James Scheurich, PhD Professor, Urban Education Studies Indiana University - Indianapolis Dr. Scheurich is a Professor of Urban Education Studies education in Indiana University’s School of Education. His dedication is to support the creation of schools that deliver high quality success to all student groups, especially those groups that have historically not been well served by public schooling, like African American students, Latino students, students from low income families, student from families that do not speak English at home, students from other cultures, students with disabilities, girls in math and science, lesbian/gay/bi/transgender students, or any other group not receiving the benefits of a high quality education. He is especially focused on this in urban areas where the majority of children of color live and go to school. He is also dedicated to framing urban areas in terms of their strengths and assets while critiquing the inequalities and addressing the challenges. He considers the so-called achievement gaps to be mainly a function of the way schools and urban centers work rather than a function of those student groups on the lower side of such gaps or their parents and communities.
	Shelley Zion, PhD Professor, Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Education Rowan University - Glassboro, NJ Dr. Zion is a Professor of Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Education at Rowan University and Executive Director of the Center for Access, Success, and Equity (CASE). Dr. Zion's work is multi-disciplinary, grounded in the social sciences, and specifically within sociology as it seeks to understand how institutions, social systems, and individual experiences create and sustain systems of power and privilege that ensure access for some while excluding others. Her research is situated within a framework of sociopolitical development, informed by a range of critical theoretical perspectives, and advanced by an understanding of the nature of both individual and systemic change. This framework requires that to impact a transformation of the current public education and other social systems towards goals of equity and social justice, we must work to disrupt dominant ideologies by creating spaces in which people begin to develop a critical understanding of the cultural, political, economic, and other institutional forces that perpetuate systems of privilege and oppression. Practically, this translates to a focus on teaching for social justice-preparing educators, students, community members to be active participants in ending oppression through empowerment and organizing.
	Kathleen King Thorius, PhD Associate Professor, Special Education Indiana University, Indianapolis Dr. Thorius is an Associate Professor of Special Education in Indiana University’s School of Education and principal investigator for the Great Lakes Equity Center, funded by the U.S. Department of Education to address school desegregation in relation to race, gender, and national origin. Dr. Thorius has a strong record of facilitating partnerships with state departments of education and school districts to create inclusive educational systems. Via her research, she explores ways educational policy and local practices converge to shape experiences and outcomes for historically underserved students, particularly students of color with dis/abilities. Dr. Thorius' work has been published in Exceptional Children, Remedial and Special Education, and Theory into Practice, as well as other dis/ability-related and interdisciplinary journals. She is co-editor (with Dr. Elizabeth Kozleski) of Ability, Equity, and Culture: Sustaining Inclusive Urban Education Reform published by Teachers College Press.
	Seena Skelton, PhD Director of Operations Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center Dr. Skelton is Director of Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center. As Project Director, she works in collaboration with Executive Director, Dr. Thorius, to plan, direct, and manage projects and services offered to state and local education agencies throughout the Center’s 13-state region. Dr. Skelton has worked as an educational consultant for a regional special education resource center in southwest Ohio, a lead consultant for three state-wide school improvement initiatives funded by the Ohio Department of Education. Dr. Skelton also served as co-director of Professional Learning and Technical Assistance at the Equity Alliance at Arizona State University, and Assistant Director of Professional Learning and Technical Assistance at the Great Lakes Equity Center at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. She has garnered more than 15 years of experience working in the areas of systems change, school improvement, and educational equity. Dr. Skelton has been an adjunct professor at Northern Kentucky University, the University of Cincinnati, and the College of Mount Saint Joseph. She has co-authored book chapters on implementing systemic change for improved student outcomes, and regularly presents at numerous local, state, and national conferences on various topics related to promoting the achievement of diverse students.
	Tiffany Kyser, PhD Associate Director of Engagement & Partnership Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center Dr. Kyser is the Associate Director for Engagement and Partnerships at the Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center (MAP Center) within the Great Lakes Equity Center. In this role, Dr. Kyser leads the coordination of publications, resources, and tools, as well as co-leads outreach and engagement work across the USDOE technical assistance and dissemination network. Dr. Kyser has over twelve years of experience in outreach education, K-12 teaching and administration, higher education administration, authorizing, and education policy. Her research and work is rooted in collaboration, design thinking, and change management. Prior to joining the MAP Center, Dr. Kyser served as a Language Arts Inclusion teacher, Governance & Leadership Analyst for the City of Indianapolis, and as Chief of Staff for Tindley Accelerated Schools. Dr. Kyser is an Indianapolis native and graduate of Culver Girls Academy of the Culver Academies. Her research and ideas around design thinking, education leadership, and education reform have been accepted by Design-Ed, the Indiana Urban Schools Association, International Conference on Urban Education, the Design Management Institute, the Academy for Educational Studies, and the Journal of Curriculum Theory. She has been fortunate to receive such awards as Indianapolis Business Journal's "Top 40 Under 40", Junior Achievement's "Indy's Best & Brightest," the Center for Leadership Development's Distinguished Achievement Award, Indiana University Alumni Magazine's "Top 30," and being named NCAA Indiana Woman of the Year. Dr. Kyser has received executive training at Harvard, Stanford, and Indiana Universities.