The Speakers
FEATURED SPEAKERS
Dr. Erica Buchanan-Rivera
Erica Buchanan-Rivera is a director of equity and inclusion a Pre-K–12 district in Indiana. She has served as a teacher, assistant principal, principal of an international magnet school, director of curriculum, and adjunct professor. Dr. EBR is the author of Identity Affirming Classrooms: Spaces that Center Humanity.
Jay Coles
JAY COLES loved books since he was a little kid. He’s now a graduate of both Vincennes University and Ball State University where he studied English and Liberal Arts. Jay currently resides in Muncie, Indiana. His books include TYLER JOHNSON WAS HERE and THINGS WE COULDN’T SAY.
Indiana Children's Authors
The Indiana Authors Awards honor the best books written by Hoosier authors in multiple categories every two years—books that build on the state’s bedrock of literary tradition and provide a vast mine of material for Indiana Humanities’ rich literary programming.
Rebecca Mullin
Rebecca Mullin is an avid gardener, bookseller, and mother of four young girls. Rebecca wrote One Tomato to recreate the joy of picking home-grown vegetables and to teach her children to identify the vegetables they grow and eat. She worked at Kids Ink Children’s Bookstore in Indianapolis, IN for eleven years, and was a Board Member of the Great Lakes Independent Bookseller Association for three years. Rebecca’s next book, Purple Carrot, is due to release in Spring of 2023.
Kim Howard
Kim Howard is a children’s book author and former teacher. Her debut picture book Grace and Box was published in 2021 by Feiwel & Friends, an imprint of Macmillan. Grace and Box is a 2022 Indiana Early Literacy Firefly Award nominee, a 2022 Panda Book Awards nominee, and was included on the 2021 Redbud Read Aloud Masterlist for Oklahoma. The School Library Journal called it “a surefire hit for story time.”
CHANTEL MASSEY is a storyteller, poet, author, teaching artist, organizer, educator, practicing Afrofuturist, and avid anime lover from Indiana. Massey is a fellow of The Watering Hole, VONA poetry resident, and has received support from Hurston/Wright Foundation, Brooklyn Poets, and Tin House. She is a Best of Net Award nominee and 2020 Indiana Eugene and Marilyn Glick Author Awards Emerging Author finalist for her first collection of poetry, Bursting At The Seams (VK Press, 2018), a Midwest Black girl coming of age story. Massey founded the literary arts organization, UnLearn Arts, radically dedicated to amplifying and cultivating the craft and wellness of BIPOC writers in the Midwest and elsewhere.
Breakout Session Speakers
Shannon Anderson
Shannon Anderson has taught for 25 years, from first grade through college level, and served on the ISLA Board of Directors for many years. A highlight of her career was being named one of the 10 teachers who "awed and inspired" the Today Show in 2019. Shannon is also an award-winning children's book author and frequent keynoter at teaching conferences. She loves to do author visits and provide professional development for teachers. You can learn more about her at www.shannonisteaching.com.
Becky Bone
Becky Bone is the National Director of Literacy & Academic Planning for Scholastic Education Solutions, and has consulted with school districts nationwide on K-12 literacy and professional learning initiatives. Prior to Scholastic, Becky was a former teacher and Curriculum Coordinator in the Central Florida area, has taught graduate and undergraduate courses on curriculum & instruction, was a National Writing Project teacher consultant and instructor, and has been published in NCTE’s Voices from the Middle, Education Week, and Scholastic’s Administrator.
Hercilia Bretón
Hercilia Bretón has a Master's degree in Education, specializing in Spanish education, Spanish literature, and Latinx culture. She brings over four decades of teaching experience, and is currently a bilingual professional learning specialist. She is located in San Antonio, Texas.
JoyAnn Boudreau
JoyAnn Boudreau has worked in public education for twelve years. For the past seven years she has been a middle school teacher librarian. She is also an Equity Coach in her building. She has long been an innovator with technology integration. She is passionate about equity, libraries, public education, accessibility, making, intentional technology integration, and storytelling.
Tammie Buchanan
Bio forthcoming
Stephanie Dale
Bio forthcoming
Kaley Esselborn
Kaley Esselborn is a former middle school ELA teacher and parent involvement educator based in Indianapolis. She works with educators all over Indiana and Ohio training, providing support, and sharing data on the qualitative and quantitative impact of EVERFI's resources.
