stress Cycle and Successfully Engage With Life (2016),has garnered enthusiastic reviews and media attention throughout North America and has also been published in the UK, the US, Poland, Germany, South Korea, China, The Netherlands, and The Czech Republic. His latest books are Self-Reg Schools: A Handbook for Educators (2019) and Reframed: Self-Reg for a Just Society (2020)

Over the past decade, Dr. Shanker has served as an advisor on early child development to government organizations across Canada and the United States, and in countries around the world. During this period, he became increasingly interested in the impact of excessive stress on child development and behaviour. Dr. Shanker’s five-step Self-Reg model, The Shanker Method®, is a powerful process for understanding and managing stress in children, youth and adults.

In 2012 Dr. Shanker founded The MEHRIT Centre as a Self-Reg learning and information centre. Dr. Shanker commits considerable time to bringing the research and science of Self-Reg to parents, early childhood educators, teachers, educational leaders, health practitioners and communities through presentations, master classes, online courses, webinars, publications, social media and a blog entitled, “The Self-Reg View”.

Follow Dr. Shanker on Twitter: https://twitter.com/StuartShanker

Anna Gillis

Anna Gillis has a Masters Degree in Education with a specialization in Educational Technologies from the University of Calgary and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History from West Virginia University. She is an experienced Instructional Designer and Faculty Trainer of Educational Technologies.

Anna has provided services to Grande Prairie Regional College as a project management to faculty and staff developing courses; including web-based e-learning activities, quick reference guides and tutorials as well as facilitated training sessions, workshops, and presentations; ensuring courses met the Essential Quality Standards.

Anna currently provides services to the faculty of NAIT in addition to private contracting to facilitate, and provide training for Educational Technologies, Zoom, and the Learning Management System, Moodle.

Jason Fehr

Jason is a an internet application developer with extensive experience in online educational tools. Over the past ten years Jason has worked with Grande Prairie Regional College as their e-Learning Specialist. Duties included administering the online learning management system, development of custom learning applications, and training students, faculty, and staff on using these tools for use in online learning environments.

Brigitta Goerres

I have been involved in education for over 30 years. I have had the fortune of starting my career as a classroom teacher with the Elk Island Catholic School District immediately after graduating from the University of Alberta majoring in both English and Social Studies. I continued my career working with the Ministry of Education as an Exam Manager in the Assessment Department and from there worked for a decade as the Executive Director of Curriculum with an educational company developing study tools both print and digital for students, teachers, and parents. Today, I am able to combine my experience and return to classroom setting as an English and Social Studies teacher but to an audience of diversified learners with unique backgrounds and goals as well as I have founded a consulting business to collaborate and share ideas and methods to allow all learners the opportunity to reach their highest level of achievement and to inspire and motivate teachers.

Melissa Purcell

Melissa Purcell is Denesuline and a member of Smith's Landing First Nation in Treaty 8 territory. She is an Executive Staff Officer, Professional Development, Indigenous Education with the Alberta Teachers’ Association and continues to lead Walking Together: Education for Reconciliation within the Association. She has experience teaching in Alberta band, charter and public schools. At the division level with Edmonton Public Schools she held the positions of teacher consultant, program coordinator and supervisor of First Nations, Métis and Inuit education.

Dave Martin

Dave Martin has a Master of Mathematics, a Bachelor's degree in Education, and most importantly a Love for Learning. Throughout his career, he has challenged many traditional educational practices such as homework, tests, and even grading. Currently as a Division Math/Science Lead Teacher, Dave has the opportunity to learn with teachers, and students, from Pre K - Grade 12. You will find Dave tinkering with code, playing with mathematics, or counting by prime numbers.

Renée Michaud

Renée Michaud is a mathematics consultant. She offers training in French and English in Western Canada and beyond. She also presents various sessions at several Alberta Teacher Conferences such as the MPTCA and ACPI. Previously, she worked as a Designer of Professional Learning for the Consortium provincial francophone (CPFPP) and the FrancoSud School Board for 11 years, after many years of teaching math in French immersion schools in Calgary.

Scott Randall

Scott is a high school English teacher and a member of the English Language Arts Council. An avid reader, Scott is also a multi-instrumentalist musician and songwriter.

Catherine Crowe

I am a registered Speech-Language Pathologist with Peace Collaborative Services. I am originally from Ottawa, Ontario, but I completed my Master’s degree at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I am currently living in Peace River, which I love! his year I will be working with Peace River School Division at E.E. Oliver Elementary School, Menno Simons School, Hines Creek Composite School, and Worsley School. I am also working with Holy Family Catholic Regional Division at Glenmary School and Holy Family School.

Holly Crumpton

Holly Crumpton has been an employee of Peace River School Division #10 for the last twelve years. She spent the first ten years as a teacher and the First Nations, Metis and Inuit liaison for Peace River High School. She then spent two years as a learning coach supporting teachers and other instructional leaders as they sought ways to more effectively support the learning of their students.

This is her second year as the First Nations, Metis and Inuit Program Coordinator for PRSD. As a classroom teacher, she primarily taught Aboriginal Studies, ELA, and Math.

Tannis Niziol

Tannis is currently supporting Alberta teachers as a Professional Learning Consultant with the Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium. She recently served as a Curriculum Consultant for the Edmonton Catholic School Division.

