Courtney Watson

Lead Learning Guide

friEdTech

With decades of experience in education and an innovative mindset, Courtney has served in a variety of middle and high school positions, including serving as an English teacher and College Career Readiness educator. She has always supported teachers with their #edtech needs in the classroom, even before she became an instructional technologist. Courtney’s knowledge of Google and Wakelet tools has helped support her passion to impact teachers and students by creating tech environments that encourage continuous growth and improvement. She lives by the motto: #TechWithoutTears.

Courtney is a Google Level 1 & Level 2 Certified Educator and a Google Certified Trainer. She is also a Microsoft Certified Educator and Newsela Certified Educator.

Daniel Townsend

National Curriculum and Imagine Math Expert

Imagine Learning

Danny Townsend spent 11 years working in public education before joining the Imagine Learning team in 2018. For the last 3 years he worked as a Success Manager in Michigan supporting implementations across the State. Now, he is able to bring his deep product knowledge to the rest of the country as the newest member of the National Curriculum Expert Team.

Erin Keefe

Project Coordinator, Learning Services

Instructure

I've worked for Instructure for six years in the Learning Services department. I currently serve as the Project Coordinator for Learning Services, overseeing the Canvas Certified Educator program, which I helped author. Prior to my time here, I spent 18 years in public school education - brick and mortar, online, and school administration. I love adopting animals, vacationing by the water, and college basketball.

Jen Dwight

Regional Director, Analytics

Instructure

I have been part of K-12 Analytics for 10 ten years and most recently part of the Instructure Elevate Data Analytics team. Instructure believes by having all student relevant data in one place, with an easy visualization tool, it enables districts to focus on student outcomes rather than relying on spreadsheets.

Jessica McAndrews

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

Jessica McAndrews is a Digital Learning Coach with the Mississippi Department of Education. Prior to her role as a DLC, she was a classroom teacher for 10 years. She has always been passionate about implementing technology into her classroom, and when a coach position became available, she applied. Now, she can share her passion for using technology to enhance the education experience for students with others.

Jessica Powell-Albright

Lead Learning Guide

friEdTech

Jessica spent the first eight years of her classroom career wrangling middle schoolers (just kidding, she taught just English) before becoming a District Instructional Technology Specialist. She has an affinity for app-smashing and is always looking for creative ways to use the tech tools we all know and love. Jessica is skilled in the art of “hype” at conferences and events. She can plan a huge event, present, run a booth, and she excels at just about anything event related! Jessica also has a strong passion for justice, which means she’s always working to affect positive change for students and educators. She spent several years advocating for policy change at the federal, state, and local levels.

Jessica is a Google Level 1 & Level 2 Certified Educator, Google Certified Innovator, and a Google Certified Trainer. She is also a Newsela Certified Educator.

John Eaton

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

I am a Digital Learning Coach with the Department of Education. I have been in education for 14 years 13 of those years, I was a classroom teacher. Over the past several years, the acquisition of various certifications in technology and digital tools has allowed for better practices and methods in a "boots on the ground" approach. I always look forward to applying those skills and helping others reach their potential in the classroom.

LaShana Middleton

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

LaShana Middleton has 20 years of classroom experience with Reading, ELA, Social Studies, and Gifted Education. As an elementary educator, her priority is to make the content relevant in order to reach the learner and accommodate his/her needs. As a Social Emotional Advocate, she feels that Digital Learning fosters supportive learning environments that can build equity as well as enhance diversity and inclusion.

Lindsey Dickerson

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

I am a Digital Learning Coach with the Department of Education. I have been in education for 11 years 10 of those years, I was a classroom teacher. I am Google for Education Level 1 and Level 2 certified.

Melissa Quinn

Educational Specialist

News-O-Matic

My name is Melissa Quinn and I've been an elementary educator for over 11 years. I earned my M.Ed. in Literacy at The Citadel in Charleston, SC and I am currently the Educational Specialist for News-O-Matic.

Melissa Summerford

Lead Learning Guide

friEdTech

Melissa started her long career in education as an Elementary educator who is passionate about her work bringing technology integration to EC-4 educators. Melissa is a Google Certified Educator, Trainer and Innovator. She has been an active member of the Texas Google Educator Group (GEG) and currently serves as a leader in GEG Global, an educator group of Google Certified Educators and Trainers worldwide. Melissa is always looking for ways to innovate and improve her practices, and she believes that it takes a team to build success. Melissa’s a perfectionist and strives to be a servant leader who inspires others.

Melissa is a Google Level 1 & Level 2 Certified Educator, Google Certified Innovator, and a Google Certified Trainer. She is also a Microsoft Certified Educator and Newsela Certified Educator.

Michelle Walker Talley

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

Michelle has been teaching at the elementary and middle school level for 24 years. Her passion for integrating technology in the classroom led her to become and Instructional Technology Specialist with the Mississippi Department of Education. She is currently in the dissertation phase of the educational leadership doctoral program at Belhaven University.

Morgan Jones

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

A Digital Learning Coach with certifications in Google, Microsoft Education, Nearpod, Flipgrid, as well as a host of other certifications. Licensed in the state as a Class AA for Mild/Moderate in Special Education. Prior presentation experience in presenting at MECA 2022 on Microsoft OneNote Class Notebook.

Regina Erwin

Professional Learning Facilitator

Discovery Education

Regina Erwin is a professional learning facilitator with Discovery Education. She is a native Austinite who began her career in public education at the turn of the century as an elementary school teacher and instructional technology specialist before joining Discovery Education in 2016. Regina is honored to have been a participant in the Toyota Tapestry Grant for Achieving Literacy Through Science Inquiry. She has been an integral part of several committees throughout her professional career, focused on helping develop interdisciplinary science instructional modules and long-range technology deployment plans. In addition to her extensive background with technology integration, Regina is passionate about inquiry-based learning and STEM instruction. She excels in helping people take their next steps - wherever they are on their journey.

Shannon Griffin

Digital Learning Coach

Mississippi Department of Education

Shannon is a Digital Learning Coach with the Mississippi Department of Education. As a former teacher, with nine years of classroom experience, she holds multiple teaching endorsements, including Business & Computer Technology, SREB Literacy Ready, and English. Being certified as a Microsoft Innovative Educator reminds her to look for sparks in student learning.

Tommy Cucchiara

Strategic Partnerships Manager

HOMER Learn & Grow

Hello! I'm Tommy, I handle our partnerships here at BEGiN (HOMER's parent company). It's been exciting launching HOMER for Mississippi over the past few months, and I'm thrilled for the opportunity to present and discuss HOMER Learn & Grow live and in-person. My background is in business development, working on partnerships in the newspaper and book retail spaces before BEGiN. In other words, I've always loved working with readers- and now I get to focus on some of the youngest!