2025 PDP Conference Schedule

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7:45 AM – 8:30 AM | BREAKFAST | SOCIAL HALL

Relax and enjoy a full breakfast while connecting with colleagues and peers!

8:00 AM – 8:30 AM | WELCOME | SOCIAL HALL

We begin with a welcome from Buffalo State Leadership, general updates, and presentations of this year’s award winners. 

8:30 AM – 9:00 AM | POSTER SESSION | SOCIAL HALL

BSU FACULTY & TEACHER CANDIDATE PRESENTATIONS

  • Western NY Physics Teachers' Alliance: A Local Professional Organization does Service and PD
    Dan MacIsaac, Yianna Russo, Dan Graf, Jennifer Gazdovich
     
  • We Move Together: Leveraging Disability Studies and Collaborative Literacy Practices through Children’s Books
    Katie McCabe, Kristin Witkowski, and Mandy Sampson - Special and Childhood Education Teacher Candidates
     
  • Teacher Candidates Demonstrate Ways to Instruct September 11, 2001 History
    Dana Serure and Social Studies Education Teacher Candidates

PDP / NASUP PRESENTATIONS, SPRING 2025

  • Cycle of Inspiration: The Successes of a Non-Traditional Student by Dariana Candelario
  • The Importance of Inclusive Playgrounds at Schools and in the Community by Hailee Cipollina

IPDP DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, JANUARY 2025

  • Evaluating the School Drop-off Procedure at a Montessori School in the Dominican Republic by Hannah Alley, Harmoni Brown, Zoe LaPress, Sarah Zakeri

IPDP ITALY, JANUARY 2025

  • Let's get Digital: Exploring Technological Literacy in Italian Classrooms by Janinna Farragher
  • Cross-Cultural Classroom Dynamics: A Comparative Study of Student Behaviors in Italian and American Classrooms by Jenny Flick
  • How Children of Different Ages Respond to Music in Italian Classrooms by Amanda Gagnon
  • Music's Impact on Emotional Well-Being in Italian Classrooms by Emily Gruber
  • Music as a Communication Resource in the Bilingual Classroom by Mary Quinn
  • Music's Impact on Morale in Italian Classrooms by Jasmin Walker

IPDP ITALY STUDENT TEACHING (SIENA), SPRING 2025

  • A Comparative Study of Social Interactions in Social Studies Classrooms in Buffalo, NY & Siena, Italy by Abigail Alex
  • Exploring SEL in International Inquiry-Based Music Classrooms by Cameron Juzdowski

IPDP CHILE, SUMMER 2025

  • Social Work Observations in Santiago Chile by Alana Jacowitz
  • Impact of Culture on Chile's Education System by Estefany Vargas
  • Teaching Beyond Borders: A Black Educator’s Experience in Chile with IPDP by Ciera Watson

IPDP GERMANY, SUMMER 2025

  • Citizenship Across Cultures: A Comparative Study of Waldorf Education in the U.S. and Germany by Michael Brooks
  • Libraries and Librarians in German Schools: Prevalence and Need by Eve Doherty
  • Adapting Instruction in Germany: Differentiation Strategies in Diverse Classrooms​ by Grace Hull
  • Foreign Language Instruction in Germany and the Influence of Multilingualism on Literacy by Rachel Pokornowski

IPDP ZAMBIA, SUMMER 2025

  • Zambia: Teaching & Cultural Immersion by Aniya Flowers, Darnelle Hilliard, Jasmine Pena, Jourdan Summers, Tamiel White

     

9:15 AM – 10:45 AM | PAIRED CONCURRENT PRESENTATIONS 

STUDENT ORGANIZATION RESOURCE CENTER (basement level)

School Libraries as Sites of Global Literacy Engagement 
Patricia George, Brandon Kawa, Bárbara da Silva Vidal Lopes Madureira, Jillian Tefft, Keith Ray, Gina Dudkowski, Kathy Gramza, Jennifer Reichenberg

Presenters will describe a cross-cultural collaboration between librarians at The School of the Nations in Brasília, Brazil and South Buffalo Charter School in Buffalo, New York. Danyella Proença, a local author from Brazil, recorded a read aloud session of her book and a description of her creative process for the students in both countries to introduce the concept of storytelling as a path to cultural understanding. Students then posed and answered questions about one another’s schools, ecosystems, and countries through a video exchange. Finally, students created multimedia projects to express their learning.

