Presenters' Biographical Information

CSSU August Inservice
Workshop Presenters ­ Biographical Information
Don Bouchard
Don Bouchard has forty‐four years of experience in ESL/EFL teaching, curriculum and administration. He started his
career as a Peace Corps Volunteer teaching EFL in Brazil, then worked for a time with the Portuguese immigrant
population in southeastern Massachusetts. After attending the School for International Training, he served as a Fulbright
TEFL Lecturer in Yugoslavia, followed by work with the Department of State as an English‐teaching Officer. Since 1983,
Don has been living in Maine working in a variety of capacities: as a deaf education teacher, college international
programs director, public school and adult education ESL teacher, and Title VII program coordinator. Don founded the
University of Southern Maine's Master's degree program in Literacy Education and ESL, and has been an ESL professional
development specialist for the Portland Public Schools. He is now a senior consultant on the WIDA professional
development team.
Colleen Brady
Colleen Brady is a first and second grade teacher at Charlotte Central School. Colleen has traveled to Uganda for the
past four summers to facilitate projects for the 52 Kids Foundation. She has been very involved in the education of the
children, teaching lessons in the schools and meeting with the teachers in Uganda. Colleen has been an inservice
presenter for CSSU for two years.
Steve Carey
Stephen Carey is a veteran CVU English teacher who is incorporating dance into his ninth grade Core curriculum.
Students use movement and music to illustrate/interpret themes from literature.
Sonny Cassani
Sonny Cassani is the facilitator of South Burlington’s Wellness and Resilience Program for Teachers, as well as a
meditation teacher, certified yoga teacher, and registered nurse.
Robyn Davis
Robyn Davis has been teaching physical education at Charlotte Central School for more than 20 years. She is excited
about the opportunity to work with CSSU physical educators again this year.
Erica Denman
Erica Denman is a literacy consultant who works with teachers and administrators to help them develop and build their
reading and writing workshops and strengthen their teaching of reading and writing across the curriculum. Erica has a
particular interest in building student independence into teaching and learning. She received a Bachelor of Arts from
George Washington University and a Master of Arts from Teachers College, Columbia University.
Erica’s classrooms in New York City and Long Island served as lab sites for visiting teachers from across the country. Her
classroom was featured in The Art of Teaching Reading by Lucy Calkins (Addison Wesley, 2001). Erica authored the
Schoolwide, Inc. Writing Fundamentals unit entitled, “Revision (Grades 6‐8)” and is the Content Editor for a new series
of Writing Fundamentals Units (6‐8), entitled “How Writers Work.” Erica was an instructor at the Teachers College
Reading and Writing Project Summer Institutes. She works with teachers during school year visitations, summer courses,
workshops and study groups. Erica is a frequent presenter at the Literacy for All Conference, hosted by Lesley
University. This year she will be presenting a workshop entitled: “Creating a Vision: Planning for Teacher Learning in the
Writing Workshop (K‐8).”
Robin Fawcett
Robin Fawcett is an artist and teacher devoted to fueling the urge for artful expression in others. For over 25 years she
has taught acting, directing, physical theater, and the teaching of theater while creating original works and directing
plays. She currently teaches at Champlain Valley Union High School and for FlynnArts. From 1995–2000 she designed

and implemented “Performance Across the Curriculum,” a CVU school‐wide resource for arts integration. Robin is a
member of the CSSU Arts Committee.
Bill Feeley
Bill Feeley is an exemplary mathematics teacher who has also served as a math coach and as a Supervisor of
Mathematics, K‐12. His classroom experiences with different math curricula, along with his achievements in educational
leadership and professional development facilitation, precede his role as a Mathematics Professional Development
Specialist for Teachers Development Group. Bill works closely with Clare Earley.
Kathy Folley
Kathy Folley is a retired teacher of middle level language arts at Charlotte Central School. She currently works with the
Young Writers Project and volunteers on literacy projects at the Charlotte Central School.
Tim Fox and Ginny Iverson
The Co‐Teaching instruction will be planned and provided by Timothy Fox and Ginny Iverson from the Vermont State I‐
Team at the University of Vermont. Tim and Ginny taught this workshop series for CSSU for a group of 30 teachers in the
spring of 2011. Both have extensive experience in the field of education, special education and the inclusion of students
with disabilities in general education activities. Both Tim and Ginny have extensive experience teaching courses at UVM
and provide numerous workshops and seminars on including students with multiple disabilities, deaf‐blindness, autism
and emotional disabilities and general education activities.
Edorah Frazer
Edorah Frazer, Ed.D., has been a middle and high school teacher and administrator, an elementary school principal, a
teacher educator and a professional developer, and is currently a member of the Charlotte School Board. In each of
these contexts, she has used Critical Friends techniques to deepen her work with colleagues and students and to reflect
on her own practice. Edorah holds a strong conviction that educators learn best from colleagues in their own schools.
She currently works with schools throughout northwest Vermont to support deep, efficient and open communication
among educators with the goal of improving student learning.
Geoff Gevalt
Geoffrey Gevalt is an award‐winning writer and editor who now runs the Young Writers Project.
Matt Glover
Matt Glover is a full‐time educational consultant and author. He is the coauthor (with Katie Wood Ray) of already Ready
(2008) and author of Engaging Young Writers, Preschool‐Grade 1 (2009). Matt is a frequent presenter at conferences
and in school districts on topics related to nurturing young writers and supporting children’s intellectual growth and
development. Matt has been an educator for over 20 years, including 12 years as the principal and instructional leader
of Creekside Early Childhood School, a school of 900 preschool, kindergarten, and first grade students. Before becoming
a principal, Matt taught first grade. Matt lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife and four children.
Deb Higgins
Deb Higgins is a wellness teacher at Champlain Valley Union High School and a contributor to the book Educating from
the Heart.
Tracy Lavallee
Tracy Lavallee is a science lead teacher at Underhill ID School in Jericho, Vermont. She holds a Masters of Education in
Curriculum and Instruction from St. Michaels College. In addition to teaching science to children, she spent 2 years as a
VISMT teacher associate and 2 years as the science coordinator for the three K‐5 schools in South Burlington, where she
worked with teachers to implement inquiry based curriculum, instruction and assessment in their classrooms. She has
also worked as a science consultant for Exemplars for 12 years and has taught several graduate level science education
courses at St. Michael’s College.

