The candidates in this election are running for a position on the Board of Directors.
Membership and attendant voting rights are provided to each person who was a paid registrant at either the Fall 2008 Conference or the Spring 2009 Conference. Also, persons having sent in membership fees during the year but did not attend a conference are eligible to vote.
A ballot in the form of an email has been sent to you. Please follow the link included in the email message and you will be directed to an online ballot. The method of voting is explained both in the email and on the ballot once you follow the link. The results of balloting will be reported at the Annual Meeting at the MERA Fall Conference on November 23th and 24th in Frankenmuth.
We thank you for your continued support of MERA and look forward to seeing you in Frankenmuth.
Candidates for MERA Board for Fall 2009 Election
Running for a one-year term (filling Doug MacPherson’s spot which ends 2010)
Tovah Sheldon
Tovah Sheldon is a Data, Curriculum & Assessment Coordinator for the Jackson County Intermediate School District. In this capacity, she serves local districts including teachers, administrators, counselors, etc. by facilitating professional development trainings, performing various data analysis on MEAP, MME and other assessments and collaborating with subject area specialists to translate data findings into a shift in teaching practices. Additionally, Tovah has been involved in the evaluation of grant funded programs for the JCISD and has focused much of her time on building quality summative and interim assessments with local districts. Previously, Tovah taught mathematics and science at elementary and middle school levels. She completed her undergraduate studies at Grand Valley State University, Masters of Educational Leadership degree at Eastern Michigan University, and intends to continue her education in the Measurement and Qualitative Methods doctoral program at Michigan State University. For this coming MERA term, Tovah would like to continue to serve as a MERA Board Member, so that she can continue to support and expand educators’ understanding of quality research, assessment, and evaluation practices. Her goal is to enhance the current structure of MERA to promote sharing and exchanging of ideas, techniques, materials, and procedures used in educational research, assessment and program evaluation that will improve teaching and learning in education.
Tovah Sheldon is a Data, Curriculum & Assessment Coordinator for the Jackson County Intermediate School District. In this capacity, she serves local districts including teachers, administrators, counselors, etc. by facilitating professional development trainings, performing various data analysis on MEAP, MME and other assessments and collaborating with subject area specialists to translate data findings into a shift in teaching practices. Additionally, Tovah has been involved in the evaluation of grant funded programs for the JCISD and has focused much of her time on building quality summative and interim assessments with local districts. Previously, Tovah taught mathematics and science at elementary and middle school levels. She completed her undergraduate studies at Grand Valley State University, Masters of Educational Leadership degree at Eastern Michigan University, and intends to continue her education in the Measurement and Qualitative Methods doctoral program at Michigan State University. For this coming MERA term, Tovah would like to continue to serve as a MERA Board Member, so that she can continue to support and expand educators’ understanding of quality research, assessment, and evaluation practices. Her goal is to enhance the current structure of MERA to promote sharing and exchanging of ideas, techniques, materials, and procedures used in educational research, assessment and program evaluation that will improve teaching and learning in education.
Running for a three year term beginning Jan 1, 2010
7 Running, 4 positions
Ernie Bauer (incumbent)
Ernie is Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessment Programs at Oakland Schools. He has worked there for 35 years. He earned his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with an emphasis in Applied Research from Kansas State University in 1974. He is currently a member of the Technical Advisory Committee for the OEAA and the Standing Technical Advisory Council for the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification. He serves on the committee that develops the annual Michigan School Testing Conference. He recently served on the team that helped develop MI-SAS. He is currently on MERA’s Board and is serving as treasurer. His career has been centered on helping educators get, understand, and use data that help them do their jobs better.
Laura Hanlin
Fourteen years of work experience in a local school district includes several desks from purchasing secretary, business office duties, registrar, and now curriculum support all at the district level. For the past several years, I’ve worked exclusively with assessment data as it relates to administration, principals, teachers and students. My experience with data includes student data entry and coding, state assessment data (MEAP,MME and ELPA), local assessment data, data warehousing tools and AYP data. I have an associate’s degree in Computer Science, Data Processing and I’m currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s degree program at a local college. My experience and education equip me with an interesting viewpoint that will add diversity to an already outstanding group of educational research experts. MERA continues to be an excellent resource, and it would be an honor to serve on the board.
Laura Otten
Laura Otten is in her first year as the School Improvement and Data Warehouse Consultant at the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District. As a consultant, Laura assists schools with focusing their school improvement efforts toward increasing student achievement, as well as increasing the quality of teaching in the classroom. Analysis of data, assessment and accountability, software training, leading the ISD school improvement team, and helping staff implement personal curriculums in their buildings are also part of her responsibilities. Laura is also a coach of a middle school team as part of the Developing and Implementing Formative Assessment Process in Michigan. Prior to joining the Ottawa Area ISD, Laura served as a building administrator (K-12) for seven years and an elementary and middle school classroom teacher for two years. She obtained a BA in Elementary Education from Florida Atlantic University and a M.A. in Educational Leadership from Grand Valley State University. Laura is currently co impleting her Educational Specialists degree at Michigan State University, with a focus on K-12 Education. The focus of her research is Assessment and Accountability.An interest in the advancement of educational research is the primary reason why I would like to be a part of the MERA Board. Keeping up to date on the latest research to assist classroom teachers become better instructors, as well as guiding school administrators in becoming strong, competent instructional leaders is a part of what I do every day. It is the responsibility of organizations, like MERA, to guide educators with high quality research.