Throughout her 30-year career as an educator, in both Edmonton and Winnipeg, Tannis remains passionate about teaching and learning, and the need for explicit literacy apprenticeship at all levels in all subject areas.

Holding a Master's Degree in Secondary Language Arts, Tannis believes all students deserve access to rich, diverse reading experiences and to a safe equitable space to talk about what they see, hear, think and feel. She is on a journey to disrupt and bring clarity to the conversations that drive our planning and assessment practice.

Alicia O'Donnell

Alicia has been teaching high school (9-12) math since 2010. She worked at Hunting Hills High School in Red Deer from 2012-2019 and moved to Grimshaw Public in 2019.

Jimmy Casas

Jimmy served twenty-two years as a school leader. He is a best selling author, speaker, leadership coach, and a state and national award winning principal. Under Jimmy’s leadership, Bettendorf High School was named one of the best high schools in the country three times by Newsweek and U.S. News and World Report. Jimmy was named the 2012 Iowa Principal of the Year and was runner-up NASSP 2013 National Principal of the Year. In 2014, Jimmy was invited to the White House to speak on the Future Ready Pledge.

Finally, in 2015, he received the Bammy Award for the National Principal of the Year.

Richard Van Camp

Richard Van Camp is the best selling and award winning author of 24 books these past 24 years. He lives in Edmonton, Alberta, with his family. His novel, The Lesser Blessed, is now a feature film with First Generation Films and his baby book, Welcome Song for Baby: A Lullaby for Newborns was given out to every newborn baby in British Columbia in 2008, courtesy of the BC Books for Babies Program.

Richard works in just about every genre and he's the Executive Producer for a number of movies including Monkey Beach, Loretta Todd's adaptation of Eden Robinson's bestselling novel that came out in 2000. You can visit Richard on Facebook, Twitter, SoundCloud, Instagram and at www.richardvancamp.com.

Christopher Quattrociocchi

This is my 6th year teaching Jr/Sr High Math and Science in Grimshaw

Daniel Maas

Danny Maas is a Staff Officer with ATA in the area of Professional Development. He was previously the Manager of Educational Technology with Edmonton Catholic School Division and has supported teacher professional development for the past 15 years. Danny brings a passion for evidence-based classroom learning practices that empower students and teachers.

Les Redick

For over 30 years I have taught ADHD and LD students from grades 4 through 12. In addition to my professional experience, I have personal experience as my son, daughter and I have ADHD. This combination of professional and personal experience has given me an excellent perspective on ADHD, executive functioning issues and motivation. I have been speaking professionally on the topic of ADHD for over 15 years. I recently finished my M.Ed. in Education Research with a focus on ADHD through the University of Calgary and I currently work at North Point School teaching Elementary and Junior High Math.

Peter Bowers

Pete Bowers, Ph.D., is a teacher, researcher, author, and founder of WordWorks Literacy Centre. Pete taught Grades 3-6 for 10 years before earning his Ph.D. from the Faculty of Education at Queen’s University.

His research and practical work with schools and educational groups has been pivotal in transforming how teachers, tutors and students around the world understand English spelling. Instead of putting up with a frustrating system full of exceptions, the structured word inquiry (SWI) community understands that investigating the spelling-meaning connections in words is not only rich literacy instruction -- it is a rich context for leveraging learning about any subject. His teacher resource book, Teaching How the Written Word Works expands on the lessons of his vocabulary intervention (Bowers & Kirby, 2010) which found generative vocabulary learning for the experimental group, and introduced the term “structured word inquiry.” His workshops have taken him to Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and North America.

Andrew Bullen

Andrew Bullen teaches Division 4 science classes in PRSD out of Manning. He has been teaching via a blended model in some capacity for 4 years and is in his 6th year of teaching.

Kelly Gibbs

Kelly has spent her educational career supporting students with a variety of needs and supporting staff building instructional strategies. She wanted to know more about how students learn and why they had difficulty learning...so back to school she went!

As a teacher and a Reading Specialist, Kelly holds a Masters degree from the University of Alberta in the area of language and literacy development and specialized assessment. She built her knowledge of UDL through her work at the University of Manitoba. Her work as a Consultant supported teachers in building inclusive practice in all divisions. She has in-depth experience doing professional development, with a focus on instructional strategies and implementation of such strategies. She has taught pre-service teachers at the University of Alberta for the past year. Kelly's joy has been found in supporting staff in the use of research-based strategies that make teaching and learning intentional and meaningful.

David Bouchard

An acclaimed author of children's books, David Bouchard is also a champion of literacy. This former teacher and school principal has written more than 70 books in English, in French and in several Indigenous languages. Many combine poetry, prose and visual arts, and explore topics such as the environment, history and the traditions and cultures of Canada's Indigenous communities.

A storyteller and sought after public speaker, David has traveled across the country to promote the importance and joy of reading and writing. In his presentations to students, , parents and educators, he addresses his own struggles with dyslexia. Proud of his Métis heritage, he is a former president of the Métis Nation of Greater Victoria and continues to serve as a community leader." ~ from the investiture ceremony of the Order of Canada, 2009.

You can access his web page at www.davidbouchard.com

Page updated

Report abuse