Claire Walker Leslie
Clare Walker Leslie is a Vermonter, living in Granville. For 40 years, she has travelled the country teaching Field Natural
History Drawing and Journaling to all ages, in schools, nature centers, colleges, and art centers. Clare is a professional
artist, naturalist, educator and author of 11 books on observing nature. She was trained in the study of Keeping Nature
Journals in Europe and has brought the tradition to this country, increasingly seeing how people are eager to learn more
about and record where they live and who lives beside them, especially as our habitats are shifting and changing. She
brings her enthusiasm, knowledge, and curiosity to every classroom she works with.
Philip Martin
Philip K. Martin is currently teaching music at Campbell High School in Litchfield, NH where he is responsible for Band,
Guitar, Music Theory, and World Percussion classes. He received his Bachelors in Music Education from Keene State
College, and his Masters Degree in Music Education from UNH. From 2001 to 2003 Martin served as the MENC Eastern
Division President. In September of 2005 Martin was named “NH Star Teacher of the Year” by the United States
Department of Education for his work in assessment and student achievement. The NH Music Educators Association
named him their “2006 Distinguished Educator of the Year” and in 2008 he was awarded the 1st Keene State College
Department of Music “Distinguished Alumni” Award. Currently, he is the National TRI‐M Chair for MENC and is serving
as the National Band chairperson for the MENC Band Council. He holds memberships in NHMEA, MENC, and NEA‐NH.
Tracy Martin
Tracy Martin teaches dance around the state and through FlynnArts and the Flynn’s Words Come Alive! program. She
studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and is artistic director of Phantom Theater, creating original works in theater,
music and dance.
Mary Muroski
Mary Muroski teaches 5 th and 6 th grade at Charlotte Central School and has been teaching in CSSU for eleven years.
Mary and her teammates have integrated Global Studies into their curriculum and have used many resources to connect
with other cultures. Some of these included guest speakers, Skype, creating wikis and websites and community service.
This year students Skyped with children and teachers in Uganda which was a great learning experience for all. This
summer Mary will be traveling to Uganda to work with the 52 Kids Foundation.
Marilyn Neagley
Marilyn Neagley is the Coordinator of the Talk About Wellness initiative and co‐editor of Educating from the Heart.
Kim Nolan
Kim Nolan is the Director of Integral Psychology at Burlington College, mindfulness instructor and chaplain.
David Peckinpaugh
As the Coordinator for the Staff Wellness Program, David brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to CSSU. With a
diverse background in Health Education and Exercise Science, he is a strong advocate for bringing a "mindful" approach
to a variety of personal health and wellness issues.
Nancy Pollack
Nancy Pollack is the Math Coordinator at the Hinesburg Community School. She has worked in this capacity for 10
years. Prior to this, Nancy worked for 10 years as an elementary teacher in grades 2 – 6. Over the 20 years she has
spent in education, Nancy has also been involved with teaching various professional development workshops and
courses. Nancy was a member of the development team that created the PNOA for the Vermont Department of
Education.

