Focused Leadership in the Science of Reading: Supporting District Administrators

About the Presenters

Delia E. Racines, Ph.D. has served as a principal, assistant principal, instructional coach, teacher, content designer, and adjunct professor in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Over the past 20 years, Dr. Racines has focused on building leadership capacity and coaching programs from the ground up to ensure equitable opportunities and outcomes for all students. Dr. Racines effectively transitioned department chairs to instructional coaches through tailored modules and was awarded the prestigious Shirley Hord Award by Learning Forward in 2016 in Vancouver, Canada. Dr. Racines is a new author with Solution Tree, publishing Trust as the Core of Instructional Leadership; Edutopia; and has authored chapters in Legal Frontiers in Education: Complex Law Issues for Leaders, Policymakers, and Policy Implementers and Polyvocal Professional Learning Through Self-Study Research.

While working in a prison in Mérida, Venezuela, Dr. Racines blended her research in education and criminology, which led to a legal dissertation and nomination for the Joseph C. Beckham Dissertation of the Year Award by the Education Law Association. Dr. Racines received her bachelor’s degree from Virginia Tech, a master’s in criminology from Radford, and both a master’s in curriculum and instruction in multilingual education and doctorate in teacher education and educational leadership from George Mason University. Dr. Racines now oversees both the SBMCP and RLAA programs at the University of Southern California with the Rossier School of Education.

Dr. Laura Rowley is the Elementary ELA District Curriculum Specialist for Wichita Public Schools, where she brings a wealth of experience and dedication to the role. Dr. Rowley’s career in education began with 11 years of teaching first grade in the Haysville School District before transitioning to Wichita Public Schools in 2016 as an MTSS Facilitator at Kelly Elementary. Her educational journey includes a bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University, a master’s in curriculum and instruction from Baker University, and an educational doctorate from Southwestern College. Throughout her career, Dr. Rowley has been passionate about building meaningful relationships with both students and adults, with a strong focus on meeting individual needs. A lifelong learner, Dr. Rowley is committed to professional growth and strives to create positive educational experiences that impact both students and educators alike. She currently resides in Wichita with her husband and son.

Aaron Lyon, Ph.D. (he/him) is a Professor in the University of Washington’s (UW) Department of Psychiatry where he serves as Co-Director of the UW ALACRITY Center and Director of the School Mental Health Assessment, Research, and Training (SMART) Center, both of which leverage methods from human-centered design to support effective implementation of evidence-based practices in mental and behavioral health. He is also the Director of the Research Institute for Implementation Science in Education (RIISE) and Associate Editor for the journal Implementation Research and Practice. Dr. Lyon’s research focuses generally on increasing the accessibility, efficiency, and effectiveness of interventions for children, adolescents, and families.

Dr. Lori Silver, National Literacy Consultant at Lexia, is a former teacher, instructional coach, administrator, and district-level leader who is dedicated to enhancing literacy efforts from the classroom to the district level. She has designed, led, and delivered numerous professional development opportunities with a focus on creating systemic impact, increasing educator efficacy, and providing organizational support for leaders and educators. Her work is driven by a commitment to closing the opportunity gap for students, grounded in evidence-based practices. She has published research on the impact of job isolation on school administrators and, most recently, she earned her Ph.D. in educational leadership from George Mason University.

About the Moderator

Cassandra Wheeler is a proud “Poet” of the 1990 graduating class at Sidney Lanier High School of Montgomery Public Schools (MPS) in Alabama. In 1994, following undergraduate studies at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in early childhood education, Cassandra returned home to MPS and began her career as an educator at Morningview Elementary School. After earning her master’s degree and administrative certification, Cassandra joined the Alabama Reading Initiative, where she authored Alabama’s Reading First Initiative grant and managed Alabama’s statewide DIBELS pilot. In 2004, after serving the children of Alabama for ten years, Cassandra expanded her outreach to impact the life trajectories of students everywhere by joining the (then) Voyager Expanded Learning organization. Now, at Lexia, Cassandra serves the organization as Senior Education Advisor.