Maruta Gardner - Currently retired, Dr. Gardner’s last position was Executive Director for San Diego County Office of Education Juvenile Court and Community Schools.  Prior to that, she held several positions with San Diego Unified and Poway Unified School District including Instructional Leader, Area Superintendent, Principal, Vice Principal, Lead Teacher and Teacher.

Sheridan Barker - Dr. Barker is currently a Strategic Leadership Consultant for a private firm.  Prior to that, she was the Director of Leadership Services at San Diego County Office of Education.    Dr. Barker has also held positions such as Coordinator for Leadership Development Center, Coordinator of Staff Development, Assistant Principal and teacher.      

Nancy Frey - Nancy Frey is an associate professor of literacy in the School of Teacher Education at San Diego State University. Before joining the university faculty, Nancy was a teacher in the Broward County (Florida) Public Schools, where she taught both general and special education students at the elementary and middle school levels. She later worked for the Florida Department of Education on a statewide project for supporting students with diverse learning needs in general education curriculum. She is also a recipient of the Christa McAuliffe award for excellence in teacher education. Her research interests include reading and literacy, assessment, intervention, and curriculum design. She has coauthored several books on literacy, including Language Arts Workshop: Purposeful Reading and Writing Instruction and Reading for Information in Elementary School (both with Doug Fisher). She teaches a variety of courses in SDSU's teacher-credentialing program on elementary and secondary literacy in content-area instruction and supporting students with diverse learning needs.

Douglas Fisher - Douglas Fisher is a professor of language and literacy education in the Department of Teacher Education at San Diego State University (SDSU), the co-director for the Center for the Advancement of Reading at the California State University Chancellor's Office, and a past director of professional development for the City Heights Educational Collaborative. He is the recipient of the International Reading Association Celebrate Literacy Award as well as the Christa McAuliffe award for excellence in teacher education from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. He has published numerous articles on reading and literacy, differentiated instruction, and curriculum design as well as books, including Creating Literacy-Rich Schools for Adolescents (with Gay Ivey), Improving Adolescent Literacy: Strategies at Work (with Nancy Frey), and Teaching English Language Learners: A Differentiated Approach (with Carol Rothenberg). Doug has taught a variety of courses in SDSU's teacher-credentialing program as well as graduate-level courses on English language development and literacy. A former early intervention specialist and language development specialist, he has also taught high school English, writing, and literacy development to public school students.

Michelle Lustig - Dr. Lustig is currently the Coordinator of Foster Youth Services for San Diego County Office of Education.  In addition, she is Adjunct Faculty at CSU San Marcos.  Prior to that, she held several positions as a social worker.

Norma Baker - For the past 6 years, Dr. Baker has been the Director of Elementary Mathematics Program for the Los Angeles Unified School District.  Prior to that, she was the Coordinator of Elementary Reading Program for the District.

George Cameron - Dr. George Cameron having recently retired as superintendent in National School District after a long and highly successful career in the district. George is known to his superintendent colleagues and to his district staff, teachers and leadership team as a person of the highest integrity, one who has devoted his career to improving schools for the children they serve. He earned his Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of San Diego, and has served for many years as a part-time faculty member in our department. He has been coordinating our partnership with the south county school districts to prepare highly qualified educational leaders. He has also been an integral member of our department team in designing the new Ed.D. program and renewing our ongoing programs. He will join us to coordinate our Credential and Master’s cohorts and our newly approved Administrative Internship Program, as well as to share his gifts as a teacher and field supervisor for aspiring administrators.

Esmeralda Mondragon - Dr. Mondragon currently holds the position of School Improvement Officer for San Diego Unified School District.  Prior to this, she held the several positions including Business Operations Manager in Palmdale School District and several principalships.

Mary Anne Stro - For the past 10 years, Dr. Stro has been a consultant to the County Office of Education for San Diego as well as Adjunct Instructor at National University.  Her course topics include: Supervision and Evaluation of Instruction, Educational Leadership and Management, and Human Resources in Diverse School Communities. 

John R. Browne, II - Dr. Browne is currently an Adjunct Lecturer for Browne and Associates’ Third Millennium Enterprises. Prior to that, he was an educational consultant and Director of Integration Programs for San Diego Unified.

Carl Cohn - Carl A. Cohn is Co-Director of the Urban Leadership Program and Clinical Professor in the School of Educational Studies at Claremont Graduate University. Dr. Cohn’s distinguished career in education has spanned over thirty years. Throughout this time, he has worked in a variety of educational capacities; such as a teacher, counselor, professor, superintendent and Federal Court monitor. Earning his Ed.D in Administrative and Policy Studies from the University of California Los Angeles, Dr. Cohn has personified the valuable role of a research practitioner, expanding the field of education in a variety of ways.

