In this episode Dr. Margy Jones-Carey speaks to Sam Feeney about Hiring and Retaining Educators.

Sam Feeney is an author, speaker, and consultant with more than 20 years in public education as a teacher and school counselor in suburban Philadelphia.  Now living in Denver with his wife and five children, Sam founded The Career Factors to help districts improve engagement, increase retention, and reimagine hiring practices in response to the challenges facing schools today.  You can download his white paper, "The Administrator's Dilemma: Five ways to rethink teacher engagement and retention in a post-COVID age," and learn more about how The Career Factors equips school leaders at thecareerfactors.com/schools.   

This month Dr. Margy Jones-Carey talks to Camren Jones and Lindsey Lee from Excelsior Charter School in California about co-powerment and self directed learning through student agency.

Lindsey Lee is an Area Director at Excelsior Charter Schools in Southern California. She has been a passionate educator for 13 years serving in several fulfilling roles: junior high teacher, independent study teacher, ASB Director, WASC Coordinator, Assistant Principal and Principal. Lindsey attended California State University of San Bernardino for her undergraduate studies and continued on to earn a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership. In her current role as Area Director, Lindsey coaches and mentors principals by providing positive coaching and relevant professional development driven by data, student learner outcomes, and schoolwide action plans. 

Camren Jones is an Area Director for Excelsior Charter Schools located in Southern California. She has worked in education for over 18 years as a Teacher and Principal in Barstow, California. She graduated with her Bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies from Cal State San Bernardino and continued on to earn her Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, Administrative Credential and Master's Degree in Educational Leadership. As an Area Director, she leads professional development with a focus on Teaching and Learning for staff and provides coaching and mentoring to principals to enhance the instructional leadership capacity across the campuses within the district. 

In this episode Dr. Margy Jones-Carey speaks to Amber Chandler.

Amber Chandler is a National Board Certified middle school ELA teacher in Hamburg, New York with a Master’s Degree in Literature, as well as a School Building Leader certification. Amber has enjoyed a wide variety of teaching opportunities--from 6th grade remediation, to college courses, to education workshops on Differentiation, Danielson’s Domains, and Project Based Learning. No matter which level Amber is teaching, the goal is always the same: engage students to take charge of their own learning.

Amber’s blogs and articles have appeared in Middleweb, ShareMyLesson, Getting Smart, ASCD’s “Ideas From the Field,” Mom’s Rising, The EdVocate, AMLE magazine, as well as New York Teacher. She has served as a co-moderator for #WhatIsSchool education chat, as well as initiating the first #NYEdVoice Twitter chat as a New York Educator’s Voice Fellow. Amber has appeared as a guest on BAM! Radio Network to discuss the benefits of Project Based Learning, as well as webcasts for AMLE on the importance of teaching speaking and listening skills, and how to use artifacts to improve teacher evaluation in APPRs.

Dr. Margy Jones-Carey Speaks with Dr. Jeff Rabey, Superintendent of Depew UFSD about a future vision and discuss the challenges of the superintendency in light of the pandemic and what will come in the future.

Jeffrey R. Rabey, Ph.D. is the current Superintendent of Schools at Depew UFSD. He has been in education for over 30 years and a superintendent for 17 of those years. Jeff received his Ph.D.  in Leadership and Policy from Niagara University, with his dissertation, “The Self-Efficacy of New York State Superintendents of Schools and their Self-Reflective Practices: A Mixed Methods Analysis”. He is currently a visiting professor in the Educational Leadership Program at St. Bonaventure University. Dr. Rabey is a member of the New York State Master Teacher Program Application Review Committee, Superintendent Representative to Section VI of the  New York State Public High School Athletic Association, member of the Board of Directors for  the National Academy Foundation Western New York Region and a member of the Advisory  Board for the Depew High School Academy of Finance. He is the past president of the Western  New York Education Service Council, the Erie-Niagara School Superintendents’ Association  and Section VI of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association. Dr. Rabey also  served on the New York State Education Department Mathematics Standards Review  Committee, the House of Delegates for the New York State Council of School Superintendents  and twice on the Commissioner’s Advisory Council for the New York State Council of School  Superintendents. 

Jeff is an extremely active member of the community and is a Member of the Board of Directors  for the Lancaster YMCA, Member of the Lancaster-Depew Prevention Coalition (now FOCUS),  Immediate Past Chairman of the Alumni Board of Governors – Daemen College and served as  Vice President of the Boys and Girls Club of Lake Shore.  

Dr. Rabey received the Depew-Lancaster Prevention Coalition (FOCUS) Scholar of the Year Award in 2020, he was recognized as a National Academy Foundation Leadership Fellow in  2019, received the 2016 Innovation Award from the Lancaster Area Chamber of Commerce, the  2016 New York State Athletic Administrators’ Association Distinguished Service Award, the  2015 Lancaster Area Chamber of Commerce Community Leadership Award, the Daemen  College Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013, was recognized as a “Friend of Prevention” by  Western New York United Against Drugs and Alcohol Abuse and Commission on Independent  Colleges and Universities (CICU) Independent Sector Alumni Hall of Distinction Award. He has  been named in Business First’s Who’s Who In Education since 2008, was a Featured Alumni Profile in Daemen Today in 2007, is a recipient of the Walter Klein American Legion Post #514  Humanitarian of the Year Award and was named Who’s Who Among American Teachers in  2000 and 2005.  

