The Empower Learning Competency-Based Professional Development Team
Dr. Robert J. Marzano
Robert J. Marzano, PhD, is cofounder and chief academic officer of Marzano Research in Denver, Colorado. During his 50 years in the field of education, he has worked with educators as a speaker and trainer and has authored more than 50 books and 200 articles on topics such as instruction, assessment, writing and implementing standards, cognition, effective leadership, and school intervention.
His books include The New Art and Science of Teaching, Leaders of Learning, Making Classroom Assessments Reliable and Valid, The Classroom Strategies Series, Managing the Inner World of Teaching, Handbook for High Reliability Schools, Handbook for Personalized Competency-Based Education, and The Highly Engaged Classroom. His practical translations of the most current research and theory into classroom strategies are known internationally and are widely practiced by both teachers and administrators.
He received a bachelor’s degree from Iona College in New York, a master’s degree from Seattle University, and a doctorate from the University of Washington.
Kim Hanisch
Kim Hanisch, currently an educational PCBL consultant and Assistant Professor within University of Alaska Southeast’s Ed Leadership program, has been engaged in the journey of personalized competency based learning for the past 17 years.
This journey has gained her experience within a variety of roles, including middle and high school teaching experience, serving as an Alaska Statewide New Teacher Mentor, she was involved as a professional development trainer, and served as principal with Bering Strait School District and Director of Services and Educational Specialist with Reinventing Schools Coalition (Marzano Research Corporation). Recently she was Director of Instruction and Learning with Kodiak Island Borough School District.
Misty McBrierty, Ed.D
Misty has been working in the area of proficiency/competency-based education starting early in her career. She has been a middle/high school science teacher, building principal, director of curriculum and instruction, and adjunct professor in educational leadership in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine.
She has her doctorate in transformative leadership with a research focus in the transformative technologies supporting personalized/customized learning. She has been a facilitator in proficiency-based, customized learning education transformation including building district wide learning progressions and implementing Empower Learning Management System as a district leader.
Her focus is building capacity in leaders and practitioners to structurally shift the framework of systems to support all learners through customized learning.