This breakaway we will have Emily Flach (Regional Educational Technology Coordinator from the Illinois Learning Technology Center) present a free session on "The Day the Internet Dies: Keep Your K-12 Building Running Amidst a Cyber Attack." In an age where connectivity is vital, the possibility of a cyber attack crippling the internet infrastructure is a growing threat. This workshop provides essential strategies to maintain your building’s operations in the face of such an incident. What if your teachers have non-digital resources and textbooks? What if you're hit by a cyber attack during state testing? Learn actionable steps to ensure the continuity of critical services like communication, instruction, and student safety during an internet outage caused by a cyber event. Participants will gain insights into offline communication protocols, data backup solutions, emergency power plans, and other best practices to safeguard operations and minimize downtime. Who should attend? Administrators in any capacity! Participants should bring a fully charged device to this session. After this session, we will debrief with IARSS, ISBE and local district updates.

Who should attend? Curriculum Directors, Instructional Coaches, Interventionists, Administrators and/or anyone responsible for organizing professional development and/or School Improvement days/goals. Focus: Intentional planning and alignment of time and priorities Aligned Standards: 1 – Mission, Vision & Improvement | 6 – Professional Capacity Maximize the impact of every meeting and professional learning experience. This session introduces backward design as a leadership strategy to align School Improvement Plans, staff meetings, and professional development. Participants will learn how to start with outcomes and design structures that ensure time is purposeful, efficient, and directly connected to student learning goals. Participants Will:

• Design meetings and PD with clear outcomes
• Align SIP goals to daily practices
• Create efficient, focused agendas and learning experiences

Registration closes December 2, 2026 at 10:00am.

This interactive session will be facilitated by Dr. Diane Wolf with a focus on time management, prioritization, and strategic leadership. Aligned Standards: 1 – Mission, Vision & Improvement | 5 – Ethics & Professional Norms In a role filled with competing demands, knowing what to say “no” to is essential. This session helps instructional coaches, interventionists and/or school leaders prioritize what matters most, set boundaries, and align decisions to their mission and goals. Participants will explore how focus and clarity enhance leadership effectiveness and protect time for what truly impacts teaching and learning. Participants Will:

• Identify high-impact priorities
• Develop strategies for managing time and competing demands
• Practice decision-making aligned to mission and goals

Registration closes January 4 at 8:30am.

Effective classroom management is essential to creating an environment where students can thrive. In this workshop, Dr. Brandy Hempen shares practical strategies for strengthening K-8 classroom management, with a focus on everyday procedures, smooth transitions, purposeful instructional strategies, and proactive behavior support. Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event.

Join Dr. Brandy Hempen, in this virtual, self-paced workshop reviewing different strategies and resources to increase K-8 student achievement in reading. Real classroom videos, classroom discussions, and student examples are embedded throughout this workshop discussing the following topics:  
Increasing fluency and comprehension  
Incorporating ready-to-use reading resources  
Reaching struggling readers  
Differentiating reading lessons  
Implementing classroom management strategies  
Managing daily classroom procedures  
Setting classroom expectations  
Creating meaningful, standards-based assessments   Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event date.  

Administrators face a variety of challenges related to classroom management, including not only student behavior, but also teacher consistency and support, diversity, parental involvement, technology, and more. Jim Kestner will bring his nationally recognized perspectives in this session titled: Shaping Teachers’ Perspectives for Positive Classroom Management: Promoting a Culture That Builds Respect, Discipline, and Responsibility.  Jim will share strategies in this interactive session that are related to effective classroom management, student character, and school culture that encourages administrators and/or any leader to share challenges and solutions in a dynamic setting that focuses on perspectives that encourage teachers to support and adopt school-wide perspectives while retaining their own individual freedoms. The result is a school culture that encourages problem-solving, community, and consistency essential for students’ personal and academic development.

This session is not just for Principals - we encourage behavior interventionists, social workers, etc or related support personnel who feels this session would be beneficial to attend!

Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the session.