Suzanne Barchers, Ed.D.
Author & Consultant

Learning in the World of Free
Thursday, June 11, 2009
11:00 am - 12:30 pm

Suzanne Barchers began her career as a teacher and administrator, working in primarily urban settings across the country. She also served as education director and deputy director of the Children’s Museum of Denver.

After the publication in 1990 of her first book, Creating and Managing the Literate Classroom, Suzanne became acquisitions editor for Teacher Ideas Press, a division of Libraries Unlimited. She next developed a line of books for teachers, parents, and children for Fulcrum Publishing, a trade publishing company in Colorado. From 1990 to 1999, she served as an affiliate faculty member at the University of Colorado, Denver.

Suzanne has written extensively for the education market, completing two college textbooks, more than 20 teacher resource books, more than 50 articles, a geography CD-ROM, and a keyboard curriculum. She has written more than 30 children's books for various publishers, bringing her total number of published books to more than 50. She is a seasoned speaker, having presented at regional, national, and international conferences. Before going to LeapFrog, she was Managing Editor at Weekly Reader. She currently writes and consults from her home in Stanford, CA.

Suzanne has a bachelor’s degree in elementary Education from Eastern Illinois University, a master’s degree in education from Oregon State University, and a doctorate of education in curriculum and design from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

James Bergeron
Deputy Director of Education and Human Services Policy, Representative Howard McKeon (R-CA)
House Education and Labor Committee

Capitol Hill Event - Competing Globally: Beyond Stale Debates to Learning Solutions
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
7:30 am - 12:00 pm

James Bergeron serves on the House Education and Labor Committee as the Deputy Director of Education and Human Services Policy to the Committee's Ranking Member, Representative Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-CA).

From 2001 to 2004, Mr. Bergeron served as Legislative Director to Representative McKeon, and then spent time in the private sector as Vice President of MARC Associates, where he consulted for the National Council of Higher Education Loan Programs (NCHELP) and other higher education organizations.

In 2006, when Representative McKeon was elected Chairman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, James Bergeron was tapped as Counselor to the Chairman, working especially on American competitiveness issues and Committee efforts to strengthen and streamline federal education and job training programs.

Randi Brill
President and Founder
Quarasan

Publishers, Developers, and School Districts: Change Agents in Transformation
Thursday, June 11, 2009
4:00 - 5:15 pm

Randi Brill founded Quarasan in 1982 in the basement of her home and has built it into a leading educational product developer. The 65-person company provides full-service content development with editorial, design, production, and management services for all major disciplines in Pre-K through 12. Randi's belief that innovation is a powerful fuel for our industry is evident in Quarasan's results.

In addition to setting Quarasan's long-term vision and strategies, Randi leads and manages Q's executive team to ensure that client expectations are met and that the company consistently produces the highest quality products. Randi personally works closely with publishing executives as a conceptual partner on new product initiatives and Pre-K-12 educational publishing strategies. Her ability to extract essential program priorities and spin those visions into products that win market share is a key reason many clients select Quarasan.

Randi graduated from Carnegie-Mellon University with a BFA in Graphic Design and worked at Scott, Foresman and McDougal, Littell prior to starting the company. She has taught many courses on book design, publishing practices, and typography. Randi served on the Board of Directors for Literacy Chicago and is an engaged contributor to Juvenile Protection Agency, a Chicago-based children's advocacy group. She also actively participates in and is committed to the infusion of 21st Century Skills in today's classrooms-a must for all students.

Lewis Bronze
Co-founder and CEO
Espresso Education Ltd

International CEO Roundtable
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
1:30 - 5:00 pm

Co-founder of Espresso Education in 1997, Lewis has been a driving force in establishing Espresso as the acknowledged leader in the field of educational digital services in the UK. He has pioneered the development of media-rich resources for classroom use. Having created a video-rich subscription service, with a unique topical weekly-updating service, Espresso has blazed a trail in the UK schools market, and now has about 55% of English elementary schools under subscription. Over the last two years, Lewis has had particular responsibility for building Espresso's Clipbank service for UK high schools, and developing the Espresso service in Sweden in partnership with Swedish publisher, Liber.

At the BBC, he was the creative and managerial force behind the flagship long-running TV program, Blue Peter, the famous UK children's magazine show from 1988-96. Prior to that, he produced Newsround, the BBC's TV news program for children.

Lewis is one of relatively few individuals to have won the UK's highest broadcasting award, the BAFTA, in two different industries. He won the BAFTA Award with Espresso for Learning Primary in 2007, and with Blue Peter for Children's Programmes in 1992. In total, Espresso has won five BETT Awards, Britain's highest award for digital educational resources: in 2009, for Early Years Solutions, in 2008, for Inclusion, in 2004, for Best Online Resource and Best Primary Software; and in 2000 for Innovation.

Lewis is widely acknowledged as an industry leader. He routinely represents Espresso's views to trade, government and media bodies, and is instrumental in ensuring that Espresso's interests, thought leadership, values and market leading position are constantly enhanced.

Lewis was educated at Jesus College, Cambridge University, where he studied law. He lives in London and is married to a New Yorker. They have three children.

Corinne Burton
President
Shell Education

Free For All: Free Resources Every Publisher Should Know About
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Corinne Burton is the President of Shell Education and Publisher of Teacher Created Materials.  Corinne joined Teacher Created Materials full time in 2000 and started, in partnership with Deanne Mendoza, Shell Education in 2005. As Shell Education continues to grow into a strong supplemental publishing and professional development company, Corinne continues at both Shell Education and Teacher Created Materials.  Having worked in each department at Teacher Created Materials, Corinne has an in depth understanding of operations, finance, sales/marketing, and editorial. Her comprehensive insight and leadership has grown Teacher Created Materials and Shell Education into companies that operate throughout the United States and over 90 countries around the world. 

