Kelly Higgins

With over twenty years of teaching experience in departmentalized middle school English language arts (ELA), elementary school, special education, and adjunct professorship, I am currently pursuing my Ed.D. In Educational Leadership, with a specialization in Teacher Leadership. My dissertation defense is scheduled for October 16, 2024, and I will graduate in December 2024. I am eagerly looking for an opportunity to share my passion and extensive knowledge of teaching at the university level.

• Association of Middle School Educators Equity in Middle School Committee
• International Literacy Association
• Kappa Delta Pi International Honors Society in Education
• National Society of Leadership and Success

• Teacher Leadership K-22
• Elementary Education Self-Contained K-9
• Learning Behavior Specialist (LBS1) with a Learning Disabilities Approval
• Middle School Endorsements in English Language Arts and Social Science
• Teacher Performance Evaluation Certification

• District English Language Arts Committee, 2013- present, Strategically collaborates with a team of teachers to design curriculum maps, power standards, summative assessments, and pacing guides for the sixth-grade English Language Arts (ELA) curriculum., Piloted new ELA curriculum during the 2022-2023 school year., Presented an overview of the Amplify curriculum to the Board of Education.
• Professional Learning Community (PLC) Committee, 2023- present, Initiated the development of the school’s PLC Committee's to improve the quality of department PLC meetings., Collaboratively worked with the PLC committee and the administration to create a PLC handbook for Walker Intermediate School with guidelines and expectations of PLC meetings., Presented professional development to teachers during monthly staff meetings, provided teachers with resources to develop and assess common formative assessments, and developed a PLC priority checklist.
• District Equity Leadership Team (DELT), Summer 2021, Collaborated with other educators to generate questions focusing on areas of strength and needed improvement with particular attention to historically marginalized groups.
• PBIS Committee (Coordinator), 2021- 2023, PBIS Coordinator for Walker Intermediate School, overseeing a committee of approximately fifteen teachers., Together the committee planned classroom and schoolwide activities reinforcing positive student behavior and social-emotional learning (SEL) activities, including schoolwide assemblies, PBIS rewards, and monthly activities., Organized and facilitated schoolwide fundraisers., Managed student rewards utilizing the PBIS Rewards app.
• School Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports (MTSS) Team, 2021-2023; 2016-2018, Participated in monthly meetings to allow teachers and administrators to collaborate, problem-solve, and set short-term and long-term goals for our school., The team collaborated to evaluate and discuss schoolwide schedules, standardized test data, student growth goals, and grade-level procedures.
• District-Wide Grading and Assessment Committee, 2018- 2021, Cooperatively worked with teachers and administrators across the district to create and implement the new district-wide grading and assessment policy.
• Summit Hill Educational Foundation (SHEF) Liaison, 2013-2015, Acted as a teacher liaison for the district's non-profit organization., Worked collaboratively with parents of the community to help fundraise to help enhance the educational opportunities for Summit Hill K-8 students.

• Sesame Street Workshop, 2021, Planned and organized a sixth-grade student fundraiser to support the educational needs of refugee children. Students will complete this fundraiser in June 2021 with a grade-level jump-rope-a-thon.
• Lupus Foundation of America, 2019, Donated proceeds from the student-created school newspaper entitled The Walker Talker.
• Ronald McDonald House Fundraiser, 2018, Organized a schoolwide fundraiser to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House Charity by encouraging students to donate pop tabs. Formulated a friendly competition among grade levels and classes by implementing daily announcements, creating bulletin boards, and hallway propaganda. Culminated the project with a presentation to the Board of Education.

I understand that each child is unique and has their own way of learning. As an educator, I am committed to continuously adapting my teaching to meet the individual needs of my students. Thus, each day, as my students learn from me, I learn from them.

• Course Design Essentials-Quality Matters, Governors State University, 06/2024
• Level 2 Instructional Coaching Training Certification, Chicago Coaching Center, 10/2022
• Level 1 Instructional Coaching Training Certification, Chicago Coaching Center, 09/2022
• PBISCon22, Online Event, 06/2022
• Illinois Performance Evaluation- Teacher Evaluation Training, Professional Development Alliance, Joliet, IL, 05/2022
• Who is doing the Discussing? Grades 6-12, Professional Development Alliance, Joliet, IL, Fall 2017
• Socratic Seminar, Professional Development Alliance, Joliet, IL, Fall 2017
• Formative Assessments in the Common Core Classroom, Professional Development Alliance, Joliet, IL, Spring 2015
• Autism, Aspergers, SPD, and ADHD, Summit Professional Education, Naperville, IL, Spring 2014
• Practical Strategies for the Common Core Classroom: Literature, Professional Development Alliance, Joliet, IL, Winter 2014
• Writing Instruction in the Common Core Classroom, Bureau of Education & Research, Alsip, IL, Winter 2014
• Igniting Creativity, Comprehension and Collaboration Through Inquiry, Augustana University, Sioux Falls, SD, Summer 2013
• Strengthen the Success of Students with Sensory Integration Disorders, Bureau of Education & Research, Alsip, IL, Summer 2011
• ADHD: Focusing, Learning, Teaching, University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN, Fall 2011
• Co-Teaching Beyond the Basics: Innovative Strategies for Working Together, Institute of Educational Development, Oak Lawn, IL, Fall 2011
• Gifted Education Seminar, Summit Hill School District, Frankfort, IL, Spring 2010