Keynote Speakers

 

Friday General Session

 

 

 

Melissa Stockwell
American War Hero & Paralympic Medalist

Melissa Stockwell graduated from the University of Colorado and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army. She deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, where a blast from a roadside bomb struck her Humvee, causing the loss of her left leg above the knee. After enduring numerous infections and surgeries, Melissa was medically retired from the Army. She is the first female soldier ever to lose a limb in active combat and has been awarded both the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart.

Following her accident, sports become the road to recovery for Melissa. In 2008, she became the first Iraqi War Veteran to qualify for the Beijing Paralympics, where she competed in three swimming events and was honored by her fellow Team USA athletes to be the flag bearer in the Closing Ceremony. After Beijing, Melissa turned to the sport of paratriathlon and is now a three-time World Champion. She also earned a bronze medal at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and returned to the 2024 Paris Games in the summer of 2024, her fourth Paralympics. She finished fifth at age 44.

Saturday General Session

 

Ravi Hutheesing
Global Education & Cultural Futurist

Ravi's journey as a rock star, aviator, cultural diplomat for the U.S. Department of State, and founder of multiple educational and cultural enterprises is an inspiring example of how to pivot and "be the change you wish to see in the world" (Gandhi).

He is the first American-born descendant of India’s Nehru-Gandhi political dynasty. However, Ravi pursued his passion for music and, in 1997, became the guitarist for the triple-Grammy-nominated band Hanson.

Following the global financial crisis of 2008, he pivoted and became a pilot and aviation advocate sharing leadership lessons learned from the cockpit. In 2015, he pivoted again and accepted an invitation to serve as a cultural diplomat for the U.S. Department of State, creating songwriting programs in Russia, Iraq, Lebanon, and Indonesia to unite people from traditionally opposed cultures and religions.

Today, Ravi is a highly respected proponent of education and cultural issues. He is the author of PIVOT: Empowering Students Today to Succeed in an Unpredictable Tomorrow; co-founder and vice president of Celebrating Heritage In the Arts, Inc., an initiative recognizing, developing, and celebrating the passion and diversity of culture through music, technology, and mainstream media; and founder of Ravi Unites Schools, an international network of over 100 schools whose students participate in peer-to-peer cultural interactions online.

 

Rural Education Breakfast

 

Dr. Joe Sanfelippo
Retired Superintendent, Author, Speaker

Dr. Joe Sanfelippo, retired superintendent of Wisconsin's Fall Creek School District, is an educational leader and author. During his tenure, the Fall Creek School District was recognized as an Innovative District twice by the International Center for Leadership in Education. Joe authored multiple books, including bestsellers "Hacking Leadership" and "Lead From Where You Are." Honored as one of 117 Future Ready Superintendents and selected among the 50 Personalized Learning Leaders by the U.S. Department of Education, Joe also was named one of the 100 Most Influential Educators by District Administration magazine. In 2019, the digital publication Education Dive awarded him National Superintendent of the Year.

Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE) Luncheon

 

Pedro Antonio Noguera, Ph.D.
Dean, Rosser School of Education
University of Southern California

Pedro Noguera is one of the nation’s leading scholars on issues related to race, inequality, and education. Since 2020, he has served as the Emery Stoops and Joyce King Stoops Dean of the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California (USC). Previously, he served as a professor of education and holder of endowed chairs at UCLA, NYU, Harvard University, and the University of California, Berkeley. A sociologist, education researcher, and former public school teacher, Noguera is the author of 15 books, including the award-winning A Search for Common Ground: Conversations About the Tough Questions and Complex Issues Confronting K-12 Education in the United States Today, written with Rick Hess and published in 2021.

Noguera has worked as an advisor to the state departments of education in Washington, Oregon, New York, and Rhode Island, as well as several large urban school districts throughout the country. In 2022, he was appointed to President Biden’s National Commission on Hispanics and served as the co-chair of the state of California’s Black Student Achievement Taskforce.

Noguera was elected to the National Academy of Education and Phi Delta Kappa honor society, as well as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He has received awards from the Center for the Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research at NYU.

In 2023, Noguera was ranked first in the nation for influence and impact in the field of education by Education Week.

National Connection Joint Councils Luncheon

 

Dr. Gholnecsar (Gholdy) Muhammad
Professor, Literacy, Language, and Culture
University of Illinois at Chicago

Dr. Gholnecsar (Gholdy) Muhammad is a Professor of Literacy, Language, and Culture at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has previously served as a classroom teacher, literacy specialist, school district administrator, curriculum director, and school board president. She studies Black historical excellence in education, intending to reframe curriculum and instruction today. Dr. Muhammad’s scholarship has appeared in leading academic journals and books. She has also received numerous national awards and is the author of the best-selling book, Cultivating Genius: An Equity Model for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy. She also co-authored Black girls’ literacies: An Edited Volume. Her Culturally and Historically Responsive Education Model has been adopted across thousands of U.S. schools and districts across Canada. In 2022, 2023 and 2024, she was named among the top 1% Edu-Scholar Public Influencers due to her impact on policy and practice. She has also received numerous awards from national organizations and universities. She has led a federal grant with the United States Department of Education to study culturally and historically responsive literacy in STEM classrooms. Her newest book, Unearthing Joy, is the sequel to Cultivating Genius and provides a practical guide for putting culturally and historically responsive education into curricular practice. In 2025, her first curriculum, entitled Genius, Justice and Joy, will be available to schools and educators.