Designing Successful Professional Meetings and Conferences in Education

Susan Mundry is currently deputy director of Learning Innovations at WestEd and the associate director of WestEd’s Mathematics, Science, and Technology Program. She directs several national or regional projects focused on improving educational practice and oversees the research and evaluation projects of Learning Innovations. She is codirector of a research study examining the distribution of highly qualified teachers in New York and Maine for the Northeast & Islands Regional Education Laboratory and is the project codirector for the evaluation of the Intel Mathematics Initiative, a professional development program for elementary and middle grades teachers aimed at increasing student outcomes in mathematics. She is also a Principal Investigator for two National Science Foundation projects that are developing products to promote the use of research-based practice in science and mathematics. Since 2000, Mundry has codirected the National Academy for Science and Mathematics Education Leadership, which provides educational leaders with training and technical assistance on professional development design, leading educational change, group facilitation, data analysis and use, and general educational leadership, as well as access to research-based information to improve teaching and learning. Building on this work, she provides technical assistance to several large urban schools districts engaged in enhancing leadership and improving math and science programs.

As a senior research associate for the National Institute for Science Education (1997-2000), Mundry conducted research on attributes of effective professional development. She served on the national evaluation team for the study of the Eisenhower Professional Development program led by the American Institutes for Research, where she worked on the development of national survey instruments and the protocols for case studies. From 1982 to 1997, Mundry served in many roles from staff developer to associate director at The NETWORK, Inc., a research and development organization focused on organizational change and dissemination of promising education practice. There, she managed the work of the National Center for Improving Science Education and the Center for Effective Communication, provided technical assistance to schools on issues of equity and desegregation, oversaw national dissemination programs, and co-developed the “Change Game,” (Making Change for School Improvement) a simulation game that enhances leaders’ ability to lead change efforts in schools and districts.

Mundry has written several books, chapters, and articles based on her work. She is coauthor of the best selling book, Designing Effective Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics (2nd edition), as well as Leading Every Day: 125 Actions for Effective Leadership, which was named a National Staff Development Council Book of the Year in 2003. Her latest book is The Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students (2008).

Edward (Ted) Britton is associate director of the National Center for Improving Science Education (NCISE), housed within the Mathematics, Science, and Technology program of WestEd. Dr. Britton brings long experience in research and evaluation of curriculum issues and materials to this book. In collaboration with Senta Raizen and others, he developed methods for a cross-national comparison of textbooks in the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). He led a review of curriculum materials that connect science and mathematics to workplace contexts, Connecting Mathematics and Science to Workplace Contexts. Britton currently serves on the Technology Education Advisory Council of the ITEA. His earlier NCISE research includes comparing high-stakes mathematics and science examinations across countries and studying U.S. innovations in mathematics and science education as part of an international study under the auspices of the Paris-based Organization of Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). As project director for Mary Budd Rowe of the University of Florida during the 1980s, Ted developed the first CD-ROM in science education and produced videotapes for the professional development of science teachers. During the late 1970s, he taught science courses for Grades 7–12 at a rural junior-senior high school in Florida. Britton earned an EdD in science education, an MS in analytical chemistry, and a BS in chemistry and education from the University of Florida.

Susan Loucks-Horsley was the lead author of the first edition of Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics and directed the professional development research for the National Institute for Science Education on which the book is based. At the time of her passing in 2000, Susan was the associate executive director of Biological Sciences and Curriculum Study (BSCS) and senior research associate for science and mathematics at WestEd. She had previously served as director of pro­fessional development and outreach at the National Research Council’s Center for Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Education, where she promoted and monitored standards-based education, especially the National Science Education Standards. Susan was a leading researcher, writer, and professional developer who enjoyed collaborating with others to address education’s toughest problems. She was the lead author of sev­eral books, including Continuing to Learn: A Guidebook for Teacher Develop­ment, An Action Guide for School Improvement, and Elementary School Science for the 90s. In addition, she wrote numerous reports on teacher development for the National Center for Improving Science Education, as well as chap­ters and articles on related topics. While at the University of Texas/Austin Research and Development Center for Teacher Education, she worked on the development team of the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM), a classic framework for understanding and leading change efforts.