September 30, 2021
CARSON CITY,
Nev. – Today, the
Nevada Department of Education (NDE) celebrates the appointments of eight staff
members to national boards and commissions.
In their
roles, each NDE staff member will have the opportunity to affect change on a
national level, including revamping of national standards and involvement with
nationwide leaders in education.
“With the
appointments of several NDE staff members to national boards and commissions,
we celebrate Nevada’s leadership in education on a national level,” said State Superintendent
Jhone Ebert. “Each of these exceptional individuals will contribute to
meaningful changes in education policy and have the ability to work at the
forefront of education in the United States. I am so proud of each of our team
members who have earned this recognition and who continue to give generously of
their time and talents to Nevada’s students and educators as well as our
national colleagues.”
National
appointments of NDE Staff Members include:
- National
Computer Science Teachers Association: Cindi Chang, M.Ed., Education Programs Professional
for Computer Science, was elected to the Board of Directors.
- National
Council of Supervisors of Mathematics: Dr. Heather Crawford-Ferre, Education Programs Professional for
Mathematics, was appointed to the Board of Directors.
- Council
of State Science Supervisors: André DeLeón, Education Programs Professional for K-12 Science and
Instructional Materials, was elected to the Board of Directors.
- Advance
Career and Technical Education Equity Kitchen: Randi Hunewill, Assistant Director of Career and Technical
Education (CTE), was appointed to the Advance CTE Equity Kitchen.
- Society
of Health and Physical Educators America: Andrew Snyder, Education Programs Professional for
Physical Education was selected to serve on the taskforce to revise National
Health Education Standards.
- Results
for America (RFA) Education Fellows Program and Education Advisory Board: Dr. Seng-Dao
Yang Keo, Gabrielle (Gabby) Lamarre, and Sarah Nick were selected to serve as RFA State
Education Fellows.
Cindi
Chang, National Computer Science Teachers Association
Education
Programs Professional for Computer Science Cindi Chang was elected to the Board
of Directors for the National Computer Science Teachers
Association (CSTA).
Chang will also serve as the CSTA State Department Representative for the 2021–2023
term.
Chang has
served at NDE for more than four years, and previously worked as a computer
science educator in Clark County School District for 12 years. At NDE, her role
is to ensure that every student in Nevada has equitable access to quality computer
science classroom instruction that is led by a confident and properly trained
educator. Chang also supports NDE with Statewide initiatives, including the Nevada
Digital Learning Collaborative,
and collaborates with stakeholders Statewide to ensure they have the resources
they need to be successful in their respective education positions.
In these leadership
roles, Chang is a voting member of the Board, will evaluate the Executive
Director on an annual basis, will participate and support implementation of the
annual national CTSA conference, and is a member of the Teacher Standards
Writing Committee, Nominations and Elections Committee, and upcoming Audit
Committee. She will also participate in implementation and guidance on various
national programs aimed to expand computer science education.
As the
State Department representative on the Board, Chang has organized a national
membership of other state department computer science supervisors in collaboration
with national organizations Code.org and Expanding Computing Education
Pathways. This group currently has all 31 state computer science supervisors in
their membership and meets quarterly to discuss and collaborate on nationwide
computer science policy and initiatives.
At the
State level, Chang is also a member of the Governor’s Telecommunications
Advisory Council (TAC) where she advises the Governor on technology and
telecommunications matters. Chang’s appointment to this role was recently
renewed for the 2021–2023 term.
Dr.
Heather Crawford-Ferre, National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics
Education
Programs Professional for Mathematics Dr. Heather Crawford-Ferre has been
appointed to the Board of Directors for the National
Council of Supervisors of Mathematics
(NCSM) for the 2021–2023 term. Dr. Crawford-Ferre will serve in the position of
Affiliate Coordinator, and her term will begin in September 2021 at the annual
NCSM Conference.
Dr.
Crawford-Ferre has served in her role at NDE for five and a half years, leading
initiatives in K-12 mathematics and educational technology, including Nevada
Ready 21. Prior to her
role at NDE, she served as the Assistant Director of the Nevada Mathematics and
Technology Program and as Teacher Preparation Adjunct Faculty at the University
of Nevada, Reno. Dr. Crawford-Ferre is also an author and editor with two
published books examining Out-of-School-Time STEM Programs for Females.
NCSM is a
mathematics education leadership organization that equips and empowers a
diverse education community to engage in leadership that supports, sustains,
and inspires high-quality mathematics teaching and learning for each and every
learner. Dr. Crawford-Ferre is the past president of the Nevada Mathematics
Education Leadership Council and a board member of Women and Mathematics Education,
both of which are affiliates of NCSM. This experience uniquely qualifies her to
support NCSM affiliates across the nation in her new role.
André
DeLeón, Council of State Science Supervisors
André
DeLeón, Education Programs Professional for K-12 Science and Instructional
Materials, was elected to the Board of Directors for the Council
of State Science Supervisors
(CS3). DeLeón has worked at NDE for ten years, and previously served for more
than 20 years as a science and social studies teacher for Nevada middle and
high school students. His three-year term started on April 7, 2021, and he will
serve until April 2024.
