About our Board

Christine Gavin

President

I have 11 years of experience teaching for the Diocese of Grand Rapids. Currently, I am teaching middle school language arts and religion at Holy Trinity Catholic School. Literacy is a key component for a student to grow and learn in all subject areas. Therefore, it is important to have the necessary tools to help our students become life long learners.

When I joined the West MI Reading Council, it provided me with wonderful resources to help me grow as a teacher as well as a wonderful opportunity to make new connections with other professionals from different school districts.

One of the many reasons I love being a language arts teacher is when you find a connection between school and home. It is a great accomplishment when I not only achieve the success of a student who normally does not enjoy reading finds a book in which they love, but that student shares their love of the book with a parent who in turn wants to read it along with their child!

Katie Leeder

President Elect

Katie Leeder has been a member of Kent Reading Council for 8 years and a member of MRA for 2 years. Katie, a middle school ELA teacher at Assumption BVM School in Belmont, has been teaching for 15 years.

As Vice President, Katie is excited for the opportunity to continue Kent Reading Council’s passion for literacy and community engagement. Kent Reading Council always has its pulse on the latest educational research, best practices, and the speakers to share their insight.

Katie cherishes being able to share her love of reading and writing with middle school students. Along with making daily reading and writing a priority in her classroom, she also knows the strength of reading aloud even to middle school classes. Through the power of literacy, students can become informed, empathetic, global citizens.

To stay informed of the latest research and upcoming books and authors, Katie follows several esteemed authors and teachers on Twitter such as Donalyn Miller, Pernille Ripp, John Schu, and Colby Sharp. Each year she looks forward to attending the MRA conference and nErD Camp.


Tara Baxter

Vice-President

Camille Townshend

Secretary

I taught Kindergarten, first and second grades for 28 years. I taught at St. Isidore School and Wyoming Public Schools. I also served as Reading Specialist for Wyoming Public. I earned my undergraduate degree from Michigan State and my Masters degree from Aquinas College. I have been a member of West Michigan Reading Council for many years serving as president, legislative chair, and also secretary. I thoroughly enjoy meeting with other teachers and continuing to learn about literacy and education.

Denise Dishon

Treasurer

My goal in life was to become a professional learner. When I was interviewing for positions after graduating in 1992, the question asked most often was, “What grade would you like to teach?” My answer came quickly and simply ~ ALL of them. Well, Rockford Public Schools afforded me that opportunity during my 22-year-tenure. I had the wonderful experience of teaching in each grade from developmental kindergarten through ninth grade, plus academic support and technology liaison. I achieved my goal as teaching is simply sharing the joy of learning.

Literacy is the most important block of learning. Without the ability to read and write well, we are captives to the very limited realm of what we hear and say. Our society would still be restricted to what we learn from story tellers and messengers, even though those have multiplied through the advent of technology. How poor would our experience be without the rich wealth of words woven into tales of adventure, mystery, love, history, fantasy, and so much more? How poor would our understanding be without the ability to research? How poorly would we be viewed with only the ability to speak or text? How many misunderstandings are avoided with the ability to convey thoughts in a clear, concise written manner ~ even the simple construction of an IKEA table?

This brings me to why Kent Reading Council is so extremely important to me. The Council allows the community of educators to become students. It is our chance to not only learn from renowned experts, but also from our shared experiences.


Jane Mead

Membership Chair

I have taught 27 years at Assumption BVM school in Belmont. For the first nine years I taught middle school science, history, geography, religion, art, and technology. The next 20 years I enjoyed first graders and loved guiding my students through the reading and writing process. I retired about 3 years ago and returned to Assumption as a volunteer librarian. I love sharing stories and recommending books to the students in preschool through 8th grade. Literacy is so vital in the world we live in, especially with all of the information we are inputting from social media. Kent Reading Council has been very helpful in guiding me to help my students in gaining literacy skills. I am very happy to be a part of an organization that assists and encourages educators, librarians, parents, and anyone involved in literacy.


I love going to the many libraries in Kent County with my granddaughters, ages 3 and 6. KDL has promoted literacy in their new programs for infants, young children, school children, teens, and adults. We have been to many story times, play times, magic shows, and sing-a-longs. This past summer my granddaughters and I signed up for the summer reading program at KDL. I am able to keep a history online at KDL of the books I have read. Our favorite library is the Wyoming KDL.


Robin Macqueen

Past-President

I have 22 years of experience teaching. Currently, I am teaching a split class of 2nd and 3rd graders in the Rockford School District. To me, literacy is the gateway to a successful life. It creates opportunities and opens doors to life’s most exciting endeavors.

West MI Reading Council provides professional development and networking for educators in West Michigan. I have grown as an educator with the up-to-date presentations. My professional contacts enable me to be a better teacher, colleague, and staff member.

Professional Profile

  • Masters Degree in Reading and Bachelors of Business Administration Degree from Western Michigan University, plus 30 hours of graduate credit hours for professional development
  • Experienced in leading school improvement committees
  • Dedicated to enthusiastic and dynamic teaching as a means of developing and nurturing lifelong learners


Region 3 Representative