Theme: It Takes a Village...

While the teacher is often the first role one thinks of when picturing a school district, there are hundreds of people who contribute to the education of a child from K-12. Whether it's parents and coaches, teachers and principals, school board members and superintendents, or the students themselves, each perspective adds to the tapestry of the educational experience. This year's conference aims to showcase the diverse and engaging perspectives of the entire "village" required to educate a student. These are their ideas worth spreading...

Day Session (Begins at 12pm. Anticipated end time: 2pm)

Mikayla Davic
Mrs. Beth Fochtman
Isabel Bierwirth
Official TED Talk: Ramsey Musallam: 3 rules to spark learning
Josh Barone
Mikaela Thorne
Official TED Talk: Susan Cain: The Power of Introverts
Mr. Tony Melillio
Zach Blanner
Mackenzie Voelker

Evening Session (Begins 7pm. Anticipated end time: 9:30pm)

Russell Graves
Mr. Chris Kelly
Lauren Schugg
Dr. Lisa Klein
Official TED Talk: Christopher McDougall- Are We Born to Run?
Paige Palmer
Mr. Jim Nowalk
Mrs. Nina Deibler
Mr. Larry Pantuso
Ms. Denise Sedlacek

4653 Clairton Boulevard
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15236
United States

Anthony Melillo

Teacher

Anthony Melillo earned a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Pennsylvania, in Theatre Arts and English. Since then, he has performed professionally on stage, been a bartender, a salesman, a prison guard and tactical team member, a teacher, a coach, a restauranteur, a business manager, and a furniture maker. He has always been a lover of life, and has demonstrated a passion for people no matter what the profession. Admittedly his rock through all these trials, he is blessed with a wife and best friend of thirty-two years, two successful adult children, and four wonderful grandchildren. In the hope of returning to a career in education, he has worked for the last three years as a super sub at Baldwin High School, where he is respectfully known as Mr. M.

Beth Fochtman

Teacher

Beth Fochtman is a Baldwin Graduate and has been a Family & Consumer Science Teacher for 15 years in the Baldwin Whitehall School District. She graduated from Mercyhurst College with a Bachelor of Arts in Nutrition/Hotel Restaurant Institutional Management in 1999 and a Bachelor of Sciences in Family & Consumer Sciences Education in 2001. During her time at Baldwin, Beth has coached both men’s and women’s tennis, as well as chaperoned several trips and dances. Her greatest joy is being married to her husband Rich (a fellow Baldwin teacher) and being the mother of two amazing children.

Chris Kelly

Teacher + Coach

Chris Kelly has been a classroom teacher for the last 14 years teaching middle school science in both the Mt. Lebanon and Peters Township school districts. He is a 1998 graduate of St. Francis College where he earned a B.S. in Biology. Outside of teaching, Chris served as a youth pastor at the Monongahela Church of the Nazarene for 5 years and has been coaching volleyball since his graduation from St. Francis. During that time, he spent eight seasons as the head coach for the Peters Township Boys’ Volleyball Team and, next fall, will be in his third season as the head coach for the Baldwin Girls’ Volleyball Team. Chris resides in Whitehall with his wife Karolyn and their two children, Rachel, 11 and Alex, 8.

Denise Sedlacek

Assistant Superintendent-Baldwin Whitehall School District

Mother, daughter, sister, teacher, mentor, and administrator. These are just a few of the roles that Assistant Superintendent Denise Sedlacek holds in her day-to-day life. As an educator for 31 years and having served in administrative capacities in Southwestern Pennsylvania for the past 25 years, Ms. Sedlacek is able to draw upon her vast experiences and wealth of information to serve the students of the Baldwin-Whitehall School District. As a district leader, Ms. Sedlacek works to empower others, build capacity, and develop new leaders all while modeling servant leadership. She strives to provide opportunities for all students to feel a part of something larger than themselves so that they can grow and develop into the best versions of themselves.

Isabel Bierwirth

Student + Exchange Student

Isabel Bierwirth is a 16 year old exchange student from Germany. At the moment, she attend Baldwin High School as a Junior. The exchange experience has opened many new doors to her, which she would like to share with anyone interested.