Dr. Cohn played a pivotal role during his career in the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD). Focusing on urban affairs and educational policy, he served as an Administrative Coordinator, Director of Attendance, and Superintendent from 1992-2002. In 2000, Dr. Cohn was America’s longest serving urban superintendent and during this tenure he made the school district a model for high academic standards and accountability. During his tenure as Superintendent, the LBUSD achieved record attendance, the lowest rate of suspension in a decade, decreases in student failure and dropout rates, and an increase in the number of students taking college preparatory classes. Through exemplifying this commitment to leadership and improved student achievement, he won the McGraw Prize in 2002, and the district won the Broad Prize in 2003. In 2002, Dr. Cohn served as Clinical Professor for the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California and went on to become an Independent Court Monitor for the Los Angeles Federal District Court. From 2005-2007, Dr. Cohn served as the Superintendent of San Diego Unified School District and recently served as a Leader in Residence at the College of Education at San Diego State University before joining the Claremont Graduate University faculty.

Further utilizing his expertise, Dr. Cohn has worked as a faculty advisor for both the Broad Superintendents Academy and the Harvard Urban Superintendents Program. Currently, he serves on the boards of the American College Testing, Inc. (ACT), the Freedom Writers Foundation, the Western Governors University and EdSource.

Among his many publications and research projects, Dr. Cohn co-edited the 2004 Teachers College Press publication, Partnering to Lead Educational Renewal: High Quality Teachers, High Quality Schools.

Jose Francisco Escobedo- Dr. Escobedo is currently the Asst. Superintendent for South Bay Unified School District.  Prior to that, he held several positions including Research Analyst, VP of Achievement and Operations for Edison Schools, Adjunct Professor at SDSU, and several Principal and Vice-Principal positions.

Sheridan Spencer – Dr. Spencer is a dedicated educator with over 14 years of experience as a teacher, program improvement resource teacher, coordinator of adult education and principal.  She also has experience providing classroom instruction in both academic and vocational classes.

L. McLean King - Dr. King is former Superintendent of the Encinitas Union School District.  Prior to this position, Dr. King also served as Superintendent for Lemon Grove and Escondido Union School Districts.  He has been an assistant superintendent, a special education coordinator, and a building principal.

Donald Evans – Dr. Evans is an accomplished executive level administrator with a proven record of success in promoting student academic achievement and excellence at the school and district level in urban settings.  He is an experienced district level leader with expertise in driving change and reform in a fiscally challenged environment with declining enrollment.

Kelly Johnson - Kelly Johnson, PhD is a faculty member in teacher education at San Diego State University and a classroom teacher at Health Sciences High and Middle College. She is the recipient of the Constance McCullough Research Award by the California Reading Association for her study on assessment and diagnostic instruction. She also received the International Reading Association’s Celebrate Literacy Award which honors Kelly for her significant literacy contributions. She has published in The Reading Teacher, The California Reader, the Reading Professor, and Literacy. She has coauthored the following books: Accommodating Differences among English Language Learners: 75+ Literacy Lessons, Designing Responsive Curriculum: Planning Lessons that Work and Teaching Literacy in First Grade (Tools for Teaching Literacy). Kelly has appeared in many instructional videos on teacher modeling, assessment and instruction, effective grouping, and writing instruction. Kelly’s current focus is on assessment and small group instruction in secondary classrooms.

Luz Chung - Luz Chung earned her B.A. in Applied Mathematics with a minor in French Literature from the University of California, San Diego. She received her M.A. in Teaching and Learning from UCSD in 1996, and her Ed.D. in Teaching and Learning, also from UCSD, in 2006. She has been a bilingual classroom and Title I Resource teacher in grades 7-9 at Memorial Academy in the San Diego Unified School District, and a vice-principal for grades 5-8 at Wilson Academy, also in the San Diego Unified School District.

Prior to her arrival at EDS as a Lecturer, Luz Chung was the Director of Education at UCSD Extension, where she coordinated professional development programs for teachers. Her responsibilities at EDS include teaching EDS 250: Equity and Diversity in the Classroom, EDS 136: Introduction to Tutoring in Secondary Schools; EDS 138: Introduction to Tutoring at the Preuss School and; EDS 39: Practicum in Science and Math Teaching and Learning. Her research interests include multicultural education, critical pedagogy, bilingual education, and how immigrant families socialize their children into language and learning.

