Presented by Dr. Nick Polyak, Superintendent, Leyden High School District 212 (IL); Marlon Styles, Superintendent, Middletown City School District (OH); and Dr. Michael Salvatore, Senior Vice President, Kean University (NJ) 
Moderated by Ann McMullan, Project Director, EmpowerED Superintendent Initiative, CoSN (Consortium for School Networking)

Sponsored by ClassLink
This edWebinar series is co-hosted by CoSN, AASA, and edWeb.net

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During the past 14 months, the challenges involved in assuring equitable, effective learning systems for all students have never been more visible nor more critical. Accessibility has long been an essential principle for delivering equitable educational opportunities for all students, especially those with disabilities or learning differences, English language learners, and students from lower socio-economic communities. Beyond guaranteeing that all students can access course content and tools, schools and school systems also need to ensure that all information provided to the public, parents, guardians, and staff is accessible from any device. In addition to meeting the legal requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), school systems need to make accessibility policies and practices a priority for everyone. It falls to school leaders to continually make that commitment vocal and visible.

In this edWebinar, superintendents share how they are leading the complex issues involved in ensuring accessibility for all within their school districts. Five compelling steps for ensuring accessibility will be articulated and illustrated through shared resources and real-world examples of successful strategies that have been used to assure accessibility for all.

This recorded edWebinar will be of particular value to school superintendents, K-12 school and district leaders, and aspiring leaders. 

About the Presenters

Dr. Nick Polyak serves as the superintendent for Leyden High School District 212 in Franklin Park, Illinois. He earned a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) degree in educational leadership and supervision from Loyola University Chicago where he received the Phi Delta Kappa Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award. He holds a Master of Arts degree and Chief School Business Official (CSBO) license from Governors State University. Dr. Polyak’s undergraduate work was at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics and secondary education. Dr. Polyak is a co-moderator of #suptchat, the international Twitter chat for superintendents. He has co-authored two books: The Unlearning Leader: Leading for Tomorrow’s Schools Today and Student Voice: From Invisible to Invaluable. Dr. Polyak facilitates the AASA Transformational Leadership Consortium, the IASA Aspiring Superintendents Academy, and the AASA National Blended Aspiring Superintendents Academy.

In the fall of 2017, Marlon Styles became the proud superintendent of Ohio’s Middletown City School District. The four years prior, he served as the executive director of curriculum and instruction for Lakota Schools. His affinity for education has ignited a fiery passion to close the equity gap for all students. He prides himself on finding the good in every person. Marlon challenges others to rise up to strengthen the #MiddieRising culture. He states, “My affinity for education has ignited a fiery passion to close the equity and access gaps that affect schools. I am firmly devoted to finding innovative ways to integrate technology to transform learning experiences that will inspire students.” Marlon earned an undergraduate degree from Thomas More College and a master’s degree from the University of Cincinnati.

Dr. Michael Salvatore currently serves as the senior vice president at Kean University and formerly as Superintendent of Long Branch Public Schools in New Jersey. He is an award-winning contemporary leader in public education with an oratory skill known to inspire thought and action. Dr. Salvatore is recognized as a federal, state, and local education advocate aiming to elevate learning institutions through promising equitable practices. He leads with a contagious collaborative spirit that sparks next-level consciousness. Dr. Salvatore functions as a technical design analyzer who synthesizes data to reveal the architecture of longstanding organizational structures. More than two decades of creative solutions have earned him high regard as a reputable innovator and distinguished national leader in his field.

About the Host

Ann McMullan is Project Director for CoSN’s EmpowerED Superintendents Initiative. Ann served as Executive Director for Educational Technology in Klein ISD, near Houston, Texas until September 2013, when she and her family moved to Los Angeles, California. For 16 years Ann led the district team that provided professional development on technology and 21st century instructional strategies to 4,000 educators serving 50,000 students. She was co-chair of the Texas Education Technology Advisory Committee which developed the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology.

Today, Ann works as a public speaker, writer, and education consultant focused on leadership to meet the needs of today’s students. Ann serves on the edWeb.net Advisory Board, ClassLink’s Senior Advisors Group, and is a founding member of ERDI’s Alliance for Education Impact Advisory Council. She also volunteers as a leadership consultant with Executive Service Corps of Southern California, serving non-profit associations. Ann is the co-author of Life Lessons in Leadership, available on Amazon.com.

Closed captioning will be added to the recording within 2 weeks of the live presentation.

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AASA is the premier association for school system leaders and serves as the national voice for public education and district leadership on Capitol Hill.

CoSN (the Consortium for School Networking) is the premier professional association for school system technology leaders. CoSN provides thought leadership resources, community, best practices and advocacy tools to help leaders succeed in the digital transformation. CoSN represents over 13 million students in school districts nationwide and continues to grow as a powerful and influential voice in K-12 education.

ClassLink empowers your students and teachers with instant access to their learning resources. ClassLink® OneClick® includes a library of over 5,000 single sign-on apps and instant links to file folders at school and on Google, Office 365, and Dropbox cloud drives. ClassLink Roster Server easily and securely delivers class rosters to any publisher using open technology standards. ClassLink Analytics gives decision makers the usage data they need. Accessible from any computer, tablet or smartphone, ClassLink is ideal for 1to1 and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives.