Preconference Agenda
More details will appear on this page as the conference gets closer.
In 2025, we have a great line up of preconference workshops for you to choose from! You can add one of these preconference sessions when you register or by logging into your account and adding one from there.
SREB-Hosted Preconference Sessions
For the 2025 conference, we will offer the following workshops:
Powerful Instructional Practices
From Proficient to Profound: Mastering Powerful Instructional Practices in Across Content Areas
Presenters: Jason Adair, Connie Lester, Debbie Robertson and Daniel Rock, SREB
Description: What are the hallmarks of quality instruction across different subjects? This session offers an in-depth look at the distinctive techniques that top social studies, math, science and ELA educators use to excel. Powered by SREB’s Powerful Instructional Practices, tailored to meet and exceed state standards, we would like to invite you to gain insights into the specific practices that elevate teaching from good to great.
You can learn how to implement these strategies effectively to boost your instructional impact and help your students thrive. This is more than a workshop—it’s an opportunity to transform your approach to teaching through actionable insights and expert guidance.
Career Pathways
Educating for the Future with Career Pathways 2.0
Presenters: Linda Floyd and Tim Shaughnessy, SREB
Description: Attendees will participate in the process undertaken by the SREB Career Pathway Steering Committee in defining career pathways and identifying their key elements. The presentation will emphasize clarity and consistency of terminology and context within the communication, development and implementation of career pathways.
SREB will profile examples of successful career pathways and highlight the “lessons learned and must-haves” to realize successful career pathways that meet the needs of students, industry, and communities.
Career Coaches and Career Development
Chart Your Course: Career Coaching for Student Success and Career Development
Presenter: Erin Anderson-Williams and Danielle Morton, SREB
Description: In today’s competitive landscape, guiding students toward meaningful and sustainable career paths is crucial. This session empowers administrators, educators, counselors and career coaches with actionable strategies to support student success. Participants will learn about and explore:
- Successful career coaching efforts from various states and districts
- Facilitating partnerships between schools and employers to provide students with valuable industry experiences
- Equipping students with critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, and teamwork skills vital for the workplace.
Using the SREB Powerful Student Practices for Career Literacy and Readiness, participants will assess their school’s career coaching and development efforts and create a plan to assist students in identifying their career goals, developing critical skills and navigating their transition from school to employment.
Teaching to Lead
From Industry Expert to Classroom Leader: Equipping Alternatively Certified CTE Teachers for Success
Presenters: Debbie Anderson and Chris Bailey, SREB
Description: Great teachers are the key to preparing students for success after high school. Keeping them in the classroom and growing professionally can be even harder. In this session, we will identify the unique needs of CTE teachers and explore how they can be supported to increase the odds they will stay and become highly effective teachers. Attendees will receive an in-depth look at SREB’s Teaching to Lead (T2L), a specially designed curriculum to support CTE teachers entering the classroom after successful careers.
Participants will learn about programs across the country that SREB supports to prepare, support and grow new CTE teachers. Data collected over the 10+ years of implementation from clients across the country will be shared as well as Information on SREB’s work to develop similar programs for teachers of other content areas.
Artificial Intelligence
Navigating AI in Education: Lessons Learned From SREB’s AI in Education Commission
Presenters: Ivy Coburn and Bob Stokes, SREB
Description: Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming the educational landscape, offering both opportunities and challenges for K-12 educators.
This interactive three-hour session invites educators to engage deeply with the SREB’s AI in Education Commission resources, focusing on practical strategies for integrating AI into classrooms. Participants will explore SREB’s policy recommendations, understand the four pillars of AI use in K-12 classrooms and identify the skills necessary for preparing students for an AI-ready workforce.
Through collaborative discussions, hands-on activities and real-world applications, attendees will gain actionable insights to advance efforts to understand and embed AI practices.
Session Objectives:
By the end of this session, participants will:
- Understand SREB’s AI policy recommendations: Examine and discuss the seven policy recommendations set forth by the SREB Commission on AI in Education, focusing on their implications for K-12 settings.
- Explore the four pillars of AI use in K-12 classrooms: Delve into the foundational elements guiding effective AI integration in classrooms, including ethical considerations, curriculum integration, teacher preparedness and infrastructure support.
