Dr. Susan Colby, Past-President
Appalachian State University

Susan Colby is the Director of Faculty Professional Development in the Center for Academic Excellence and professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Appalachian State University. Prior to her work in educational development, she served as chair and assistant chair in the department for twelve years. Susan earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from East Carolina University; her MA in Administration, Curriculum and Supervision from the University of Colorado, Denver; and her BS in Elementary Education with Distinction from the University of Minnesota. In 2002, she was the recipient of the National Council of Professors of Educational Administration Morphet Dissertation Award. In the public schools, she served as principal, Title I director, clinical professor, and teacher. Her research interests include assessment of student learning, teacher preparation program effectiveness, and the evaluation of preservice and practicing teachers. Her published articles have appeared in journals such as Studies in Educational Evaluation; Reading Research and Instruction; Action in Teacher Education; Teaching Education; Multicultural Education; and Educational Leadership.

Scottie Collier

Principal, St. Matthews Elementary School

Jefferson County Public Schools, Kentucky

Scottie has been the Principal of St. Matthews Elementary School since 2014. 
Before being principal, he was the Vice Principal at St. Matthews Elementary after he served as principal when he developed and started the alternative education school, Horizons Academy in Bardstown, Kentucky with Nelson County Public Schools. Scottie has spent 19 years in public education. Six of those years as a special education teacher with Jefferson County Public Middle and High Schools. He attended graduate school at Spalding University and earned a Master of Arts in Teaching and a Master’s in Educational Administration. 

Mr. Collier and his team have developed a character education program that includes training and curriculum that all students at the school participate in on a daily basis. He credits this focus on character education as one of the many reasons for the academic success of the school. This character education program has been a cornerstone for the school that propels Mr. Collier’s vision that a school should educate the students academically and help raise good human beings who will be successful at every level. 

While at St. Matthews he has established great relationships with the school district, community, local government that has allowed opportunities for the students at the school. Every year it has remained a priority for the 4th grade students to visit the Capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky. Mr. Collier has also worked with the Mayor of St. Matthews, Mayor Tonini, to help secure funding for needed playground updates and additions, as well as, requiring a lot of school fundraising to meet this goal. Also, St. Matthew Elementary welcomes local Church volunteers to work with the students and help build relationships and bridge educational gaps. 

Outside of school, Mr. Collier enjoys spending quality time with his family and loves spending time outdoors. He and his wife, Amy, who is a certified social worker and therapist have two children, Clara and Matthew, both students in Jefferson County Public Schools.

Dr. Linda Feldstein

Fort Hays State University

Linda Feldstein serves as an Assistant Professor in the Teacher Education Department at Fort Hays State University, in Hays, KS. Prior to joining academia, Linda spent 27 years in public education in varied roles, including a special education teacher, an instructional support specialist, and an elementary school counselor. Her educational background includes a B.S in Special Education from Gwynedd-Mercy College, a M.S. in School Counseling from Villanova University, and an Ed. D. in Educational Planning, Policy, and Leadership from the College of William and Mary. Research interests include classroom grading and assessment practices, working with redesign schools in Kansas, and student engagement. She has presented work in national venues such as American Educational Research Association, The Association of Teacher Educators, and The Consortium for Educational Research and Teacher Effectiveness, along with numerous state and regional conferences and professional development events. 

Tanisha Garrett

Oakland Unified School District, California

Tanisha Garrett is History Department Chair, a member of the Instructional Leadership Team, the co-founder and sponsor of the Black Student Union at Madison Park Academy in the Oakland Unified School District in California, where she teaches history to 10th and 11th graders. She is in the second year of her doctoral program in Anthropology and Social Change at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Tanisha holds a bachelor's degree in History and a master's degree in Teaching from Bellarmine University with a Learning and Behavior Disorders certification.

Danielle Hahn, Administrative Assistant
Appalachian State University

email: treasurer@createconsort.org

Danielle Hahn is the Administrative Support Specialist, Faculty Services in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at Appalachian State University. She has been working in this capacity since 2012. Prior to her work at Appalachian, she was a bookkeeper, office manager, and medical secretary. She has a degree in Business Administration, with over 22 years of experience working with budgets and bookkeeping. 

Dr. Nancy Nasr

Chemistry Content Leader

Granada Hills Charter High School, California

Nancy Nasr is currently a secondary school science educator with over seven years of experience in the diverse classroom. Teaching a population of approximately 50% Latinx and Black students, Dr. Nasr’s continued research interest is anchored in cultural responsiveness in the science classroom as well as student attitudes toward culturally responsive pedagogy. Additionally, Dr. Nasr has an interest in exploring the ways in which the Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs) of the NGSS can be used to infuse science learning that is situated in phenomena associated with social justice, and empowering her students to overcome social injustices through the use of science. Dr. Nasr received her B.Sc. in Microbiology from University of Alberta. She received her M.A.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction from California State University, Northridge and her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from University of South Carolina.

Dr. Sheila Wilson, Recording Secretary

Virginia Beach City Public Schools

email: recording.secretary@createconsort.org

Sheila Wilson is an educator with Virginia Beach City Public Schools. She has served at Regent University as an Adjunct Professor in the Teacher Leader program. Dr. Wilson has over 30 years of experience teaching elementary, secondary, and post-secondary education. She earned her B.A. and M.Ed. from the University of New Orleans in Drama and Communications and Curriculum and Instruction, respectively (1990, 2000). Sheila earned her doctorate in K-12 School Leadership from Regent University in 2014. In 2015, an article she co-authored on 21^st Century School Leadership was the feature for Virginia Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development’s online publication. She is a regular contributor to Classroom Q & A, an Education Week Teacher blog, and was featured on BAM! radio in 2019 speaking on the effectiveness of restorative practices in schools. Sheila was nominated Teacher of the Year in 2015 and 2019 and most recently Reading Teacher of the year in 2021. Dr. Wilson is leading change in education through her company AmplifyEd Educational Consulting as the learning architect working with adults as a dissertation coach, presenter, and online course facilitator.

Connect with Dr. Wilson, website:@amplifyedec.com, Twitter:@wilson1sheila