Prior to joining Teacher Created Materials full time, Corinne was an elementary school teacher in the Capistrano Unified School District. Teaching made Corinne a strong advocate for education. Corinne works with schools and districts to understand the needs of educators, celebrate the achievement of students, and support districts, parents and teachers along the way. She has helped build Teacher Created Materials and Shell Education by respecting teachers, listening to them, and appreciating their contributions.

Corinne attended the University of California, San Diego where she earned a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science. She continued her education with a California Teaching Credential from University of California, Irvine and her Masters in Educational Technology from Teacher’s College at Columbia University. As a local of Huntington Beach, California, Corinne lives in the city where she grew up and currently lives with her husband and three daughters.

Frank Catalano
Principal
Intrinsic Strategy

Moderator
Learning Platforms for the 21st Century and Beyond
Friday, June 12, 2009
2:15 - 3:45 pm

Emcee
AEP Action Auction
Thursday, June 11, 2009
5:30 - 7:30 pm

Frank Catalano is a business and marketing strategy consultant, author and veteran media commentator. He has consulted a wide variety of companies, from startup to global, primarily in the education and technology industries. His consulting projects range from developing practical marketing strategies to long-term interim executive assignments and active board participation. Clients have included Apple Computer, Pearson, McGraw-Hill, MetaMetrics, Corbis and many others.

Frank was senior vice president of marketing for Pearson's testing and K-12 education businesses in the U.S., emphasizing branding and marketing best practices for digital and print products and services. He has also been a technology industry analyst and frequent media commentator on tech and marketing trends. He is a well-known public speaker at technology and education conferences and events, has been a professional charity auction emcee, is a former news broadcaster, and is co-author of two of the "Dummies" marketing books as well as authoring hundreds of published essays, columns and articles.

Candy Crowley
Senior Political Correspondent
CNN

2009 Weekly Reader's Student Publishing Awards Luncheon
Thursday, June 11, 2009
12:30 - 2:00 pm

Candy Crowley is CNN's award-winning senior political correspondent based in the network's Washington, D.C., bureau. In this position, Crowley covers a broad range of stories, including presidential, congressional and gubernatorial races and major legislative developments on Capitol Hill.

Crowley's assignments have taken her to all 50 states and around the world. She played a pivotal role in CNN's America Votes 2008 coverage, traveling to both conventions, every debate and additional stops along the campaign trail. She was also part of the network's Emmy award-winning 2006 mid-term election coverage.

She has covered the presidential campaigns of Pat Buchanan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Howard Dean, Bob Dole, Jesse Jackson, Edward Kennedy, John Kerry, Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan and Paul Tsongas, among others. Since the presidential nomination of Jimmy Carter, she has covered all but one of the national political conventions. She was also granted an exclusive sit-down interview with President George W. Bush days before he left office.

Among her most vivid memories as a reporter, Crowley counts the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast; the impeachment trial of President Clinton; Election Night 2000; ceremonies marking the 40th anniversary of D-Day on the beaches of Normandy; Ronald Reagan's trips to China, Bitburg and Bergen-Belsen; the night the United States bombed Libya; and the terrorist bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut.

Crowley began her broadcast journalism career in Washington, D.C., as a newsroom assistant for Metromedia radio station WASH. She has served as an anchor for Mutual Broadcasting and as a general assignment and White House correspondent for the Associated Press, where she covered most of the Reagan era before moving on to NBC-TV to become a general assignment correspondent in NBC's Washington bureau. She came to CNN from NBC News in 1987. Prior to her current role, Crowley served as a congressional correspondent for the network.

In 2005, Crowley was honored with the Edward R. Murrow award and the Joan Shorenstein Barone Award for excellence in journalism for her reporting on the 2004 presidential election. In 2004, Crowley won the Gracie Allen Award in the "National News Story-Series" category for "War Stories" and a National Headliner and a Cine award for CNN Presents: Fit to Kill. In 2003, Crowley won an Emmy for her work on CNN Presents Enemy Within. She won the 1999 DuPont-Columbia University Silver Baton Award for her coverage of the impeachment and trial of President Bill Clinton. She won the 2003 and 1998 Dirksen Awards for distinguished reporting on Congress from the National Press Foundation and the 1997 Joan Shorenstein Barone Award for her coverage of Bob Dole's campaign for the presidency. She received the Associated Press Broadcasters' Award for spot news reporting for her coverage of the Reagan campaign, as well as the AP Award for in-depth coverage of the 1980 Reagan campaign. Her reporting on more than a dozen 1992 U.S. Senate campaigns was runner-up for the Joan Shorenstein Barone Award for Outstanding Journalism. Crowley also won the Columbia University's Armstrong Award for Freedom is My Woman, a documentary on a prison cellblock takeover.

Crowley earned a bachelor's degree from Randolph-Macon Woman's College.

Daniel A. Domenech
Executive Director
AASA

The Money's Not Free—What the Feds Will Expect for New ESEA Funding
Friday, June 12, 2009
11:00 am - 12:15 pm

Daniel A. Domenech has served as executive director of the American Association of School Administrators since July 2008. Domenech has more than 36 years of experience in public education, twenty-seven of those years served as a school superintendent.

Prior to joining AASA, Domenech served as senior vice president for Natinal Urban Markets with McGraw-Hill Education. In this role, he was responsible for building strong relationships with large school districts nationwide. Prior to his position at McGraw-Hill, Domenech served for seven years as superintendent of the Fairfax County, Va., Public Schools, the 12th largest school system in the nation with 168,000 students.

