Featured Presenters

Tommie Mabry

Dr. Tommie Mabry grew up in poverty in Jackson, Mississippi. With no one to serve as a model for mainstream success, Tommie turned to life in the streets. He was expelled from numerous schools and by age 11, he was serving time for burglary. Things started to change for Tommie when he joined an AAU basketball team that traveled around the world. Although he was shot in the foot during his senior year, he received a full basketball scholarship to Missouri State University. After completing his undergraduate studies at Tougaloo College, he taught school in the same district where he had been expelled numerous times. Subsequently he has served as Director of Enrollment at Tougaloo College before founding the company that bears his name. He earned his Ph.D. from Jackson State University and has published two books, A Dark Journey to a Light Future and If Tommie Can Do It, We Can Do It.

Marsha Mcguire

Marsha McGuire is a kindergarten teacher in Cadillac, Michigan where she has accumulated over 15 years of teaching in early childhood classrooms. Her undergraduate degree was completed at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and her graduate degree in Early Childhood Education with a focus on Differentiated Instruction at Grand Valley State University. Marsha is also the author and creator behind the blog, A Differentiated Kindergarten where she shares ideas, activities and products. Her blog has become an avenue to aide other instructors in developing practical, developmentally appropriate and differentiated instructional strategies in their own classroom.

Katie Mense

Katie has taught kindergarten for more than 14 years and has a passion for creating fun, hands-on lessons and to meet the needs of all students. As a student who struggled through school, she truly understands that every student has different needs and learning styles. Katie has an MA in Education and also earned an additional 24 hours through a STEM grant. She loves to share her ideas and teaching experiences on her award-winning blog, littlekinderwarriors.com or on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram .

Featured Presenters

Candace Neil

Candace Neil is a passionate early elementary educator who has taught Kindergarten for seven years. She has also gained experience working at the third grade level. She holds a master’s degree in Educational Administration & Leadership. Ms. Neil excels at finding ways to make education fun and exciting for all learners and she has a deep passion for educating and inspiring underserved students and their families. She is a strong communicator and is invested in student success and collaboration with all stakeholders impacting the lives of her students. This internal value has been the inspiration for her goal to open an early learning center.

Olivia Odileke

Olivia Odileke loves making Ed Tech and teaching easier for teachers. For over 15 years she worked as an educator at Title 1 schools in Florida. She served as a national PBLTeacher Trainer for the online school Stride and has personally trained over 7500 teachers and continues to seek ways to innovate education. Olivia is a Certified Trainer for Nearpod and an HMH Instructional Coach, and has written over 30 published lessons for Cpalms.org, Nearpod, and Pearson and is the author of the Beginner’s Guide to Nearpod. Combining an M.Ed. in Instructional Technology and all of her experience has led her to become an expert in best instructional practices and the tech tools educators can use to drive student learning and curiosity.

Adam Peterson

Adam Peterson is an educator, speaker, author, and vlogger most known for his YouTube channel, Teachers Learn Too. A kindergarten teacher with over 13 years in the classroom, Adam now dedicates his time to helping teachers create meaningful and engaging experiences for their students! He’s on a mission to make classrooms as fun as possible to ensure every day is the best day ever in school!

www.adampetersoneducation.com Adam Peterson Education on YouTube

Greg Smedleywarren

Greg has been teaching for 15 years. He spent a year teaching fifth grade, two years with second grade, and is now in his 11th year with Kindergarten, which he’s determined is his calling and passion. He received his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and ELL certification from David Lipscomb University. In 2015 he was selected as Teacher Of The Year. When not in the classroom, Greg enjoys blogging and doing all things teaching. His husband (known as The Mister online) is a large part of his blog, social media, and their