Will Waghorne is a middle school history teacher in Austin, TX. He enjoys working with, and teaching, gifted and talented learners in digital environments. Mr. Waghorne also works to engage like-minded colleagues in an international personal learning network. He has previously won the Texas State Historical Association’s David C. DeBoe Award. Find him online at waghorne.net and @mr_wag on Twitter, or IRL (in real life) exploring museums and historical sites around Texas.

Timothy Gangwer is a dedicated educator of 26 years, with a focus in the field of visual learning. He has served as visual literacy consultant to the Ministry of Education, France; Ministry of Education, Japan; Mediterranean Association of International Schools, Morocco; and the Association of International Schools, Africa. Mr. Gangwer is an international keynote speaker, educational consultant, and the director and co-founder of the Visual Teaching Alliance.

Ayo Jones is an experienced special education teacher, successful instructional coach, and charismatic professional speaker. Driven by her love for all things special education, Ayo provides educators teaching students with significant disabilities exactly what they need to survive and thrive. In her over 15 years in education, she has coached hundreds of teachers, trained thousands of educational professionals, and developed curriculum for tens of thousands of students with disabilities.

Tracy Dennis has served in education for over 25 years as a teacher’s assistant, an elementary and a middle school teacher, a campus instructional specialist, a campus administrator, an educational specialist at Region 13 Education Service Center, instructional coach, and a district administrator. She was awarded ESL Teacher of the Year in Fort Bend ISD. She obtained a Master of Education in English as a Second Language from Grand Canyon University.

Mary Headley is an independent Math Consultant with over 20 years of classroom teaching experience. Mary served as a Math Specialist at the district level before joining the math team at Education Service Center Region 13 in Austin, Texas, first as an Education Specialist for K-5 Math, and subsequently as the Program Manager for Mathematics. Her passion for math is contagious! Mary believes that students should love learning math, even while they are learning the complex concepts behind it.

Alex Kajitani (Kaw-juw-taw-nee) is the 2009 California Teacher of the Year, and a Top-4 Finalist for National Teacher of the Year. He is the co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inspiration for Teachers, and his first book, Owning It was named “Recommended Reading” by the U.S. Department of Education. Alex is also on a mission to get every kid in America to learn their times tables, and to make this happen, he created the popular online program www.MultiplicationNation.com.

Colin Seale, Esq. is an education advocate and critical thinking expert who has merged his passion and experience for education, law, and social justice into thinkLaw, an award-winning program that helps educators teach critical thinking through standardsaligned, real-life legal cases and powerful and personalized professional development to help teachers implement engaging Socratic strategies across all grades and subject areas.

Hutto ISD develops community involvement and support through strong relationships and caring for all kids. We achieve success for all students by embracing our uniqueness and strong sense of belonging. We strive to create world-class problem solvers and 21st-century learners.

Emily Mofield, Ed.D., is an assistant professor at Lipscomb University where she teaches gifted education and doctoral research courses. She has co-authored numerous award-winning advanced language arts curriculum units (with Vanderbilt PTY) and is also the author/co-author of several research publications related to achievement motivation and collaborative teaching practices.

Dr. Diane Heacox is an award winning author, national and international consultant and professional development trainer focusing on strategies to increase learning success for all students. Dr. Heacox has taught at both elementary and secondary school levels and has served as a gifted education teacher and administrator, as well as an instructional specialist in public education.

Dr. Katherine McKnight is a dynamic presenter, dedicated teacher, and award-winning author. In addition to speaking at professional development conferences, she is a regular consultant in schools and classrooms in the United States and Internationally.

Richard M. Cash, Ph.D., has worked in the field of education for over 25 years. Dr. Cash is the president and lead consultant for nRich Educational Consulting, Inc. His areas of expertise include educational programming, differentiated instruction, brain compatible classrooms, and self-regulated learning.

Lori Comallie-Caplan is a New Mexico Licensed Master Social Worker and a Licensed Educational Diagnostician with a Masters Degree in Psychological Counseling. She is best known for her work with gifted individuals through the lifespan and frequently provides professional development for school districts and mental health professionals in the social emotional needs of the gifted.

Pieces of Learning is a leading publisher of differentiated K-12 publications and provides top-quality staff development speakers who move educators from ordinary to extraordinary! With expertise in Differentiation, Standards-Based Teaching Activities, Creative and Critical Thinking, Assessment, Underachievement, and Gifted and Talented Education, we create content that improves student thinking and questioning skills, encourage creativity in the language arts, promote critical thinking in math and science, explore character education, present research skills and provide enrichment in social studies

Lisa Van Gemert is the Youth and Education Ambassador for American Mensa. She provides programming and support for the young members of American Mensa as well as gifted youth, educators and parents of the general public. Ms. Van Gemert currently serves as Chair of the Gifted Plus Division for the Texas Association for the Gifted & Talented (TAGT).

John Linney, M.A., is an international speaker, trainer and author. As a “climate specialist,” he has provided services and training to over 400 educational institutions, foundations, community partnerships, and organizations in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and Mexico. In recent years, he has worked on improving school climates, integrating full service community schools, youth engagement, and bullying and violence prevention for staff, students and parents.

Joyce Juntune, Ph.D., is a renowned consultant, trainer, professor, and lecturer with more than 45 years of experience in the field of education. She is an instructional associate professor at Texas A&M University, and she teaches graduate-level courses in her expert areas of intelligence, child and adolescent development, educational psychology, giftedness, and creativity