Dr. Jessica Gottlieb, Assistant Professor of STEM Education, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education, Texas Tech University, Lubbock

Dr. Jessica Gottlieb is an Assistant Professor of STEM Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. She earned her doctorate in Policy Studies in Urban Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Most recently, she was a postdoctoral research associate at the Center for STEM Education at the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Gottlieb previously worked as a classroom teacher in Los Angeles, CA. Her research focuses on how educational policy can be used to equity and access to high-quality STEM education opportunities. Her current projects include examining the effects of longitudinal professional development on STEM teachers' identity as teacher leaders, identifying factors related to student persistence in STEM occupations, and the use of accountability-based measures in STEM teacher preparation.

Dr. Kevin Bastian, Senior Research Associate, Associate Director, Education Policy Initiative at Carolina

Kevin Bastian is a senior research associate in the Department of Public Policy at UNC Chapel Hill and an associate director of the Education Policy Initiative at Carolina (EPIC). His research focuses on educator preparation and effectiveness, with careful attention paid to how educator preparation programs can use data and evidence for program improvement. He currently leads the Educator Quality Research Initiative, a partnership between EPIC and the UNC System focused on conducting research and disseminating evidence to educator preparation programs and education stakeholders in North Carolina. He regularly presents findings to College of Education leadership and faculty and to state education officials. Prior to becoming a researcher he taught 6th grade language arts in eastern North Carolina.

Dr. Dan Goldhaber, Director of the Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research at the American Institutes for Research and the Director of the Center for Education Data & Research, University of Washington

Dr. Dan Goldhaber is the Director of the Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research (CALDER, caldercenter.org) at the American Institutes for Research and the Director of the Center for Education Data & Research (CEDR, cedr.us) at the University of Washington. Both CALDER and CEDR are focused on using state administrative data to do research that informs decisions about policy and practice. Dan's work focuses on issues of educational productivity and reform at the K-12 level, the broad array of human capital policies that influence the composition, distribution, and quality of teachers in the workforce, and connections between students' K-12 experiences and postsecondary outcomes.

Dr. Doug Hamman, Professor of Teacher Education and Director of Teacher Education, College of Education, Texas Tech University, Lubbock

Douglas Hamman is a Professor of Teacher Education and the current Director of Teacher Education at Texas Tech University. He is a Lubbock native who graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1995 with a degree in Educational Psychology. He enjoys learning new ways about using instructional technology and seeing the success of Tech Teach graduates. Learning theory, adolescent development, and new teachers' identity development are among his favorite areas of teaching and writing.

Dr. Charles Peck, Professor, College of Education, University of Washington, Seattle

Charles (Cap) Peck is currently professor of teacher education and special education at University of Washington. Cap's research work over the past decade has focused on policy implementation and systemic change in teacher education. He has been particularly concerned with factors affecting the extent to which programs of teacher education take up opportunities for program improvement that are afforded by new sources of outcome data. Cap served as Associate Dean for Professional Studies at UW from 2014-2017, and as Director of Teacher Education from 2003 to 2010. Prior to his work at University of Washington, Cap was Director of Teacher Education at University of California, Santa Barbara, where he and his colleagues conducted one of the first studies of the implementation of the Performance Assessment for California Teachers (precursor to the edTPA).

Dr. Arthi Rao, Clinical Associate Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, University of Illinois at Chicago

Arthi Rao's current teaching responsibilities focus on issues of multiculturalism and effective pedagogy in the urban elementary classroom.

She also helps her teacher candidates bridge the theory-practice gap in a seminar coupled with field observations during the student-teaching semesters. Her instruction across classes emphasizes the importance of culturally responsive pedagogy in all aspects of teaching: community building/learning environment, planning, instruction and assessment. Dr. Rao's research interests include language program models and their impact on English language learner academic performance and perceptions of schooling, pre-service teacher education and induction support in the beginning years of urban teaching.

Mr. Martin Winchester, Deputy Commissioner of Educator and System Support, Texas Education Agency

As Deputy Commissioner of Educator and System Support at the Texas Education Agency, Martin Winchester is responsible for overseeing the Educator Leadership & Quality Division. An educator with more than 20 years of teaching experience, Winchester is a former National Board Certified Teacher (2004-2014) and has earned degrees from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the University of Minnesota and the University of Texas-Pan American. He holds a principal certification from the State of Texas, as well as teacher certifications in English Language Arts, English as a Second Language and Social Studies Composite. Winchester began his education career in 1995 in the Rio Grande Valley and has taught at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Immediately before joining the Texas Education Agency, he served as an Advanced Placement/Dual Enrollment U.S. History teacher at PSJA High School in the Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Independent School District. A strong community leader for education in the Rio Grande Valley, Winchester led the effort to launch the HEROES Academy, a college-preparation middle school in the Pharr-San Juan-Alamo school district. Winchester's career arc is somewhat unusual and a testament to his commitment to teaching. He served for three years as the Chief Schools Officer of IDEA Public Schools overseeing the recruitment, selection, training and supervision of all the district's principals and curriculum team. After leading IDEA, he returned to the classroom because he wanted to further refine his craft of teaching in a traditional neighborhood high school. Over the years, Winchester has worked for Teach For America as an executive director, curriculum specialist, and literacy facilitator. In addition, he has trained more than 1,000 teachers and served as an Expert in Residence at the University of Notre Dame.