Ann Rainey
Ann Rainey taught middle school mathematics for 40 years, 31 of those years at Shelburne Community School. She loves
math and working with students, has experience with Best Practices and taught Visual Math for many years. Although
retired from the classroom, Ann consults about teaching math as well as supervises student teachers.
Bill Rich
Bill Rich is a dynamic presenter renowned for his capacity to meet the needs of his wide‐ranging audiences. Bill weds his
celebrated teaching experience with his command of cognitive science and education research to provide participants
with practical tactics that work, along with the principles to guide their skillful application. Moreover, Bill designs
workshops that put these principles and tactics into play. “With Bill,” commented a recent workshop attendee, “the
medium is the message.” Bill’s work has been featured in Carol Tomlinson’s book The Differentiated School: Making
Revolutionary Changes in Teaching and Learning, and a recent National Professional Development Study conducted by
Stanford University recognizes his success as a teacher of teachers.
Linda Radtke
Linda Radtke has taught all levels of high school English in her thirty years of teaching, from advanced placement to
basic literacy. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Rutgers University, she has two masters degrees ‐ in education and English ‐
from UVM, and has trained many student teachers. Linda began her teaching career at Phillips Academy in Andover,
Massachusetts.
Joan Robinson
Joan Robinson served as the Flynn Center’s Education Director from 1994‐2005 when she stepped down to become the
Flynn’s Associate Director for School Programs. Joan directs the Flynn’s Words Come Alive!, a professional development
program which she founded in 2001. She is a longtime adjunct faculty member of St. Michael’s Graduate Program in
Education. Joan is a member of the CSSU Arts Committee.
Alice K. Sasso
Alice Sasso has over 20 years experience as a reading specialist/consultant, Reading Recovery teacher leader, literacy
coach, reading coach, and classroom teacher in the Rhode Island school system. She has trained Reading Recovery
teacher leaders in Rhode Island as well as Massachusetts, New York and Vermont through Lesley University. She has
served as an adjunct faculty member at Rhode Island College and has provided many workshops and trainings in all
aspects of literacy learning.
Kathy Schaw
Kathy Schaw has been a Math Interventionist for Williston School District for the past three years, focusing primarily on
grades K‐2. Over the past 21 years, she has worked as a math specialist for grades 2‐6, the CSSU Math Coordinator for
five years, a classroom teacher for grades 1‐4, and a Chapter I math teacher in grades 3‐5. She has also taught
numerous graduate courses and workshops in elementary mathematics and technology. Kathy was a member of the
development team that created the PNOA for the Vermont Department of Education.
Lindsay Simpson
Lindsay Simpson has been serving as the Physical Education Consultant for the Vermont Department of Education since
December 2005. She is passionate about promoting the importance of health and fitness for learning. Lindsay holds a BA
from Middlebury College in Neuroscience and Teacher Education and is currently working toward a Master's Degree in
Public Health.
Lisa Stanton
Lisa Stanton teaches first and second grade at Hinesburg Community School and is a member of the CSSU Arts
Committee.

Sally Stevens has been teaching at Shelburne Community School for the past 17 years, currently teaching a first and
second grade classroom on the Kaleidoscope Team. She is also the chair of the CSSU Arts Council Committee and a
former Vermont Comedy Diva.
Margaret Stewart
Marg Stewart is a Master Trainer with Project CRISS. Her passion is empowering teachers with strategic teaching and
learning principles and strategies they can use with their students to make them more successful, independent learners.
Marg has been in education for over 35 years and taught in both regular and special education settings. For over 15
years, Marg trained teachers in content area literacy strategies and helped them implement differentiated lessons in
their classes. Currently, Marg teaches math and life skills to incarcerated, adolescent girls in a secure Connecticut
juvenile detention facility.
Jessica Toulis
Jessica Toulis is a third grade teacher at Shelburne Community School and a contributor to the book Educating from the
Heart.
Amy Wardwell
Amy Wardwell is dedicated to creating a class environment where students have the knowledge and skills necessary to
express themselves in a variety of mediums suited for 21st century communication. She has been a member of the CVU
Social Studies Department for 15 years teaching a range of courses including Holocaust and Human Behavior, US History,
Making of the Modern World and Media and Society. She has worked collaboratively on developing ways to incorporate
the performing arts into social studies classes through a variety of media including theater and video production.
Lida Winfield
Lida Winfield teaches through the Flynn’s Words Come Alive! program, drawing on over ten years of teaching theater
and dance to students of all ages. Lida creates and tours solo, offering storytelling/dance performances across New
England. Her most recent piece, “In Search of Air,” expresses her childhood struggles with dyslexia.
Sue Wood
Sue Wood is a wellness teacher at Champlain Valley Union High School and a contributor to the book Educating from the
Heart.
CSSU Science Lead Teachers
Nancy Matthews (CCS), Stephanie Konowitz (HCS), Jessica Contois (WSD), and Robin Halnon (SCS) are members of the
CSSU science committee. They have facilitated CSSU science workshops and have co‐authored, with other science
teachers, the CSSU Science Inquiry task Assessment.
CSSU Technology Integration Specialists
Ed Bianchi (CCS), Bonnie Birdsall (WSD), Charlie MacFadyen (CVU), Ellen Matthews (SCS) and Jessica Wilson (HCS/CSSU)
are technology integrationists who assist teachers and students in classroom instruction and learning to apply various
technology skills.
CSSU Psychological Services Team
Cindy Cole, Ginger MacDonald, Miriam Stoll, Katey Wisse, and Katie Kennedy compose the Psychological Services team
for CSSU and offer support services to our schools, principals and teachers, K‐12.