Gilbert Mendez - Dr. Mendez is Coordinator of Academics and Instruction for Calexico High School in the Calexico School District, Imperial County.  In this capacity, he works with and supervised the School Action Team to provide optimal articulation of curriculum and instructional programs.

Kathy Skube – Dr. Skube is principal of Emerald STEM Middle School in the Cajon Valley Union School District.  She possess an Ed.D in Educational Leadership from the University of San Diego.  She has served as principal at Title I schools with an emphasis on using data analysis, collaboration, and improvement in teaching practice to increase student achievement and decrease the achievement gap.  Dr. Skube has worked with staff to integrate technology into the teaching-learning equation effectively.  

Dr. Skube has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in Educational Psychology and Methods of Teaching Reading at the University of San Diego for over ten years as adjunct faculty.

As leader of two schools in which staff used six-week data and collaboration to improve teaching and learning, she has guided many educators through the inquiry process, analyzing data critically, and engaging in lesson study and action research to identify critical attributes of practice to improve learning and teaching.

Carol Leighty - Dr. Carol Leighty has more than thirty years of experience in education. She served as Superintendent of the Redondo Beach Unified School District from 2004-2005, and as Superintendent of Lakeside Union School District from 1998-2004.  While at Lakeside Union, she provided a vision and plan for improvement of instruction, rising test scores, and  implemented Differentiated Instruction and professional development in the Literacy and English Language Learner curriculum.

She also has experience in higher education, having been an Adjunct Professor at California State University San Marcos, San Diego State University and Point Loma Nazarene University in the School of Education.

Prior to being named Superintendent of Lakeside Union School District in 1998, Dr. Leighty was Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction for four years, Director of Professional Development for San Diego Unified School District from 1992-1994 and Director of Integration Support Services from 1987-1992.

Dr. Leighty came to the Temecula Valley Unified School District in March 2006.

She holds a Doctorate of Education in Policy and Administration from the University of Southern California, a Master of Arts and Bachelor of Arts from San Diego State University, and Administrative, Elementary and Special Education Credentials.

Lis Johnson - Currently retired, Dr. Johnson is the former Superintendent of the Santee School District.  During her tenure, she lead the district to significant increases in student performance with all nine district schools achieving 820+ API scores, attaining an achievement status of 9th out of 43 school districts in San Diego County.  She has also served as an Assistant Superintendent, Director of Curriculum, a building principal, and a classroom teacher.

Sharmila Kraft - Engaging students in critical thinking through hands-on science learning over 15 years ago ignited my passion for teaching.  I spent 7 wonderful years teaching various elementary grades.  During that time, I was recognized by the New Teacher Project as an exemplary new teacher, earned a Master's in curriculum and instruction, and was one of three recipients in the Santa Cruz/Monterey County of National Board Certification.  I worked as a district coordinator for the Pajaro Valley Unified School District creating and training teachers on innovative curriculum programs for low performing students and English learners.  I served as faculty at CSUMB in the CalState Teach program for 4 years, where I served cohorts of teacher candidates both in coursework and in the field.  After earning my doctorate from University of the Pacific, I developed and implemented research based writing program for K-6 English learners through the San Diego County Office of Education.  In the last 4 years, I've had the opportunity to return to a school site and honor to as a site administrator.

Robert Pletka - In 2003, Robert Pletka joined the inaugural cohort of the CSU/UCI Joint Ed.D. program in Educational Administration and Leadership. He chose as his emphasis area Educational Technology Leadership, offered in collaboration with partnership campus Cal Poly Pomona. The emphasis suited Robert's professional interests. He was employed as Director of Technology for the Covina Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) and an Adjunct Professor at National University, teaching multimedia, Internet, networking web design, educational technology and telecommunications.

Prior to joining CVUSD, Robert taught 3rd, 6th, 7th, and 8th grades in the Lake Elsinore Unified School District. He has summarized his classroom experiences and his evolution as an educator in his most recently published book Educating the Net Generation (Santa Monica Press, 2007). (It should be mentioned that while he was teaching in Lake Elsinor, Robert also served as City Commissioner for the City of Murrieta from 1993 to 1997.)

Educating the Net Generation emerged from the doctoral research work Robert conducted, in part for his dissertation, but also to implement his vision of how to engage high school students in an extended cross-discipline learning activity. For his research Robert secured corporate, community, and educator support to provide 2000 students from 30 diverse schools throughout California with 200 digital cameras and professional support for documenting life in their high schools. The culminating projects were a presentation at Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts and publication of My So-Called Digital Life.