Domenech began his teaching career in New York City, where he taught sixth grade in a predominantly black and Hispanic community in South Jamaica, Queens. He then became program director for the Nassau Board of Cooperative Educational Services, which is the largest intermediate school district in the State of New York. Following this, he was first named superintendent of schools for Long Island's Deer Park Schools and then became superintendent of schools for the ethnically diverse South Huntington School District, also on Long Island -- a position he held for 13 years. From 1994 to 1997, he was district superintendent of the Second Supervisory District of Suffolk County and chief executive officer of the Western Suffolk BOCES.

Domenech, an AASA member since 1979, served as president of AASA from July 1998 to June 1999. He is also a past president of the New York State Council of School Superintendents, the Suffolk County Superintendents Association, and the Suffolk County Organization for Promotion of Education. He was the first president and cofounder of the New York State Association for Bilingual Education.

In addition, Domenech has served on the U.S. Department of Education National Assessment Governing Board, on the advisory board for the Department of Defense schools, and on the board of directors of the Association for the Advancement of International Education. He currently serves on the boards of the Institute for Educational Leadership, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, the Education Policy Institute and is chair for Communities in Schools of Virginia.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hunter College in New York City and a Ph.D. from Hofstra University in Uniondale, N.Y.

Artur Dyro
Managing Director
Young Digital Planet

International CEO Roundtable
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
1:30 - 5:00 pm

Artur Dyro, born in 1966 in Olsztyn, Poland, graduated Technical University in Gdańsk. He was co-founder of Young Digital Planet, the leading eLearning industry player in Europe. After 18 years of successful development of the company he is still a co-owner and member of the management board, currently as Managing Director responsible for all of YDP’s international activity as well as a chief of the research & development department in the field of eLearning. As YDP, employing almost 400 hundred eLearning experts, is a strategic partner for a large number of leading educational publishing houses and many ministries of education, he is directly involved in many national and international scale eLearning initiatives.

Janet Eden-Harris
Vice President, Marketing
J.D. Power and Associates

Mining Social Media for Market Intelligence
Friday, June 12, 2009
11:00 am - 12:15 pm

Janet is a marketing and social media authority who is frequently tapped to provide insights into mining market intelligence from the online world. As a vice president for J.D. Power and Associates, Janet is responsible for building out the company's social media research practice and developing innovative ways to help customers understand their consumers. She was formerly the CEO of Umbria, a social media marketing intelligence firm that was acquired by J.D. Power and Associates in 2008, becoming its Web Intelligence Research Division, or WIReD. She has spent her career in marketing, running large marketing organizations in both research and high tech. She joined Umbria from Information Resources, Inc. (IRI), a multinational information services company, where she served as executive vice president and chief marketing officer. Prior to working for IRI, she was CMO of global supply chain vendor i2 Technologies.

Kati Elliott
President
KEH Communications

Free For All: Free Resources Every Publisher Should Know About
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

KEH Communications specializes in education public relations and marketing services. Kati Elliott, a previous education magazine editor (District Administration), and a long-time account representative at a mid-sized public relations agency, formed KEH Communications with the goal of helping companies to be successful in education.

Kati Elliott serves as president of KEH Communications. She holds BA degrees in public relations and early childhood education. Kati started her career teaching in the pre-school environment. She then took an editorial position at Curriculum Product News magazine (now District Administration magazine) in Connecticut, where she moved the publication from paste up to a completely computerized operation.

While living in CT, Kati served in the Community Volunteers in Action, the Corporate Volunteers in Action, and Habitat for Humanities organizations.

Kati served on the board of the International Association of Business Communicators for two years, and is a member of the Association for Educational Publishers, Public Relations Society of America, the National Ed Tech Writers Association, and the Education Writers Association.

In addition to running KEH, Kati has collaborated on the Software Information Industry Association’s (SIIA) book Expert’s Guide to the K-12 Market, available at the SIIA eStore. You can also read her advice on how to effectively conduct a press suite at Selling to Schools.com.

Tim Frick
Owner
Mightybytes

Fast, Cheap and Under Control: Creating and Managing a Digital Media Publishing System in Three Hours or Less
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
1:30 - 5:00 pm

Tim Frick is the author of Managing Interactive Media Projects from Delmar-Cengage Learning and the owner of Mightybytes, a Chicago-based media design firm with numerous awards and extensive experience on digital media and design projects for clients ranging in size from Fortune 100 companies to one-person startups. Tim has provided creative media services to an extensive client list since the early 1990s, including many publishers and education clients such as Rand McNally, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Kindermusik International and many others. His work has appeared in various industry publications, web sites, and television broadcasts as well as at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art. He has held positions on the board of the Association for Multimedia Communications, the Advisory Committees of the Illinois Institute of Art's Animation and Interactive Media Departments, and the Interactive Media Department of Columbia College. Tim regularly speaks at events and conferences on topics related to digital media, design, marketing, and business. For more information, check out Tim's blog at timfrick.com or his profile on LinkedIn.

Keith Garton
Managing Partner
Garton Media Strategy

Publishers, Developers, and School Districts: Change Agents in Transformation
Thursday, June 11, 2009
4:00 - 5:15 pm

Keith Garton joined Weekly Reader Publishing in January 2006 as its first director of product development. As Senior Vice President for Product Development, Garton oversaw the company’s expansion into broader education-related publishing efforts: award-winning teaching resources and practice books, highly praised Weekly Reader and Gareth Stevens books for school and public libraries, and innovative curriculum programs.

Prior to joining Weekly Reader, Garton managed the publication of TIME For Kids magazines and the creation of learning products at TFK. Garton led the development of award-winning reference books, biographies, readers, and learning games for the retail market, and the highly successful curriculum programs Write Time For Kids and TFK Exploring Nonfiction published by Teacher Created Materials.

Garton has had a distinguished career in a number of high-profile education positions. Garton was senior vice president of marketing for the Prentice Hall School Division and the McGraw-Hill School Division where he oversaw marketing efforts for the record-setting success of McGraw Hill’s Texas social studies campaign and national reading launch. From 1983 to 1995 Garton held a number of positions with D.C. Heath and Company and oversaw the acquisition and integration of Write Source to create Great Source Education division.