Paul Hankins
Paul W. Hankins has been a classroom teacher for eighteen years. His primary focus in the classroom has been on creative expression as an extension of the standards vs. a diversion from them. His students create multigenre/multimodal composition pieces that become installations that contain traditional written responses to literature as well as companion pieces to include poetry, infographics, memes, and dedications.
Amy Heath
Amy Heath has previous employment experiences with national and international K-12 schools and recently held the position of Literacy and ELA specialist for the Indiana Department of Education. For teaching and service, Amy Heath has won awards such as "Outstanding Community Service" and has been awarded numerous grants for the local school communities. Amy's research focuses on literacy instruction, student literacy development, and teacher self-efficacy
Kim Johnson
Kim Johnson is an instructional coach and English teacher at Carmel High School. With a heavy focus on literacy, Johnson specializes in helping students meet their reading potential. An educator for 25 years, Terri Ramos is the Department Chair for Media and Communications at Carmel High School where she oversees the library and four scholastic media outlets. She believes in the power of reading and loves to collaborate with other teachers.
Tracy Johnson
Tracy Johnson is an Assistant Professor of K-6 Literacy at the University of Indianapolis. Tracy spent 19 years as an elementary educator, filling roles as a classroom teacher, intervention specialist, literacy specialist and literacy coach. She is a passionate educator of both children and teachers. Tracy's research centers on early reading development and teachers' instructional moves that support that development. She has presented at several national conferences and to preservice and in-service teachers in the United States, Canada and Indonesia.
Lacey Ladd
Lacey Ladd is an Orton-Gillingham certified educator in her 18th year. She has taught Pre-K to 2nd grade classrooms, Elementary Special Education, and High School English in Japan. She currently serves teachers and students as a Literacy Coach for Marian University, and is the founder of Multisensory Minute LLC.
Dr. Lyn Jones
Lyn is activist/teacher/researcher/writer. Passionate about border crossing classrooms into the community, Lyn teaches in the Department of English at Ball State University and serves as the Education Outreach Director for the Indiana Writers Center. Lyn authored Painless Reading Comprehension, co-authored Memory Workshop, has authored several book chapters, and is an editor for Indie presses: INwords Publications & the 409 Press. Lyn researches and publishes on counter narrative, community reading and writing engagement, and disability studies in scholarly journals.
Tim Kalgreen
Tim Kalgreen is the director of civic education at the Indiana Bar Foundation since August 2019, where he leads programs and professional developments for teachers across the state as well as other educational outreach efforts. Previously he was a program coordinator at the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education for 12 years. Tim has a bachelor’s degree in history and a master's degree in education, both from The Ohio State University.
Dr. Ethan Lynn
Dr. Ethan Lynn has earned both a M.A. in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics. He not only has several years of experience teaching adult English language learners but also administrative experience overseeing and directing the reading curriculum in a university intensive English program. In his education specialist role with Reading Horizons, Ethan is a national presenter and consultant on the science of reading. He is passionate about sharing the gift of literacy with all students.
Dr. Nicole Martin
Dr. Nicole M. Martin, an assistant professor at Ball State University, teaches undergraduate and graduate courses, consults for schools and districts across the country, and conducts and publishes research focused on expanding children’s disciplinary and literacy learning opportunities during integrated instruction in the elementary classroom. She loves working with teachers to help students learn to read and write in a range of genres, develop digital literacy and 21st century learning skills, and engage in project-based learning. Dr. Martin’s prior recognitions have included “Teacher of the Year” and “Outstanding Dissertation Award Finalist.” More information is available at https://sites.google.com/site/drnicolemmartin/home.
Dr. Michael Nelson
Originally from the “Show-Me State” with twenty years of teaching experience, Dr. Nelson is a creative, innovative, and passionate speaker who brings out the best in those around him. He began his career in education as an elementary teacher in Tucson, Arizona, where he worked primarily in third grade from 2003 until 2017. In addition, he has had several leadership opportunities during this time including working with the American Institutes for Research as an Assessment Content Reviewer and the Arizona Department of Education in assisting it in revising its academic standards in 2015 and 2017. Currently, he works as an Assistant Professor of Elementary Education at Kentucky Wesleyan College in Owensboro, KY where he also serves on several Cognia accreditation review teams and works for Pearson Education reviewing EdTPA portfolios.