Expanding School-University Partnerships to Include School Library Media Specialists and Academic Librarians to Promote Literacy 
Chris Hulsman, Eve Doherty, Pixita del Prado Hill

The Professional Development Partnerships and the School of Education at Buffalo State University have partnered with E. H. Butler Library to provide research assistance to teacher candidates and help new teachers see the critical role libraries play in promoting literacy. This collaboration has provided students with a deeper knowledge of research strategies, including the discovery of high-impact children’s literature. Through direct instruction with librarians, teacher candidates learn the importance of literacy and access to reading material for children during a time of censorship and book challenges. Conversely, academic librarians can market research platforms and advocate against the decline of the school library media specialists in k-12 schools. 

 

SOCIAL HALL

AI-Powered Prep: Conquering the CST Math Challenge with Grok, Gemini, and ChatGPT 
Chris Shively, Adrianna Michal

This session shares an example of how student driven inquiry can feed Computational Thinking, which will take participants through the process of engaging students in the process of authentic scientific investigation which is then analyzed and shared.

Cell Phone Restrictions in two Brazilian Schools: Potential Lessons for U.S. Policies  
Chris Shively, Benjamin Spiez

In 2024, the School of the Nations and Swiss International School in Brasília, Brazil restricted cell phones to curb cyberbullying, boost focus, and enhance interactions (interviews with Ray & Oprea, 2025). Dr. Shively interviewed administrators Keith Ray and Henrick Oprea to understand the cell phone restriction policies’ rationale, implementation, and outcomes. He discovered that it reduced cyberbullying, improved focus, and improved student-student and student-teacher relationships. During the summer of 2024-2025, undergraduate summer researcher Benj Spiez, surveyed student perceptions of the policy with a focus on social-emotional learning, including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making, at both schools. In this presentation Dr. Shively and Spiez report the students’ perceptions of this policy.

 

ASSEMBLY HALL SOUTH

Mentoring Student Teachers Though Practice, A Framework for Coaching with CARE
Rosemary Arioli, Scott Wolf, Ann Laudisio

This presentation will discuss how we are working to shift our role as university student teaching supervisors and mentor teachers to encourage risk-taking, experiential learning, and teacher reflection. Coaching with CARE. We will examine the core component of the CARE model to identify best practices that encourage community, a focus on strengths, reflection and experiences that build a strong path to learning. The discussion will explore our vision to promote student-centered learning while preparing the future generation of teachers that are confident in their practice and recognize professional dispositions critical to teaching. The benefits of video and structured conversation will be highlighted.

Teacher-Driven Curricular and Pedagogical Renewal: Leveraging a School-University Partnership to Address the Science of Reading 
Jennifer Reichenberg, Gina Dudkowski, Dave Ehrle

We will describe how we leveraged our school-university partnership to update K-8 literacy content and pedagogy in response to changes in the field fueled by the large, interdisciplinary body of research known as the science of reading. When faced with new initiatives, it is critical for schools and universities to thoughtfully consider how local context and past successes might inform updates to existing programs. We gathered a team of teachers, administrators, and university faculty to build knowledge about research-based practices, engage in a needs assessment, develop teachers’ leadership and facilitation skills, and support self-sustaining, teacher-driven, peer-coached curriculum and pedagogical renewal. This process also built greater continuity between campus-based literacy classes and fieldwork experiences for teacher candidates. Details of the approach and preliminary outcomes will be provided along with opportunities to think about application in your school-university context.

 

ASSEMBLY HALL NORTH

Project Based Assessments as an Alternative to Regents Exams for English Language
Asma Syed, Wilfredo García, Jennifer Segura Lopez

This presentation is about a research study that is being conducted in Buffalo, NY. This study examines how project-based assessments (PBAs) can serve as a viable alternative to Regents exams, providing a more holistic, linguistically accessible, and student-centered means of evaluating knowledge and academic growth.