The mission
of CS3 is to sustain and nurture a dynamic learning community that empowers its
members to be effective and articulate advocates for quality science education
at the local, state, and national levels. Board Members are elected by CSSS
State Membership. The Board of Directors manages the organizational business
and is the governing body of the organization.
DeLeón was
elected to the position of Archivist and serve as the custodian of the
corporate records pertaining to CS3. He will also serve on CS3’s Finance
Committee. This committee prepares an annual budget for approval by the Board
and serve in an advisory capacity to the Board on financial matters.
Randi
Hunewill, Advance Career and Technical Education Equity Kitchen
Assistant
Director of Career and Technical Education (CTE) Randi Hunewill was appointed
to the Advance
CTE Equity Kitchen to
serve a one-year term beginning on October 6, 2020. Hunewill has served NDE for
13 years in the Office of Career Readiness, Adult Learning & Education
Options. In her role at NDE, Hunewill oversees the Health Science and Public
Safety programs of study, supports new teacher training and professional
development, supervises grants, and coordinates distance education for CTE.
Prior to
NDE, Hunewill served as a Nevada educator for more than 28 years, teaching
middle school mathematics and science in Washoe County School District, and teaching
high school agriculture and science in Lyon County School District.
As part of
the Advance CTE Equity Kitchen, Hunewill discusses challenges and success
related to equity, helps develop resources for all states, and supports
comprehensive local needs assessment (CLNA) to facilitate a data-informed,
continuous improvement process for schools.
Andrew
Snyder, Society of Health and Physical Educators America
Education
Programs Professional for Physical Education and Health Andrew Snyder was selected
by Society of Health and Physical Educators America (SHAPE) to serve on the taskforce for a
two-year term to revise the National Health Education Standards.
Snyder has
served as an Education Programs Professional at NDE for almost three years, and
previously worked in the Washoe County School District for five years as an
English Language Learning and Health and Physical Education teacher. He serves
in the Office of Standards and Instructional Support to oversee Health,
Physical Education, and STEM. In this role, Snyder provides leadership and consultative
services, facilitates academic content standards development, provides
professional development opportunities, and assists in developing, executing,
and reporting NDE policies relating to Health, Physical Education, and STEM.
SHAPE
America aimed to assemble a team of diverse leaders who possess deep content
knowledge of health education, and Snyder was selected from a large pool of
candidates for this role. Snyder’s appointment began September 2021, and the
revision of National Health Education Standards is anticipated to take place
over the next two years. The National Physical Education Standards are also
being revised, and there will be opportunities for collaboration between both
taskforces to ensure alignment between both sets of standards.
Dr. Seng-Dao
Yang Keo, Gabby Lamarre, and Sarah Nick, Results for America
Dr. Seng-Dao
Yang Keo, Gabby Lamarre, and Sarah Nick, who serve in the Office of Student and
School Supports, were selected to serve as State Education Fellows for Results
for America (RFA).
The RFA
Fellowship brings together senior program and evaluation leaders from State Education
Agencies (SEAs) into a single network that is focused on accelerating the
generation and use of evidence. NDE’s four participating members will serve
from May 2021 until June 2022 and will focus on helping SEAs and their school
districts respond to the overlapping crises of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic
collapse, and pervasive racial inequities.
In addition
to her role as a State Education Fellow, Dr.Seng-DaoYang Keo
also serves on the Results for America (RFA) Education Advisory Board. Dr. Keo
has worked at NDE for five years, and previously served as a mathematics
teacher and teacher leader for middle and high school students. She has also
held roles as a student leadership teacher for the Director of the Office of
the President and Director of the Foundation for a higher education institution
and has served as a National Education Policy Advisor. At NDE, Dr. Keo leads
the Office of Student and School Supports, which provides guidance, resources,
and supports to local education agencies and other educational organizations to
build their capacity so that all students in Nevada have access to excellent
and equitable schools.
Gabby Lamarre,
J.D. serves as Title I
Programs Director and Federal Liaison for NDE. She oversees programs that
support our most marginalized students, including youth experiencing
homelessness and those in foster care. Lamarre also works on targeted
interventions for the State’s lowest-performing schools. Prior to her four-and-a-half
years at NDE, Lamarre began her career as an elementary school teacher and has
worked in education law, policy, and advocacy in various settings.
Sarah
Nick has served at NDE
for almost four years in multiple roles. In her current role as Education
Programs Professional for the 21st Century Community
Learning Centers
program, Nick supports grants which advance academic enrichment programs
Statewide. Previously, Nick supported the State Superintendent of Public
Instruction with strategic planning and legislative affairs. She has previously
served as an elementary school teacher in Florida where she was recognized as a
district teacher of the year and has also worked as a district administrator
and in education technology start-ups.
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