Casey O'Leary
Bio Forthcoming
Dr. Kathy Perez
Dr. Kathy Perez, an international consultant, teacher, administrator and author has worked with students from preschoolers to university graduates. Dr. Kathy is Professor Emerita at Saint Mary’s College of California. She has extensive teaching experience as a general and special educator, literacy/ESL coach, and administrative experience as a principal and curriculum/staff development coordinator. Dr Perez’s innovative and interactive workshops are loaded with teacher-tested materials and activities you can use immediately. Kathy provides a lively and informative session of hands-on and minds-on learning. Participants learn from an experienced and informed educator who knows first-hand the daily instructional challenges of classroom teachers.
Kristy Piebenga
I have been in the education field for almost 20 years in various roles--a classroom teacher, university professor, conference presenter, and school consultant. As a teacher and researcher, I am interested in theories and research that promote the development of students’ literate identities. My work has focused on the social nature of literacy and its application to best practice in the classroom. I am the Director of the Master of Education in Literacy program at Judson University and teach courses at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. I enjoy working with teachers to evaluate current assessment practices and design effective and authentic methods of assessing students and too implement affective elements of literacy instruction to increase motivation and interest in students who are reluctant to engage in reading and writing.
Dr. Sharon Pratt
Sharon Pratt taught as a Title 1 Literacy and Math teacher in and elementary school in Iowa for eleven years before joining the faculty at Indiana University Northwest. In her current role, she prepares teachers in literacy methods that align with research-based practices and share the joy of reading and writing. Her research interests include using metacognition within literacy instruction, guiding readers to better access and interpret multi-modal non-fiction texts, and co-teaching practices. Sharon's favorite past-time is reading children's literature to share with the young readers in her life.
Teri Ramos
Bio Forthcoming
Lori Smith
Lori Smith holds a B.A. in Elementary Education with a Generic Special Ed. endorsement from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX, and a Master of Science in Educational Administration. She has been in the field of education for many years as a teacher, and as a district administrator serving as a curriculum coordinator/program administrator. With a passion for promoting literacy, Lori’s role as a National Curriculum Consultant includes working alongside local representatives, making new customers aware of how to utilize Learning A-Z resources for the best student outcomes. Her mission is to guide new and existing customers to match our resources to district initiatives and student needs as evidenced by data and helping to create a well-rounded arsenal of curriculum resources for districts and teachers.
Jennifer Snow
Jennifer Snow is a Literacy Coach, consulting with teachers in her school district to collaborate on literacy practices used in the classroom, as well as analyze data to improve student learning. She is also a trained Reading Recovery teacher and implements the Reading Recovery intervention to first grade students. Mrs. Snow recently published an article in the Indiana Literacy Journal Spring edition, titled "The Next Step in Professional Development," focusing on practical ideas to implement professional learning for teachers in schools. She is currently attending Ball State University, working on her PhD in elementary education, with a focus on reading.
Randy Waddle
Bio Forthcoming
Jayne Walters
Jayne Walters (she/her) is a Board Member and the Director of Education for Indy Pride and the first openly transgender manager in the history of Indianapolis Public Library. Having worked in libraries for over 14 years, her writing has been featured in Library Journal, she helped create and is Chair of the LGBTQ+ Services Committee for IndyPL, she has spoken on LGBTQ+ issues for libraries, companies, and on the news, and is a contributing author in the book Trans and Gender Diverse Voices in LIS (Summer 2022). Her passions include LGBTQIA+ representation in juvenile literature; making sure libraries are accessible and equitable for the community and making them a safe and welcoming environment for all.
Lindsey Walters
Lindsey Walters oversees programming for fourteen elementary schools as the district elementary media specialist of Elkhart Community Schools in Indiana. She also serves on the Indiana Library Federation's Intellectual Freedom Committee and co-chairs the Indiana Read Aloud Committee.
Casey Wente
Bio Forthcoming
Shylenn Wright-Robleh
Shylenn Wright-Robleh is a passionate educator with nearly 25 years working in K-12 Education. Her experience ranges from teaching both primary and secondary, administration, professional development, college and career readiness to creating and nurturing Ed Tech Partnerships. She holds two advance degrees in Curriculum and Education Leadership. In her current role she consults with school districts to implement literacy and science resources to propel achievement for all learners.
Carla Zvonek
Carla's experience as an Instructional Technology Coordinator, elementary school assistant principal, and classroom teacher is the foundation of her passion for digital content and teaching and learning tools. She now funnels her knowledge and passion into partnering with educators who strive to accelerate learning with instructional technology.