Garton has conducted numerous content-area reading and writing workshops across the country including school districts of Dallas, Texas; Los Angeles, California; Hillsborough County, Florida; Miami/Dade County, Florida; Charlotte, North Carolina; Tulsa, Oklahoma; New York City; and the International Reading Association. He is past-president of the board of directors of the Association of Educational Publishers.

Garton received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Oklahoma State University. A native of Oklahoma, he currently resides in New York City.

Renee Hobbs
Founder, Media Education Lab and Professor of Communication
Temple University

How Fair Use Enables Media Literacy to Thrive
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Renee Hobbs is one of the leading authorities on media literacy education in the United States. She is a professor of communication at Temple University's School of Communications and Theater, where she founded the Media Education Lab.

Her book, Reading the Media: Media Literacy in High School English is the first large-scale empirical look that shows how media literacy education strengthens reading comprehension and critical analysis skills. To reduce educators' copyright confusion, she helped develop the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education, in a project funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

A leader in the provision of media literacy curriculum materials and staff development to K-12 educators, Hobbs also created the nation's first national teacher education program for media literacy, the Harvard Institute for Media Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Lindsay Hunsicker
Senior Education Policy Advisor, Senator Michael B. Enzi (R-WY)
Senate HELP Committee

Capitol Hill Event - Competing Globally: Beyond Stale Debates to Learning Solutions
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
7:30 am - 12:00 pm

Lindsay Hunsicker is the Senior Education Policy Advisor for Senator Michael B. Enzi (R-WY), Ranking Member on the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Her portfolio for the Committee includes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the Head Start Act, early childhood education, and child care. In addition, she is responsible for issues under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Prior to joining the Committee, Ms. Hunsicker served as a Senior Legislative Assistant for Senator John Ensign (R-NV) for six years. In that position her policy work included education, labor, human services, and pension issues. She began her work on Capitol Hill with Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR).

Lindsay Hunsicker earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Washington.

Peter Jaszi
Faculty Director of the Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Law Clinic and Professor of Law
Washington College of Law, American University

How Fair Use Enables Media Literacy to Thrive
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Peter Jaszi is faculty director of the Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Law Clinic and professor of law. He holds expertise in intellectual property and copyright law. He was Pauline Ruvle Moore Scholar in Public Law from 1981-82; Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Awardee in 1982; and he received the AU Faculty Award for Outstanding Contributions to Academic Development in 1996. He is a member of the Selden Society (state correspondent for Washington, D.C.). Previously he was a member of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A. trustee, 1992-94; International Association for the Advancement of Teaching and Research in Intellectual Property; National Zoological Park, Washington, D.C., Animal Welfare Board, 1986-present; Library of Congress Advisory Committee on Copyright Registration and Deposit (ACCORD), 1993.

He has written many chapters, articles and monographs on copyright, intellectual property, technology and other issues. He was editor of The Construction of Authorship: Textual Appropriation in Law and Literature (with M. Woodmansee, Duke University Press, 1994) (also published as a law journal issue, 10 Cardozo Arts and Entertainment Law Journal 274, 1992). He is co-author of Legal Issues in Addict Diversion (Lexington Books, 1976) and Copyright Law, Third Edition (Matthew Bender & Co., 1994).

David J. Johns
Senior Education Policy Advisor, Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA)
Senate HELP Committee

Capitol Hill Event - Competing Globally: Beyond Stale Debates to Learning Solutions
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
7:30 am - 12:00 pm

David J. Johns currently serves as Senior Education Policy Advisor to the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP) under the leadership of its Chairman, Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA).

With a background in English and creative writing, Mr. Johns is an honors graduate of Columbia University, who earned a Master's Degree in Sociology and Education Policy, from Columbia University Teachers College, while serving as an elementary school teacher.

His present and past portfolio of policy issues includes literacy, education technology, early childhood education, workforce investment, and the impact of diverse policies on key student subgroups. A published author, David J. Johns works to increase students' access to quality higher educational opportunities and to improve literacy among adolescent minority males.

Jeff Keltner
Business Development Manager
Google

Learning Platforms for the 21st Century and Beyond
Friday, June 12, 2009
2:15 - 3:45 pm

Jeff Keltner is a business development manager at Google, responsible for Google Apps in the education sector worldwide. In this role, Jeff works with thousands of educational institutions to integrate Google's communication and collaboration tools into their systems. Jeff brings several years of experience in both business development and engineering to Google, most recently as a sales specialist for IBM. Prior to joining IBM, Jeff worked as a systems engineer for companies such as Hilton Hotels Corporation and SSB Technologies. Jeff holds a bachelor's degree in computer systems engineering from Stanford University.

Doug Kolmar
Marketing Consultant

75 Ways to Use Social Networking Sites in Educational Publishing
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Doug Kolmar is currently an independent marketing consultant, specializing in inbound marketing, SEO, and Social Networking. Prior to this he worked for over fifteen years in the educational publishing industry as a marketing manager for leading professional and reference publishers including, Grove's Dictionaries of Music, Macmillan Reference, Gale/Cengage, and Stenhouse Publishers. Doug began his involvement with website development and marketing at the dawn of the web and has continued to be the point person for online marketing in each company with whom he has worked. While at Gale, he was recognized with the Gale Bravo Award for his website work. Doug can be contacted through his website: www.bmindweb.com

Lawrence Lezotte, PhD
Consultant
Effective Schools Products, Ltd.

Learning in the World of Free
Thursday, June 11, 2009
11:00 am - 12:30 pm

Lawrence Lezotte, PhD, is known as the preeminent spokesperson for Effective Schools research and implementation. As a consultant with Effective Schools Products, Ltd., of Okemos, Michigan, Dr. Lezotte
conducts workshops and conferences around the country. He received the 2003 Council of Chief State School Officers’ Distinguished Service Award, which is presented to outstanding Americans who have made a difference in education.