Shortly after the Digital Life project received national attention, Robert was offered and accepted the position of Associate Superintendent of Vista Unified School District in Southern California, which led two years later to his current position as Superintendent in El Centro.

The Department of Education is proud of Robert's accomplishment and of his commitment to improving educational opportunities for California youth.

Lynne Perez - Dr. Perez is the Director of Research for the National Center for Urban School Transformation at San Diego State University. She also serves as a part-time lecturer with SDSU’s Department of Educational Leadership. Lynne began her career in education as a middle school teacher and teacher leader.

Before coming to San Diego State, she worked as an assistant professor at St. John’s University (Queens, NY) and as a visiting professor at The Ohio State University, where she earned both her masters and Ph.D. in educational administration.

Most recently, Dr. Perez led NCUST’s contribution to an intensive statewide study of California’s continuation high schools conducted on behalf of the James Irvine Foundation and in collaboration with researchers from Stanford University and WestEd.

Deanna Hughes – Dr. Hughes has worked as a speech language pathologist in educational and medical settings with both pediatric and adult populations. In addition to her clinical work, she received her doctorate from Case Western Reserve University, and has also worked as a researcher and clinical faculty member at San Diego State University. Her research interests include adolescent language in both typical and clinical groups and how language competence impacts social communication abilities.

Stephanie Pierce - Stephanie Pierce is currently Director of Instructional Development for the Santee School District. She served as the principal at Chet F. Harritt School in the Santee School District and began her administrative career as a Vice Principal at Cajon Park School.  Prior to this, she taught 4th and 5th grade students and students with special needs as a Resource Specialist.

Stephanie holds an M.P.A. from San Diego State University and a BA in Psychology from the University of California, San Diego.

She enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, and in her spare time, sails, runs, and kayaks. 

Ronald Powell – Dr. Powell is the Administrator for the Desert/Mountain SELPA, San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools located in Apple Valley, California.

Julie Martel - Dr. Julie Martel just completed her 13th year as a principal in the San Diego Unified School District.  She is currently the principal for Pacific Beach Middle School, An International Baccalaureate World School.  Under her leadership Roosevelt Middle School became an authorized International Baccalaureate World School.  Julie has served as the principal of two elementary schools, a vice principal and a teacher.

Mary Cannie - I am proud to be leading the Boone Elementary School team and truly excited to be part of a learning community once again.

I come to Boone with a varied career in both public education and in the private sector. I started my career as an elementary school teacher and have worked in so many aspects of education: guidance counselor, building administrator, central office administrator (including curriculum development), a superintendent and a state Department of Education administrator. Before serving as Executive Director of Instructional Support Services, I managed my own consulting company and facilitated professional development in school districts throughout the nation.

I bring a depth of experience back to the front lines of education, where I look forward to engaging with students and the learning community at the most important level. I can't think of any job that's better than one that comes with its own playground!

Tony Burks - Dr. Tony Lamair Burks II, Superintendent-in-Residence with the National Center for Urban School Transformation (NCUST), is a career educator who has served independent schools, public schools and institutions of higher education in various roles from teacher, executive director and principal to adjunct professor, workshop facilitator and area superintendent.  He began his career in Ross, CA, as The Branson School’s first Bess K. Gallard Teaching Fellow. In 1994 he joined the faculty of the University School of Nashville, a K-12 independent coeducational day school, as a high school teacher. In December 1998 he became principal of Crockett Elementary School in Brentwood, TN.

In 2002 he became founding principal of North Carolina’s first early college high school, one of the first schools of its type in the nation. In 2006 he was appointed Director of Magnet and Choice Schools, with responsibilities for supporting 44 schools in Guilford County, NC. He was a founding board member of the North Carolina New Schools Project.

During his tenure with the San Diego Unified School District, he was a High School Improvement Officer, a Secondary School Improvement Officer, the Executive Director of Small School Innovation, and the Executive Director of Atypical and Charter Schools with responsibilities for California's second largest portfolio of charter schools.  Most recently he was the Area Superintendent for 27 schools in service to over 15,000 students and their families in what is arguably San Diego’s most culturally, linguistically, and ethnically diverse community.

A fellow of the British-American Project, he has thrice participated in Fulbright Programs—the Fulbright Administrator Exchange to Thailand in 2006, the Fulbright Educator Exchange Special Initiative with Jordan in 2004, and the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program in 1998. Dr. Burks earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy with Honors from Morehouse College, a Master of Education degree in Educational Leadership from Trevecca Nazarene University and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from The University of North Carolina—Greensboro.