Schools Need a Success Coach for Every Learner

Presented by Pamela Cantor, M.D., Founder and Senior Science Advisor, Turnaround for Children; Jennifer Boyce, National Site Support Director, City Year; Kirsten Davis, Senior Impact Manager, City Year; and Ron Berger, Chief Academic Officer, EL Education
Hosted by Vic Vuchic, Chief Innovation Officer and Executive Director of the Learner Variability Project, Digital Promise; and Bennison (Bb) Ntsakey, Director of Academics, Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools

Sponsored by Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools (LAB)
Hosted by Digital Promise

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In this edWebinar, the Brooklyn Laboratory school community in partnership with Turnaround for Children, EL Education, and City Year demonstrates how schools must go beyond safety measures to meet the needs of students and ensure that every young person has a relationship with a trusted adult to provide the support they need to learn and grow.

On August 12th Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools (LAB) announced the launch of its Success Coaching Playbook to help schools nationwide consider how they can train staff to help every student navigate different learning environments and succeed in a COVID-19 world. Given the financial and health challenges created by COVID-19, as well as ongoing racial trauma, students need support in a variety of learning contexts, including remote, in-person, and hybrid options. Brooklyn LAB is training a range of adults—including teachers, support staff, administrators, and teaching fellows—to be the primary support people for designated sets of students, working with each student individually to make sure they are set up for success.

Hear from key partners in the development of the Success Coaching Playbook: Pam Cantor, M.D. from Turnaround for Children, Jennifer Boyce and Kirsten Davis from City Year, and Ron Berger from EL Education. Learn vital information and get access to practical resources to ensure that every young person in your learning context has access to a safe, supportive, and knowledgeable adult who can effectively serve our learners and guide them through trauma, stress, and upheaval.

This edWebinar will be of interest to K-12 teachers and school and district leaders.

About the Presenters

Pamela Cantor, M.D. practiced child and adolescent psychiatry for nearly two decades, specializing in trauma. She founded Turnaround for Children in 2002, after co-authoring a study on the impact of the 9/11 attacks on NYC schoolchildren. Today, Turnaround translates scientific knowledge about how children develop and learn into integrated tools, resources and services for educators, school leaders, and school systems to establish the conditions and practices that drive learning and growth, so that all students thrive.

Jennifer Boyce started her career in education with Teach for America in Washington, DC. Her initial plan was to teach for two years and then get an MBA, however, her teaching experience profoundly changed her understanding of equity and what is needed to build an education system where all children are supported to thrive. After her teaching career, she worked in program design, training and recruitment at a few educational non-profits, and as an instructional support leader at Chicago Public Schools before landing at City Year. She started her City Year journey leading impact at City Year Chicago before joining the Headquarters team supporting the implementation of its Whole School Whole Child approach across City Year’s 29 sites and over 350 schools around the country. She currently lives in Chicago, is originally from Minnesota, and is a passionate Minnesota Vikings fan.

Kirsten Davis graduated from Ohio University with a degree in special education and joined City Year as an AmeriCorps member to follow her passion for ensuring all young people are treated as individuals and ha​ve access to mentors and a quality education. During her City Year experience at Trevitt Elementary on the east side of Columbus, she fell in love with the work and seeing the difference she and her team were able to make in the lives of students. She decided to remain with the organization and is now managing teams of City Year AmeriCorps members at Trevitt Elementary and Champion Middle School.

Ron Berger is Chief Academic Officer for EL Education, a nonprofit school improvement organization that partners with public schools and districts across America, leads professional learning, and creates open educational resources. He is a well-known keynote speaker nationally and internationally. Ron is the author of best-selling education books, including: An Ethic of Excellence, and A Culture of Quality; and co-author of Leaders of Their Own Learning, Transformational Literacy, Management in the Active Classroom, Learning that Lasts, and We Are Crew: A Teamwork Approach to School Culture. He teaches at Harvard Graduate School of Education, where he did his graduate work. He founded the website Models of Excellence: The Center for High-Quality Student Work, which houses the world’s largest collection of beautiful student work. He was a public school teacher and master carpenter in rural Massachusetts for over 25 years, and received the Autodesk Foundation National Teacher of the Year award.

About the Hosts

Vic Vuchic is a seasoned thought leader in education technology and philanthropy. He is an expert in learning science, innovation, and scaling what works and has launched game-changing initiatives that have increased access to education and improved learning for tens of millions of learners in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa. Prior to Digital Promise Global, Vic consulted with a number of foundations and organizations on education technology, innovation and philanthropy. Prior to consulting, Vic developed strategies and managed over $100 million in technology-focused grants at the Hewlett Foundation to launch and grow the Open Educational Resources movement and create and advance the Deeper Learning strategy. Vic completed a master’s degree in education and technology at Stanford University and a bachelor’s degree in systems engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Vic also received a scholarship and attended Berklee College of Music for a year. Previous experience includes working at startups in Silicon Valley for eight years with expertise in human-centric system design and innovation methodologies.

Bennison (Bb) Ntsakey is the director of academics at Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools. He previously served as School Director at Brooklyn LAB, and Principal of Community Charter School of Paterson. He served as a leader at Uncommon Schools for several years and was the school director and manager of Teacher Leadership for Teach for America in Miami and Chicago. He began his career in education as a teacher and then lead teacher, for the Miami-Dade County Public Schools. He holds a master’s degree in education (Public School Building Leadership and Organization) from Columbia University Teachers College; a master’s degree in education (Education and Social Change) from the University of Miami Graduate School of Education; and a BA in English, Philosophy, and African American Studies from Syracuse University.

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Digital Promise was created with the mission to accelerate innovation in education to improve opportunities to learn.

The mission of Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools (LAB) is to prepare scholars with the academic foundation, digital literacy, and leadership skills necessary to succeed in college and professional life as they grow as ethical leaders.