During his 18-year tenure as a professor at Michigan State University, Dr. Lezotte served as chair of the Department of Educational Administration, associate director of the Center for School Improvement in the College of Education, and chair of Urban and Metropolitan Studies in the College of Urban Affairs.

Monica Martinez
Vice President for Education Strategy
KnowledgeWorks Foundation

2020 Forecast: Creating the Future of Learning
Thursday, June 11, 2009
9:00 - 10:30 am

Monica Martinez is the Vice President for Education Strategy for the KnowledgeWorks Foundation. As the foundation's Vice President for Education Strategy, she leads the development of new initiatives and coordination of strategic planning geared to the transformation of the national education landscape. These efforts have been in conjunction with the Foundation's Map of Future Forces Affecting Education. Since the map has been published, Dr. Martinez has made numerous presentations throughout the country. Since KWF started supporting the New Technology Foundation, Dr. Martinez has served as the Chief Operating Officer. Martinez founded the D.C.-based National High School Alliance, a partnership of more than 40 organizations sharing a common commitment to promoting excellence, equity, and development of high school-age youth. She currently serves on the Boards of Grantmakers for Education and AdvanceED. Martinez received her Ph.D. from New York University and her bachelor's degree from Baylor University.

Margery Mayer
President, Scholastic Education
Scholastic Inc.

Learning in the World of Free
Thursday, June 11, 2009
11:00 am - 12:30 pm

MARGERY MAYER is the President of Scholastic Education and Executive Vice President of Scholastic Inc. Margery oversees the product development, marketing and sales for the Scholastic Education division which includes Intervention, Education Technology, Curriculum Publishing and Professional Development.

Margery is an expert on 21st Century learning and a pioneer in the development of research-based educational technology programs. Under her leadership, Scholastic has developed groundbreaking programs such as: READ 180®, a reading intervention program for adolescents; System 44®, the breakthrough foundational reading program for older students who struggle with basic phonics; the upcoming Expert 21®, a comprehensive language arts program that merges digital and print curricula; and FASTT Math™, a program to develop math fact fluency.

Margery has been the driving force behind the growth in educational technology sales at Scholastic-from less than $40 million in FY 2001 to $160 million in FY 2008.

Margery is a graduate of Middlebury College and has a Masters in Management from the Sloan School at MIT. She is currently Chairman of the School Executive Committee of the American Association Publishers (AAP).

Kevin McAliley
Strategy Consultant

The Money's Not Free—What the Feds Will Expect for New ESEA Funding
Friday, June 12, 2009
11:00 am - 12:15 pm

Kevin McAliley is an experienced executive in educational media, currently providing strategic consulting services to software and print educational companies, and investment advisory services to financial institutions and private equity firms. Kevin was the CEO of Triumph Learning and led its growth from $15MM in 2001 to almost $90MM in 2008. Kevin was also CEO of Channel One Communications, the world's largest private satellite network, and Films Media Group. Earlier in his career he led the team that launched Newbridge Educational Publishing, which grew from a business plan to a $24MM publisher, and was also twice nominated for an Emmy Award as an educational TV producer. Kevin has been the principal in over $500MM of mergers and acquisitions in print and digital educational media. He has been a speaker at SIIA, EdNet, and AEP events. He earned an MBA from Columbia and an A.B. from Harvard.

Alicia Narvaez
Virtual Pre-K Director
Chicago Public Schools

Virtual Pre-K: A Case Study of Multimedia Opportunities in Early Childhood Education
Friday, June 12, 2009
11:00 am - 12:15 pm

Alicia Narvaez is Creator/Director of the Virtual Pre-K & K program, a national multimedia parent involvement program developed by the Chicago Public Schools Office of Early Childhood Education. Chicago Public Schools is the third largest school district in the nation, serving over 35,000 preschool children in more than 1,600 classrooms.

Through Ms. Narvaez's work, Virtual Pre-K & K have been integrated into a diverse array of early childhood programs including State Prekindergarten, Head Start, Child-Parent Centers (Title 1), Parent Information Resource Centers, Migrant Education and Family Literacy. She is responsible for overall program development and implementation in Chicago and with school districts in Illinois, Texas, California, Pennsylvania and Nevada. Virtual Pre-K & K have received numerous accolades, including the 2006 Codie Award for Best Instructional Solution: Students at Home, beating out Dora the Explorer: Fairytale Adventures and Microsoft Student.

Prior to her current work in public education, Alicia spent a decade in educational television and media production. Her credits include work for the Discovery Channel, National Geographic Television, CBS News, Nova, and the BBC. Ms. Narvaez holds a bachelors degree from Columbia University and earned her masters degree from Baruch College as a National Urban Fellow.

Andrew Pass
President
Pass-Ed

75 Ways to Use Social Networking Sites in Educational Publishing
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Andrew Pass, an instructional designer with more than twenty years of experience, completed advanced doctoral work in Curriculum, Teaching and Educational Policy at Michigan State University. After writing his dissertation on school improvement, Andy found a deeper interest in educational technology. He and his associates at Pass-Ed work to bridge the gap between traditional learning principles and cutting edge practices made possible with Twenty First Century technology. They specialize in all core K-12 subject areas. Having taught on three continents and worked with clients from around the world, Andy and his team have written hundreds of curriculum resources, including those targeted at both students and adults, for both large and small publishing companies. You’ve never seen the name Pass-Ed on a curriculum resource but you’ve likely read work produced by this company.

Joel Petersen
Vice President of Strategic Relations
Thinkronize, Inc.