Jennifer Paul
I am currently one of the Data, Curriculum, and Assessment Coordinators for the Jackson ISD. My role involves being the lead for the managing and training of the countywide data warehouse, Data Director, as well as managing our Countywide Common Assessment for 2-10th grade ELA and 2-8th grade Math. I also create workshops and consult with teachers and administrators on the following topics: collecting relevant data for use in Data Director, how to use Excel for data analysis, creating good test items, best practices for Secondary ELA, best practices for World Language, and best practices for English Language Learners. Prior to this position at the ISD, I taught 7-12th grade English and Spanish and have received a Masters degree in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and a Masters in Administration. I have recently spent time doing contract work for MDE reviewing items, blueprints, etc. for the ELPA (English Language Proficiency Assessment). My interest in serving on the MERA board s tems primarily from this: with most districts across the state currently involved in the Regional Data Initiatives Grant, I'm interested in continuing my outreach on data warehouse usage and increasing knowledge/awareness of data analysis. Having recently been using logic models to drive our projects for planning and evaluation I am interested in continuing to share and promote that knowledge with others and learn more.
Christine Schram (incumbent)
I am currently the Associate Vice President for Academics at Baker College, where I oversee curriculum, assessment, faculty professional development and institutional research. Previously, I developed Baker College’s teacher preparation program. Prior to working at Baker College, I served as the supervisor of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program for the State of Michigan. I am a former middle school mathematics teacher and I have also taught mathematics, research methods and statistics at the college level. I have a Bachelor of Science in mathematics education and a Ph.D. in measurement and quantitative methods, both from Michigan State University. I believe I bring a higher education perspective to the MERA board. Higher education and K-12 share many common goals surrounding student learning – how to improve it, how to measure it, and how to determine what is and is not successful.
Dave Treder (incumbent)
Dave Treder has been the Coordinator for Research, Evaluation, and Assessment at Genesee Intermediate School District for the past nine years. During this time, Dave has had several tours of duty on the MERA board, and is currently MERA president; in addition, he has served as a member on a number of state-level advisory committees. Prior to moving to Michigan, Dave was employed as a Professor in Research at the University of South Florida, which is also where he completed both his Masters (in Special Education), and Doctorate (in Curriculum and Instruction, with an emphasis in statistics and measurement). As a Researcher, he was primarily involved with the evaluation of programs for children with emotional and behavioral disabilities. Before higher education, Dave was a middle school special educator.
Mark Weinberg (incumbent)
I am the Director of Academic Performance and Accountability at Central Michigan University's Center for Charter Schools and am responsible for functions associated with academic oversight, support and performance evaluation. Prior to joining the Center in 2002, I served as the Director of the International Academy of Flint since its founding in 1999. Before taking that position, I was the High School Principal at the Internationale Schule Frankfurt - in Frankfurt, Germany. Previously I have also taught in, both, Switzerland and Canada, and hold bachelor degrees from the University of Western Ontario and Brock University, and a master's degree in educational administration from Central Michigan University, where I am currently pursuing my doctorate. My primary interest in serving on the MERA Board stems from my desire to see MERA, as an organization, move in the direction of being THE forum in Michigan for the presentation and discussion of research in leading-edge practices in curriculum, instruction an d assessment generally, and school reform more specifically. Secondly, I find the current Board and the membership of the organization, and the conferences they host, the best place in the state of Michigan to learn about current issues in curriculum and assessment. I look forward continuing to lend my skills to the service of the MERA membership.
Ernie is Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessment Programs at Oakland Schools. He has worked there for 35 years. He earned his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with an emphasis in Applied Research from Kansas State University in 1974. He is currently a member of the Technical Advisory Committee for the OEAA and the Standing Technical Advisory Council for the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification. He serves on the committee that develops the annual Michigan School Testing Conference. He recently served on the team that helped develop MI-SAS. He is currently on MERA’s Board and is serving as treasurer. His career has been centered on helping educators get, understand, and use data that help them do their jobs better.
Laura Hanlin
Fourteen years of work experience in a local school district includes several desks from purchasing secretary, business office duties, registrar, and now curriculum support all at the district level. For the past several years, I’ve worked exclusively with assessment data as it relates to administration, principals, teachers and students. My experience with data includes student data entry and coding, state assessment data (MEAP,MME and ELPA), local assessment data, data warehousing tools and AYP data. I have an associate’s degree in Computer Science, Data Processing and I’m currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s degree program at a local college. My experience and education equip me with an interesting viewpoint that will add diversity to an already outstanding group of educational research experts. MERA continues to be an excellent resource, and it would be an honor to serve on the board.