- Identify Skills for an AI-Ready Workforce: Recognize and strategize on how to cultivate essential skills in students that align with the demands of an AI-infused workforce, such as critical thinking, adaptability and technological proficiency.
- Engage in Interactive Discussions: Participate in collaborative activities that allow for the sharing of experiences, challenges and best practices related to AI implementation in diverse educational contexts.
- Develop Actionable Strategies: Create personalized action plans for integrating AI tools and concepts into curricula, ensuring alignment with state standards and local educational goals.
Effective Instructional Coaching
Instructional Coaching: Getting to the Nitty Gritty to Support Teachers and Students
Presenters: Leslie Eaves, Christi Edwards and Marsha Moseley, SREB
Description: Join us for an engaging and interactive session to get to the nitty-gritty of transforming teacher practice through instructional coaching. We will discuss and explore what it means to be an instructional coach and dive into coaching roles and questioning practices that can help grow teachers in their craft. We will use real-life coaching scenarios to plan coaching conversations and coaching moves.
You will have the opportunity to practice these plans and receive constructive feedback. By the end of the session, you will be equipped with the tools and confidence to implement job-embedded coaching in your educational settings, ultimately benefiting both teachers and students.
English Language Learners/Multi-language Learners
Maximizing EL Success: Effective Strategies for Program Implementation
Description: This three-hour interactive session is designed to empower educators and program coordinators with actionable strategies to effectively implement and enhance English Learner (EL) programs. Participants will explore best practices for integrating language development with content instruction, ensuring compliance with ELD standards and using data-driven approaches to monitor and improve student outcomes.
Through hands-on activities, collaborative discussions and expert insights, attendees will gain the tools and confidence needed to create and sustain successful EL programs that meet the diverse needs of their students.
Presenters: Kevin Stacy, EL Coordinator, Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools, TN
Teacher Retention and Support
Four Factors to Solving Teacher Recruitment and Retention
Presenters: Megan Boren and Amanda Merritt, SREB
Description: There are four factors that affect how individuals decide to pursue or stay in a career: purpose, mastery, autonomy and compensation.
Education careers are no different. As the number one in-school factor affecting student learning, having great teachers is a top priority. To recruit, retain and maintain a strong educator workforce in schools, there are four key areas that district, school and teacher leaders can work toward: innovation, support, strategic staffing and workplace conditions and benefits.
We will explore these pieces and help you leave ready to begin transforming your educator workforce.
Longitudinal Literacy
Literacy for Life: Building Confidence from Cradle to Grave
Presenters: Allyson Morgan, Donn Kirkwood and Creed Dunn, SREB
Description: This session explores the Longitudinal Literacy Continuum, guiding participants through the critical stages of family and early literacy, adolescent literacy, and workforce/adult literacy.
Grounded in current research and trends, this interactive workshop addresses why literacy skills at each life stage are essential for academic success, personal growth and economic empowerment.
Participants will learn practical strategies to foster confidence in learners across all ages, gaining tools to support literacy development in their communities. Join us to discover how literacy shapes lives from early childhood to adulthood, creating resilient, adaptable individuals equipped to thrive.
Preconference Session With engage2learn
This year, we are collaborating with engage2learn to offer an exciting preconference add-on to the full conference experience.
This opportunity, which will be run by e2L, will focus on the science of coaching and the six essential coaching actions that are proven to consistently improve student performance and teacher retention. It will also look at how to manage an overwhelming workload of educators using platforms like e2L’s own GroweLab.
Included with registration are six one-year licenses to GroweLab. Through access to GroweLab, participants will have the opportunity to gain badging and microcredentials to measure skills attainment through coaching.
Details on the Preconference
| Title: | Connecting Coaching to Student Success: The Role of Data-Informed Growth |
| Description: |
Explore how data-informed growth coaching transforms outcomes for students and teachers alike. This session focuses on leveraging the science of coaching alongside the power of data to seamlessly connect proven coaching practices with measurable improvements in student achievement and teacher retention. Attendees will gain actionable strategies and practical tools to enhance their coaching impact while fostering sustainable growth. Engage in a collaborative learning environment to build capacity, refine approaches and drive meaningful change in education systems. |
| Included: |
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| Date: | July 9, 2025 |
| Time: | 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. |
| Cost: | $125 |