Free For All: Free Resources Every Publisher Should Know About
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Joel Petersen is Vice President of Strategic Relations at Thinkronize, Inc.  Thinkronize was first to market with its standards-based educational search engine, netTrekker d.i.

Joel Petersen's formula for successful selling is through the development of rock solid customer relationships. Petersen's accomplishments stem from his keen understanding of the objectives and needs of educators in Departments of Education, large school districts, and key consortia across the country.

Upon joining Thinkronize in 2001, Petersen created the initial sales structure and selling process for the company from the ground up. With his passion for education and children, Petersen and the sales team helped build the netTrekker subscription base from the initial pilot sites to now over 12 million students in more than 21,000 schools spanning 50 states. In 2006, Thinkronize made its debut on the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies in the United States and was again honored on the 2007 Inc. 5000 list. Petersen attributes much of this success to the initial group of netTrekker subscribers who helped provide critical feedback and important direction for the sales and development teams at pivotal times. Petersen has also been instrumental in developing a business partner network for Thinkronize.  The business partner network continues to contribute significantly to Thinkronize's bottom line each year.

Prior to Thinkronize, Petersen spent over 16 years in sales management helping staff, train, and direct sales teams including the education sector with Hobsons as the Director of Circulation Sales.  Petersen holds a degree in Social Science from Carthage College and attended the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee for Graduate Studies in School Social Work.

Laura Porco
Director, Kindle Books
Amazon.com

Learning Platforms for the 21st Century and Beyond
Friday, June 12, 2009
2:15 - 3:45 pm

Laura Porco is Amazon.com’s Director of Kindle Books. She joined Amazon.com in July 1999 as Sr. Manager for Books Merchandising. She is responsible for working with publishers and copyright holders to increase the selection of books available on Kindle.

Prior to joining the Kindle team, Porco was Amazon.com’s Director of Merchandising for North American Books, Music and DVD. In that role she worked with publishers, movie studios and record labels to increase the visibility of their products on the Amazon.com website. During her tenure at Amazon, she was responsible for leading publisher negotiations for the launch of Amazon.com’s Search Inside the Book, a popular feature associated with many books sold on Amazon.com.

Before coming to Amazon.com, Porco worked as Director, Books and Audiobooks at TheBigStore.com, a leading innovator in Internet retailing. She also served as National Account Manager at Macmillan USA where she managed the relationship with Macmillan’s largest customer Barnes & Noble.

Porco holds a B.A. in Public Relations from Ohio State University and a minor in Political Science. She resides in Seattle and enjoys cooking, trashy television, Buckeye football, travel and reading.

Michael Riordan
Co-Director, Researcher
Open Publishing Lab at Rochester Institute of Technology

Learning Platforms for the 21st Century and Beyond
Friday, June 12, 2009
2:15 - 3:45 pm

Michael Riordan is an Assistant Professor at RIT's School of Print Media where he teaches coursework focused on publishing and production. Through his research, he works closely with publishers, print service providers and creative agencies to help improve their workflows and has worked with CGATS and standards organizations to develop quality assurance mechanisms to support the same.

In addition to his teaching, Michael also serves as a co-director and researcher at RIT's Open Publishing Lab. The OPL is a cross- disciplinary lab that brings together students, faculty and staff from a range of disciplines to create next-generation publishing solutions. For more on the OPL, go to http://opl.rit.edu

Michael presents regularly at industry events, has published several technical papers and served as co-editor for the Pocket Pal: A Graphic Arts Production Handbook.

Joe Rospars
Founding Partner
Blue State Digital

Beacon Luncheon Keynote Address
Friday, June 12, 2009
12:30 - 2:00 pm

A Blue State Digital founding partner, Joe served as the New Media Director for Barack Obama's presidential campaign, where he oversaw all online aspects of the unprecedented fundraising, communications and grassroots mobilization effort.

Joe led a wide-ranging program that integrated design and branding, web and video content, mass email, text messaging, and online advertising, organizing and fundraising.

Prior to the Obama campaign, Joe led BSD's work with Gov. Howard Dean at the Democratic National Committee; during Dean's campaign for party chairman; and at Democracy for America.

Joe was a writer and strategist in New Media for Dean's 2004 Presidential campaign.

He holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the George Washington University.

Seth Russo
Principal
Edureach International Consulting LLC

International CEO Roundtable
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
1:30 - 5:00 pm

Help Desk
Thur.-Fri., June 11-12, 2009
Appointments as scheduled

Seth Russo is currently Principal, Edureach International Consulting LLC, established to provide support and guidance to educational and trade publishers seeking to develop international business opportunities.

A graduate of SUNY Albany, Seth began his publishing career as Associate Marketing Manager at Bantam Books in 1983, becoming Director of Asia Sales in 1987 at the formation of the Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group. In 1993 he joined Simon & Schuster as Vice President Export Sales, managing the groups trade and reference lines in global markets. Seth joined Scholastic in 1997 as Vice President International Sales and Marketing, responsible for the companys overseas growth in school, trade and institutional markets.

Seth has served on the faculty of the NYU Summer Publishing Institute since 2006 and is a frequent presenter at international bookfairs and industry events.

Lisa Schmucki
Founder and CEO
edWeb LLC

75 Ways to Use Social Networking Sites in Educational Publishing
Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:15 - 3:30 pm

Lisa Schmucki is founder and CEO of the edWeb LLC, a professional/social networking website for the education community. The edWeb was launched in 2007 and is an online community where educators can connect peer-to-peer to extend their network of colleagues, share information and resources, and create professional learning communities. Education partners-associations, companies, and non-profits-can join the edWeb to increase their outreach and build deeper, more sustainable relationships with educators, and to deliver ongoing professional development. Lisa has 30 years experience in the education industry as a senior level marketing consultant and executive. She is the founder of Bridgepoint Marketing Services LLC and has held previous positions with MKTG Services, Achieve3000, Films Media Group, Peterson's Guides, Macmillan Book Clubs, and Time-Life Books. She is a graduate of Princeton University and has a Masters Degree from the NYU Stern School of Business.

John Seelke, III
Math Teacher and Department Chair
McKinley Technology High School, Washington, DC

A Teacher in the Trenches: A Firsthand Account of Using Free in the Classroom
Thursday, June 11, 2009
4:00 - 5:15 pm

A math instructor for over 10 years, John Seelke, III is currently a math teacher and department chair at McKinley Technology High School in Washington, DC. He has also been a DC Teaching Fellow, where he helped prepare math teachers in an alternative certification program to teach math at the secondary level in DC Public Schools. Seelke received his B. S. in Mathematics and B. A. in History from Duke University, a M. Ed. in Secondary Education/Mathematics from Boston College, and a M.A. in Education Policy and Leadership from the University of Maryland. He was a 2007 National Finalist (Washington D.C.) for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.

Sally Shake
President and CEO
Education Legislative Services, Inc.

Capitol Hill Event - Competing Globally: Beyond Stale Debates to Learning Solutions
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
7:30 am - 12:00 pm

Education Investment and the Economic Recovery
Thursday, June 11, 2009
4:00 - 5:15 pm

An experienced federal education lobbyist and policy expert, ELS President and CEO, Sally Shake, has co-authored two books on education topics: an international study of adult learning and workforce training and a resource guide to professional development for university faculty. Her doctoral studies at the Maxwell Graduate School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University, focused on cross-disciplinary public policy approaches to education and social policy. She has lived abroad in the Netherlands, served as a consultant internationally and across the United States, and was a school district administrator early in her career.

Sameer Shariff
Founder and CEO
Impelsys Inc.

International CEO Roundtable
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
1:30 - 5:00 pm

Sameer Shariff is founder and CEO of Impelsys Inc. Impelsys is a leader in providing e-publishing solutions to global publishing market. Its revolutionary products and solutions help publishers large & small to create new online products & revenue streams without significant investment. Customers include leading publishers like McGraw-Hill, Elsevier, Wolters Kluwer, Benchmark Education, Marshall Cavendish and Houghton Mifflin among others.

Impelsys is Sameer's second start up after Medisite Inc. As Chief Strategic Officer, he helped Medisite become one of the largest Internet pharmaceutical marketing companies in the United States. Under his direction, Medisite increased sales from $0 to $20 million. In 2006, Medisite was sold to WebMD for over $40 Million.

Sameer is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned his BS degree in Entrepreneurial Management from the Wharton School of Business. He has served as a guest speaker at several industry events including Delhi Book Fair, O’Reilly TOC Conference 2009 and American Medical Publishers Association; and has been featured in Forbes, India Today, CMS Wire, Professional Publishing Report, Gilbane, Seybold Report and Silicon India among other publications.

Dr. Richard Sims
Chief Economist
National Education Association

Economic Forecast for the Education Market
Friday, June 12, 2009
9:00 - 10:30 am

Richard Sims is the chief economist for the National Education Association. His previous position include CEO and economist with the Sierra Institute of Applied Economics, director of tax policy for the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, director of applied economic research at the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia, chief economist and director of economic policy for the Arkansas General Assembly, chief economist and director of the Office of Economic Analysis for the Kentucky General Assembly, and senior advisor to the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova where he guided the creation of the parliamentary Center for Budgetary and Financial Analysis.

Sims has authored more than 60 publications on topics including state and local taxation, economic development incentives, the economics of the Georgia Lottery and HOPE scholarship, casino gaming, financing of transportation infrastructure, regional economic development, the economics of education and barriers to investment in developing economies. He has been active in the leadership of several professional organizations including serving on the Executive Committee of the National Council of State Legislatures (NSCL), chairman of the Economic Development Committee of the NCSL, the Fulbright Fellowship Program and president of the Kentucky Economic Association.

Sims holds a doctorate in applied economics from the University of Kentucky and has taught graduate courses at the University of Kentucky, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, the University of Georgia and at the University of Moldova.

Bernice Stafford
Vice President of Implementation and Education Partnerships
Evans Newton Incorporated

2020 Forecast: Creating the Future of Learning
Thursday, June 11, 2009
9:00 - 10:30 am

Bernice Stafford is Vice President of Implementation and Education Partnerships for Evans Newton Incorporated. Most recently, she was an educational technology industry consultant working with both for-profit and non-profit organizations. Previously, she was Vice President of School Strategies and Evaluation at PLATO Learning, a company she joined in 2003 at the time of the Lightspan merger where she had been a Co-founder and Senior Vice President of Business Development and Government Relations and Chief Education Officer. Before Lightspan, she was Director of Sales Programs for Jostens Learning Corporation (now Compass Learning) and, prior to that, a marketing executive for Tandy Corporation/Radio Shack.

Bernice began her career as a classroom teacher and transitioned to early childhood administration. She also taught college-level early childhood development and education courses in the U.S. and abroad. In the early 1980s, she lived and worked in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where she led an international team of educators in designing and implementing the Kingdom's kindergarten (age 3-grade 2) program. Over a 20+ year corporate career, Bernice mastered the art and science of combining business strategy with education policy and school funding, and is recognized as one of the leading experts in this area.

She currently serves on the board of the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration (CILC) where she is also a strategic consultant. And she is a member of the board of the Agency for Instructional Technology, Partnership for Dynamic Learning and the WestEd Regional Educational Laboratory Board. Bernice is a member of the California Comprehensive Center Advisory Board and California Public Schools Accountability Act Advisory Committee where she serves on the Alternative Accountability Sub-committee, and on the K 12, Inc. External Advisory Board. She is a past board chair of the National Education Knowledge Industry Association (now Knowledge Alliance), distinguishing herself as the first person from the private sector to serve in that capacity. She is also a past board member of the Software Publishers Association (now Software and Information Industry Association), and most recently was co-chair of that organization's Textbook Adoption Committee.

