Verified
This profile is verified using an email address.
Saralyn Lawn
Penfield,NY
Summary
Dynamic school administrator with a proven track record delivering high-impact instruction, curriculum alignment and quality staff development. Adept at fostering collaboration among parents, students, and faculty to ensure optimal academic and social-emotional growth for every student. Balances daily administrative responsibilities with strategic planning while leading staff development and training initiatives tailored to diverse learning needs, current research and trends. Dedicated to nurturing the whole child, preserving childhood, and empowering all students to thrive in an inclusive and supportive educational environment.
Overview
31
31
years of professional experience
1
1
Certificate
Work History
Lower School Division Head
Portledge School
2015.07 - Current
- Cultivate an inclusive and supportive school environment by ensuring all programs reflect and support diverse student voices and needs
- Manage all day-to-day operations, deployment of resources and budget
- Directly manage a team of 30 faculty and staff while fostering a culture of interdisciplinary collaboration, high-quality instruction and visible learning
- Lead professional development committee, bringing Visible Learning™ to Portledge's school-wide instructional practices
- Orchestrated high-level institutional change bringing new curriculum to the school across all core content areas
- Aligned curriculum vertically within the lower school division and between middle school and upper school divisions
- Championed the "Science of Reading" initiative; trained all homeroom faculty in all aspect of science and research-based literacy instruction and assessments
- Led Lower School through International Baccalaureate, Primary Years Program exploration, implementation and accreditation
- Served as "goal captain" for school-wide strategic plan related to faculty development, recruitment, cross-divisional alignment, teacher on-boarding and mentorship
- Established school-wide hiring process & committee to ensure consistent, compliance-aligned hiring practices with a focus on the recruitment of high-quality teachers and administrators
- Established student support systems and services including a multidisciplinary child study process
- Fostered professional growth through the creation of a structured teacher observation and evaluation system, PN-12
Head of Lower School
Manlius Pebble Hill School
2012.07 - 2015.06
- Planned and delivered major curriculum overhaul in two years including faculty and staff development in tenets of Singapore Math, National Reading Panel research and reading assessments
- Coordinated faculty training and coaching, acquisition of curricular materials and ongoing refinement of scope and sequence to vertically align the curriculum
- Analyzed and reworked student schedules to evaluate and maximize use of instructional time while maintaining the value of "encore” classes
- Re-designed Lower School narrative report cards and implemented quarterly report cards
- Moved the Lower School strategically forward by working with faculty to change grade level teaching assignments and classroom spaces; coordinated major renovations and relocations of classrooms
- Worked with faculty to develop a cohesive team from one that had experienced significant fracture
- Secured parent donations to offset costs of professional development and curricular investments
- Garnered community support and involvement by planning parent/family presentations and special events
- Designed and oversaw building of new playground
Lower School Division Head
Eton Academy
1997.08 - 2012.06
- Implemented a strategic plan that involved a complete three-year restructuring and re-development of curriculum, methods of student achievement tracking/assessment and reporting, culminating in the branding of The Eton Approach™
- Presented The Eton Approach™ program and philosophy within the school community and in the metro-Detroit area
- Built collaborative environment, led curriculum and shaped instructional practices and professional growth for teachers
- Read and interpreted student psycho-educational, neuropsychological and school records to determine appropriateness of candidacy for admission
- Used neuro-developmental approach to learning to develop student learning goals and strategies
- Worked with private psychologists, psychiatrists, tutors, occupational therapists, physical therapists and speech and language pathologists to coordinate services for students
- Partnered with families to reach a deeper understanding of their child's unique learning profile and educational needs
Teaching Experience
Public and Independent Schools
1995.09 - 2002.06
- Special Education - Rochester City School District, Rochester, NY
- Elementary and Special Education - Berkley, MI
- High School English - Eton Academy, Birmingham, MI
Education
Bachelor of Arts - Education/English
SUNY Potsdam College
Potsdam, NYMaster of Science - Special Education
Nazareth College of Rochester
Pittsford, NYSkills
- Strategic Planning
- Systems/Process Design
- Problem Solving
- Faculty Evaluation and Instructional Coaching
- Curriculum Design and Alignment
- Professional Development, planning and delivery
- Science of Reading
- Understanding Neuro-developmental Profiles
- Dyslexia and Learning Disabilities
- Parent Communication
- Organization
Accomplishments
- School Leadership
- Science of Reading
- Singapore Math Strategies, Math In Focus, Mathodology™
- Visible Learning™
- Wilson Language, Orton Gillingham, Phonics First, Language!™
- Reading and Understanding Neuropsychological Reports and Testing
- Learning Differences & Special Education
- International Baccalaureate, Primary Years Program
Affiliations
- Visible Learning Workshop (All Faculty, PN-12) Full Day Workshop
- The Development Literacy skills in the Lower School - Parents
- Singaporean Based Mathematics Instruction - Faculty and Parents
- Understanding Learning Differences, Strategies to use in the Classroom for differentiation - Gen. Ed. Faculty
- The Science of Reading - Teachers
- Literacy Development in the Lower School - Parents
- Phonics/Phonemic Awareness and the Importance to Early Reading and Writing - Faculty
- The Impact of Media on Children - Parents
- Understanding Educational and Psychoeducational Tests and Measures - Training for Teachers
- Learning Disabilities - Legally, Clinically, Educationally - Family Workshop
- The Impact of Learning Disabilities on the Family - Family Workshop
- Five Ways to Help Your Different Learner - Family Workshop
- Understanding Dyslexia - Teachers and Families, Full Day Workshop
- Phonics and Morphology Core Knowledge for Teachers
Certification
- Special Education Grades K-12
- Secondary Education, English, 7-12
Timeline
Lower School Division Head
Portledge School
2015.07 - Current
Head of Lower School
Manlius Pebble Hill School
2012.07 - 2015.06
Lower School Division Head
Eton Academy
1997.08 - 2012.06
Teaching Experience
Public and Independent Schools
1995.09 - 2002.06
Bachelor of Arts - Education/English
SUNY Potsdam College
Master of Science - Special Education
Nazareth College of Rochester
Additional Training/Expertise
- Visible Learning
- Science of Reading
- National Reading Panel
- Wilson Language Training, Orton Gillingham, Phonics First, Language!
- Singapore Math Strategies, Math In Focus, Methodology
Personal
My husband, John, and I have been married 31 years and are proud parents of Amy (23) and Grant (19). In addition to loving all things education-related and having a passion for literacy and reading, I also enjoy reading historical fiction, mysteries/thrillers and writing professionally and for pleasure. I am a dog fanatic and currently have a rescued hound and a chihauhua. I enjoy spending as much time as possible near and on the water, especially Lake Ontario.