How art can play an important role in the P-12 classroom
Kathy Shiroki, Kristin Crosson, and Abigail Gammel

The role of art in education is an engaging session designed for educators interested in the powerful intersections of art, learning, and mental health. This workshop will explore how visual arts can enhance the P-12 classroom experience, support emotional development through art therapy practices, and inspire innovative teaching across college disciplines. Participants will also discover how art museums can serve as rich, interactive learning spaces. If you are passionate about the arts in education, this workshop offers hands-on experiences, thoughtful dialogue, and practical strategies you can bring back to your own teaching or learning environment. Come be a part of this creative and inspiring conversation!

 

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | COLLABORATIVE CONVERSATIONS

Please join one of the four conversation groups that fits your role for open discussions about school-university partnership issues that are important to you and people in your same role.

Collaborative Conversation: Teacher Candidates
Facilitators: Janinna Farragher, Hailee Cipollina, Sarah Pratt
STUDENT ORGANIZATION RESOURCE CENTER (basement level)

This conversation will be the first step in a research project that brings together novice teachers from various disciplines for an open, roundtable-style discussion. We seek to create a collaborative space where participants can freely talk about a wide range of educational topics in a judgement free setting. The project aims to bridge the gap between teacher preparation and real-world classroom practice to highlight authentic cross-disciplinary reflection and mentorship.

Collaborative Conversation: Teacher Education Faculty & Student Teaching Supervisors
Facilitator: Julie Henry, Kristen Pastore-Capuana
SOCIAL HALL

This conversation will focus on sharing successful school-university partnership practices and strategies to address common challenges among the people who work in the “third space” between the university and schools where our teacher candidates are placed.

Collaborative Conversation: School and Teacher Leaders 
Facilitators: Tom McCully, Bob Christmann, Pixita del Prado Hill
ASSEMBLY HALL SOUTH

This conversation will share opportunities for school and teacher leaders through the Buffalo State EDL program, IPDS Experienced Educators, and IPDS Administrators Abroad program as well as explore ways to leverage our university and school resources for mutually beneficial outcomes in terms of student achievement and teacher/leader recruitment and retention.

Collaborative Conversations: International Professional Development Schools (IPDS) Alumni 
Facilitators: Tamara Horstman-Riphahn, Nancy Chicola, Brandon Kawa
ASSEMBLY HALL NORTH

This conversation will include all who have participated in an IPDS experience to discuss the impact of international school-university partnerships on teacher practice. Participants will have an opportunity to share how IPDS has influenced their personal and professional lives.

 

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | LUNCH & KEYNOTE ADDRESS | SOCIAL HALL

Keynote Address: Colleen Keough, 2025 NYS Teacher of the Year

Colleen Keough is a second-grade teacher at Hamilton Elementary School in the Schenectady City School District. She is starting her 18th year teaching and has taught grades 1, 2, and 4. Keough earned a bachelor’s degree in childhood education and psychology from Russell Sage College and a masters degree in literacy from the University at Albany. She earned the 2025 NYS Teacher of the Year, the 2024 Teacher of the Year for Schenectady, and the 2023 Passionate People Award. Keough serves on an anti-racism building leadership team, safety team, mentors teachers and is a Parents as Reading Partners member. She serves as co-president of the parent teacher organization, and co-chairs the yearbook committee, has developed school improvement plans with colleagues and several administrators, and works with classroom volunteers such as Reading is Fundamental, Junior Achievement, and the Foster Grandparent Program. Keough sets high expectations, has a passion for learning and makes her classroom a safe place where students in trauma bloom. She knows support and solid mentorships are integral in attracting and keeping skilled professionals and believes an equitable education is a right, not a privilege. As educational leaders, she believes it is our mission to ensure that all students have access to high-quality opportunities, regardless of zip code.

 

Thank you for joining us today! 

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