She is a frequent presenter at education conferences on topics ranging from closing the minority achievement gap to using state-of-the-art technology in support of teaching and learning. Her most recent publication, "A Science-based Development and Implementation Model for Online and CD-ROM Curriculum Programs," is included in the Second Edition of the International Handbook on Literacy and Technology published by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Mark Stevens
Vice President, Professional & Web Solutions
NEA Member Benefits

Economic Forecast for the Education Market
Friday, June 12, 2009
9:00 - 10:30 am

Mark Stevens is the Vice President, Professional and Web Solutions for NEA Member Benefits, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Education Association, representing America's 3.2 million educators. NEA Member Benefits is the affinity marketing and service organization to the Association. In Mark's new position he is responsible for development of professional products, management of the marketing and sales of the NEA Academy, NEA Professional Library, Bookstore, Teacher Toolkit, new products and programs media, and sponsorship sales program for NEA print (NEA Today, This Active Life, and NEA Advocacy) and online advertising (NEA.org and NEAMB.com). Additionally, Mark's responsibilities include Web development, content acquisition and online brand presence and integration with the NEA.

Prior to joining the NEA Member Benefits, Mark was the Executive Director and General Manager at AOL Education. The education group provided online school services and resources for teachers, students and parents through AOL@SCHOOL. In 2004 he added the responsibility to direct the KOL Education
group (Kids Online), AOL's online service just for kids. The KOL service offers children a fun integrated online and broadcast experience that airs on CBS Saturday morning (KOL Secret Slumber Party) containing entertaining and educational content.

As a professional educator, he has over 28 years of experience in education with 11 years as a teacher, counselor and administrator, and 2 years as a teacher for the Department of Defense school system in Asia. He has held senior management positions at Macmillan McGraw-Hill School Publishing, Jostens Learning, T.H.E. Journal, Turner Learning (Turner Broadcasting Systems), and The JASON Foundation for Education. He has received awards for print, online and broadcast productions including George Foster Peabody, Telly, AEP Golden Lamp, and SIIA CODIE. Mark holds an ndergraduate degree in Education from The Evergreen State College and M.Ed. and MBA from Pacific Lutheran University. He has served on the Board of Directors for the Fairfax Education Foundation and the U.S. Department of State, Office of Overseas Schools and Software Industry Information Association (SIIA). He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Association of Education Publishers (AEP) and Florida Education Technology Conference (FETC).

Representative Charles A. Wilson (D-OH)

Capitol Hill Event - Competing Globally: Beyond Stale Debates to Learning Solutions
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
7:30 am - 12:00 pm

Charlie Wilson was first elected to Congress to represent the Sixth Congressional District of Ohio in 2006. He is currently serving his second term. At the center of Congressman Wilson's public service is an unwavering commitment to Ohio's working families.

As a member of the powerful House Committee on Financial Services, Wilson is focused on the most pressing issue facing the Sixth District-the creation of good jobs that put Ohioans back on the right track.

Congressman Wilson believes strongly in the promise of home-grown energy solutions that help break our nation's dependence on foreign oil. With a seat on the Science and Technology Committee, Congressman Wilson is actively engaged in fostering the creation and development of responsible energy resources and technology.

Generations of steelworkers have called Ohio's Sixth District home. Congressman Wilson honors their hard work and stands up for the strength of the American steel industry as a leading member of the Congressional Steel Caucus. Through the Steel Caucus, Congressman Wilson is a strong voice for fair trade agreements that put Ohio workers first.

Before his election to Congress, Wilson served ten years in the Ohio House and Senate. His devotion to public service was evident through his work as a state lawmaker in Columbus, where he fought for Ohio workers and pushed to increase funding for public schools.

Congressman Wilson brings to Washington a much-needed common sense approach to problem solving that he developed through decades of experience as a successful small business owner in Eastern Ohio. Wilson, who makes his home in St. Clairsville, has four sons and nine grandchildren.

Kimberly Worthy
2009 DC Teacher of the Year
Chair for Curriculum Development
Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science

Learning in the World of Free
Thursday, June 11, 2009
11:00 am - 12:30 pm

For the past 10 years, Kimberly Worthy has been an advocate for educational excellence in urban schools.  She is the chair for Curriculum Development with the Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science (MS)2, a public charter school on the campus of Howard University. In this role, she works with the school’s leadership to use cultural foundations of teaching and a cross-curricular approach to write mathematics, science and technology curriculum that promotes an engaging and collaborative learning environment. Kimberly is also a cooperating teacher with (MS)2, supervising student teachers. Prior to working with (MS)2, she worked as a high school and middle school teacher in Las Vegas, New York and Atlanta.

Kimberly is the 2009 District of Columbia Teacher of the Year. She is a graduate of Spelman College, and has served as a facilitator for several teaching workshops. She is a member of the National Alliance of Black School Educators, National Middle School Association and National State Teachers of the Year.

Tom Zembar
Senior Policy Analyst, Education Policy and Practice Department
NEA

The Money's Not Free—What the Feds Will Expect for New ESEA Funding
Friday, June 12, 2009
11:00 am - 12:15 pm

Tom Zembar is a Senior Policy Analyst in the Education Policy and Practice Department of the National Education Association (NEA) and works on issues around federal funding of education. NEA is the nation's largest professional employee organization, and is committed to advancing the cause of public education. NEA's 3.2 million members work at every level of education-from pre-school to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.

Tom came to the NEA from Fiscal Planning Services, Inc., a consulting company, where he was Vice President and Senior Fiscal Analyst. Tom has over 20 years of experience in federal budgeting. He has a master’s degree in Public Administration from the Maxwell School, Syracuse University.