Outside of the academic world, Jeff is an avid marathoner and cyclist and was a participant in the  2019 and 2020 Empire State Ride; a 500-plus mile fundraising ride for Roswell Park Cancer  Institute across New York State. Jeff is the husband of Tracy and proud father of Ella and Cora.

In this episode Dr. Margy Jones-Carey speaks with Dr. Marck Abraham about raising graduation rates and High School turnaround.

Dr. Marck Abraham is a transformational leader with a wealth of experience in urban education. He is committed to providing a world-class educational experience that ensures all students achieve their goals of post-secondary college and fulfilling careers. His mission has been to create environments that assist students to reach their maximum potential in life. Dr. Abraham and PLC Associates are partnered to support schools in achieving real results.

In our October episode Dr. Margy Jones-Carey speaks to Sharon Hance on professional learning, with a focus on students with differing abilities.

Sharon Hance's first teaching position was in Southern Maryland where she taught for 13 years in both self contained and inclusive/co-taught classrooms.  Sharon had the opportunity, while living in Maryland, to get her Masters Degree at Johns Hopkins and worked as an Inclusion Facilitator and Assistive Technology Specialist.  Returning to the western region of New York state in 2002, she had the good fortune of working alongside the team Erie 1 BOCES as well as at Smallwood Drive Elementary in Amherst.  Sharon Hance joined Alden as the Director of Student and Staff Learning in August of 2015 and considers working and learning in this community, an honor.

Join Dr. Margy Jones-Carey in a 15 minute discussion with Dr. Donna Jones, acclaimed Superintendent of Patchogue-Medford in New York - on the ground strategies for positively and proactively addressing DEI.

Dr. Donna Jones created an equity committee in her school to attend the diversity, equity and inclusivity concerns of the school community.  Through this work, the district has experienced success  in the climate, culture and  the academic success of the students. The podcast will take listeners through how she created the committee, provided the "charge" for the committee and how they have measured the results of the work to date.  


Bio:

Donna Jones is a passionate leader who has devoted her life to her family, profession, philanthropic endeavors and her spiritual growth.  She has worked in the field of education for more than twenty-eight years in positions ranging from accountant to superintendent of schools.  She currently serves as the Superintendent of Schools for the Patchogue Medford School District in Suffolk County where she strives daily to improve the learning experiences for students and staff members as she continues to foster strong relationships with the community.  She is responsible for the management and supervision of the daily operations of the 7,500 student school district.

Donna balances her busy career with rewarding philanthropic work.  She has been a proud member of the Greater New York Chapter of the Links, Incorporated for twelve years and is currently serving in her fourth year as the President of the Chapter.  She spends countless hours of service, providing programs and supports to the marginalized, oppressed and underserved communities locally and internationally.

Donna is the proud mother of four lovely daughters and four beautiful grandchildren whom she loves dearly.  During her spare time, she enjoys spending quality time with her family and traveling around the world.

Donna holds a Doctorate in Education, a Master’s in Public Administration and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration.  She has been honored by numerous organizations throughout Long Island.  She is a lifelong learner who never runs away from challenges, but embraces them with confidence, perseverance and determination.

In this episode Dr. Margy Jones-Carey speaks to Denise Gonez-Santos, Executive Director of the RBE-RN West housed at Erie 1 BOCES in West Seneca, NY. 

They discuss Multi-Lingual Learners and the best strategies for success in the classroom. 

In our opening episode of Chalk Talk, PLC Associate Dr. Margy Jones-Carey speaks to our special guest, Tracy McGee, CEO, Concepts Charter School. Together, they examine two youth-led projects that engaged young people as part of the solution, rather the problem, in regard to community and school life.

Biography - Tracy McGee:

McGee has 25 years of extensive experience in the youth development field and in the
administration of strength-based education and youth empowerment/leadership programs for the hard to reach populations. He has facilitated trainings for community-based organizations, Juvenile Justice Systems, educational institutions and agencies that serve youth. Tracy McGee has obtained degrees from Erie Community College - Associate of Science, State University at Brockport College - Bachelors of Science, Buffalo State College - Masters of Science- Canisius College-Masters of Science, and an Executive Leadership Certificate from Cornell University.

His fields of study have ranged from sports and recreation leadership to physical education,
multidisciplinary studies in Urban Education, and Educational Administration and Supervision. McGee is a nationally recognized and award-winning educator. Tracy has received several national and New York State awards for serving young people considered to be at-risk. Through Tracy’s leadership of a  program titled: Youth Voices, he  received the prestigious Black Achievers’ Educational Incentive Award for Educating and Empowering Youth and Communities and was selected as one of the top four 4-H youth development programs in the nation by the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents (NAE4-HA) Urban 4-H Programming Task Force.

He is the author of “Answering the Call: from Risk to Resiliency; from Passion to Purpose." In addition to being an author and speaker, Tracy is currently the CEO Global Concepts Charter High School and previously worked in the public school system’s Regional Resource Center, providing training to twenty school districts throughout Western New York on School Climate and Culture; Building Cultural Competence; and Positive Youth Development. 

Tracy is married to Tami Hollie-McGee and has two beautiful children, Treykel and Jada. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family, reading, and playing an occasional basketball game.