Provide practical support for using best literacy and instructional practices in the elementary, Special Ed and EL classroom.
Registration ClosedCost: $50 (lunch included)
Independent Educational Consultant at Launch Pad Consulting Group
Beth McGaw became an outspoken advocate for children with learning disabilities after her youngest son was diagnosed at an early age. She has been an active member in LDA for over 10 years and in 2012 was elected to the LDA Board of Directors, currently serving as co-chair of the Communications Committee.
Other activities within LDA include Marketing, Affiliate Support, Adult Topics and VP of LDA Georgia. Although Beth started her career as an Industrial Engineer, she pursued her passion for education by obtaining her M.Ed. from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She co-founded the Atlanta-based, award-winning magazine Kids Enabled in response to her frustration in locating appropriate resources for her son. Beth currently lives in Dallas and works as an Independent Educational Consultant at Launch Pad Consulting Group, which assist families and their students with learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder, and/or autism spectrum disorders locate post-secondary options, including college, job search, and residential living options. She also volunteers for LaunchAbility, a Dallas nonprofit that offers supportive employment services for individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Beth and her husband have three adult sons, one in New York, another in California and the third in Arkansas. They enjoy adventurous vacations with their family to stay connected.
Oklahoma's State Superintendent of Public Instruction
On January 12, 2015, Joy Hofmeister of Tulsa was sworn in as Oklahoma’s 14th State Superintendent of Public Instruction. She has championed a host of education reforms, including the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which replaces No Child Left Behind and returns autonomy to states and local districts. In February 2016, Hofmeister was one of four officials to appear before a U.S. House subcommittee in support of ESSA.
In the midst of a dire state budget crisis, Hofmeister has led a number of efforts to improve public education in Oklahoma. She has consistently advocated for raising teacher pay to the regional average, and in spring 2016, her plan to offer the ACT to every high school junior in Oklahoma was met with wide participation. She was the architect of a new law that repealed End of Instruction exams, requires improvements to the state’s school accountability system and ushers in a new culture of meaningful instruction that focuses on lifting outcomes for every student.
After taking office, Hofmeister insisted on greater transparency and wider stakeholder collaboration in the development of new academic standards for English language arts and mathematics. The standards were adopted in March and were implemented and assessed in the 2016-2017 school year.
In addition, under her leadership, new laws have been enacted that strengthen the Reading Sufficiency Act, improve student safety, eliminate teacher evaluation Value-Added Measures from state mandate, reduce bureaucratic red tape and combat the teacher shortage.
Inspirational Speaker featuring Dr. Seuss books
From 1937 to 1990, Dr. Seuss authored and illustrated forty-four books. His silly stories not only transformed American children’s literature, but also produced a publishing phenomenon. Two decades after his death, Dr. Seuss’s menagerie of colorful characters continue to educate, entertain, and inspire children of all ages. In this dynamic presentation, Dr. Tim Woods highlights the life and literature of Theodor Seuss Geisel and provides pragmatic methods for making Seuss’s stories come alive for a new generation of learners.
Recently featured on the Ellen DeGeneres Show! for her summer book program
McAuliffe Media Specialist, Kirby Mackenzie, Ochoa Elementary library media specialist featured on Ellen Degeneres Show!, will be sharing her insights and ideas for practical classroom applications using read alouds to promote literacy.
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contact edconf@oru.edu
Registration for students is $30
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