Laura Otten
Laura Otten is in her first year as the School Improvement and Data Warehouse Consultant at the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District. As a consultant, Laura assists schools with focusing their school improvement efforts toward increasing student achievement, as well as increasing the quality of teaching in the classroom. Analysis of data, assessment and accountability, software training, leading the ISD school improvement team, and helping staff implement personal curriculums in their buildings are also part of her responsibilities. Laura is also a coach of a middle school team as part of the Developing and Implementing Formative Assessment Process in Michigan. Prior to joining the Ottawa Area ISD, Laura served as a building administrator (K-12) for seven years and an elementary and middle school classroom teacher for two years. She obtained a BA in Elementary Education from Florida Atlantic University and a M.A. in Educational Leadership from Grand Valley State University. Laura is currently co impleting her Educational Specialists degree at Michigan State University, with a focus on K-12 Education. The focus of her research is Assessment and Accountability.An interest in the advancement of educational research is the primary reason why I would like to be a part of the MERA Board. Keeping up to date on the latest research to assist classroom teachers become better instructors, as well as guiding school administrators in becoming strong, competent instructional leaders is a part of what I do every day. It is the responsibility of organizations, like MERA, to guide educators with high quality research.
Jennifer Paul
I am currently one of the Data, Curriculum, and Assessment Coordinators for the Jackson ISD. My role involves being the lead for the managing and training of the countywide data warehouse, Data Director, as well as managing our Countywide Common Assessment for 2-10th grade ELA and 2-8th grade Math. I also create workshops and consult with teachers and administrators on the following topics: collecting relevant data for use in Data Director, how to use Excel for data analysis, creating good test items, best practices for Secondary ELA, best practices for World Language, and best practices for English Language Learners. Prior to this position at the ISD, I taught 7-12th grade English and Spanish and have received a Masters degree in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and a Masters in Administration. I have recently spent time doing contract work for MDE reviewing items, blueprints, etc. for the ELPA (English Language Proficiency Assessment). My interest in serving on the MERA board s tems primarily from this: with most districts across the state currently involved in the Regional Data Initiatives Grant, I'm interested in continuing my outreach on data warehouse usage and increasing knowledge/awareness of data analysis. Having recently been using logic models to drive our projects for planning and evaluation I am interested in continuing to share and promote that knowledge with others and learn more.
Christine Schram (incumbent)
I am currently the Associate Vice President for Academics at Baker College, where I oversee curriculum, assessment, faculty professional development and institutional research. Previously, I developed Baker College’s teacher preparation program. Prior to working at Baker College, I served as the supervisor of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program for the State of Michigan. I am a former middle school mathematics teacher and I have also taught mathematics, research methods and statistics at the college level. I have a Bachelor of Science in mathematics education and a Ph.D. in measurement and quantitative methods, both from Michigan State University. I believe I bring a higher education perspective to the MERA board. Higher education and K-12 share many common goals surrounding student learning – how to improve it, how to measure it, and how to determine what is and is not successful.
Dave Treder (incumbent)
Dave Treder has been the Coordinator for Research, Evaluation, and Assessment at Genesee Intermediate School District for the past nine years. During this time, Dave has had several tours of duty on the MERA board, and is currently MERA president; in addition, he has served as a member on a number of state-level advisory committees. Prior to moving to Michigan, Dave was employed as a Professor in Research at the University of South Florida, which is also where he completed both his Masters (in Special Education), and Doctorate (in Curriculum and Instruction, with an emphasis in statistics and measurement). As a Researcher, he was primarily involved with the evaluation of programs for children with emotional and behavioral disabilities. Before higher education, Dave was a middle school special educator.
Mark Weinberg (incumbent)
I am the Director of Academic Performance and Accountability at Central Michigan University's Center for Charter Schools and am responsible for functions associated with academic oversight, support and performance evaluation. Prior to joining the Center in 2002, I served as the Director of the International Academy of Flint since its founding in 1999. Before taking that position, I was the High School Principal at the Internationale Schule Frankfurt - in Frankfurt, Germany. Previously I have also taught in, both, Switzerland and Canada, and hold bachelor degrees from the University of Western Ontario and Brock University, and a master's degree in educational administration from Central Michigan University, where I am currently pursuing my doctorate. My primary interest in serving on the MERA Board stems from my desire to see MERA, as an organization, move in the direction of being THE forum in Michigan for the presentation and discussion of research in leading-edge practices in curriculum, instruction an d assessment generally, and school reform more specifically. Secondly, I find the current Board and the membership of the organization, and the conferences they host, the best place in the state of Michigan to learn about current issues in curriculum and assessment. I look forward continuing to lend my skills to the service of the MERA membership.