Jim Nowalk

Attorney + Mayor

Mayor Jim Nowalk is a 1970 graduate of Baldwin High School and a 1974 graduate of the University of Notre Dame where he received a BA in government. After graduating from Duquesne University’s School of Law in 1978, he was hired as an Assistant County Solicitor for Allegheny County, assigned to John J. Kane Hospital. He later served as the Executive Director of the four Kane Regional Centers. He has been an attorney in private practice since 1989.

Josh Barone

Student

Joshua Barone is a sophomore at Baldwin High School. He is involved in diverse school activities including mock trial, Junior Achievement, and as vice president of the Literary Guild. As a member of his youth group at church, he will be traveling to New Orleans to attend the National Youth Gathering in April. Joshua also enjoys volunteering at the National Aviary and was the youngest nominee for Volunteer of the Year for the past two years. His favorite classes are English, Psychology, and Sociology.

Larry Pantuso

Parent + Healthcare Administrator + Former School Board Director

Lawrence Pantuso, RN, MBAHealthcare Administrator and former School Board Member has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Carlow College and a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in Health Systems Management from Grand Canyon University. He also has an Executive Certificate from The University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business and he is a Certified Strategic Planner holding a certificate from the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development of the American Hospital Association. He has worked in the healthcare sector in various roles for thirty years. He is currently a Vice President for a not for profit health system. He has served one term as a School Board Director and has three children.

Lauren Schugg

Student

Lauren Schugg is an 18 year old senior at Baldwin High School. She is an editor of the Purbalite (the school newspaper), an executive board member of Special Olympics Club, web editor of National Honor Society, and French Club treasurer. Lauren is committed to Penn State University Park for the fall semester and plans to attend the Liberal Arts School, majoring in English.

Lisa Klein

Teacher

Lisa Klein started meditating in 1993, and a decade later, she became certified to teach meditation. Lisa taught at Duquesne University for eight years, where she completed her doctorate in 2008. As part of her studies, she conducted research on the effects of mantra meditation on classroom teachers. Additionally, Lisa has taught English at Baldwin High School for 19 years and serves as the head of the English Department.

Mackenzie Voelker

Student

You never know what life is going to throw at you, the trick is knowing that not everything you want is going to go as planned. When she was 15, life threw a huge wrench in Mackenzie's life that will continue to affect her for years to come. She have Rheumatoid Arthritis, an autoimmune disease that causes ones body to attack itself at the joints. This disease has changed her life and made her realize there is more to life than just a sport.

Mikaela Thorne

Student

Mikaela Thorne is a senior at Baldwin high School. She plans on pursuing a degree at a four year university and studying film and media production, in the hopes of being a documentarian someday. She played on the two-time WPIAL volleyball team at BHS and looks forward to more volleyball in college.

Mikayla Davic

Student

Mikayla Davic is a freshman at Baldwin High School. She was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania along with her four siblings. She loves to write, act, and read. She has written and directed two musicals in the past two years, raising over $16,000 for Make-A-Wish® and plans to continue to write and direct a show each year until she graduates with a goal of over $50,000 raised. She wants a career in the film industry as a screenwriter, director, and actress. Her top college choices include New York University, University of California Los Angeles, and University of Southern California.

Nina Deibler

Parent + Learning Professional + Designer

Nina P. Deibler is a published learning professional with 20 years of experience designing and developing learning and performance support solutions for academia, industry, and government including mobile applications and learning technology standards. She has developed and instructed workshops on communication skills, career networking, instructional design, and e-learning. Nina is currently a Technical Business Consultant and Project Manager in the Citizen Services Unit at Serco. She also serves as the Deputy Chair of the Education Subcommittee for the Inter-Service/Industry Training, Simulation, and Education Conference (I/ITSEC). Nina’s publications include peer-reviewed articles and conference proceedings. She earned an M.A. from Abilene Christian University, an M.A.S. from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and a B.A. from Grove City College. Nina is a wife, mom, and avid volunteer. In her spare time she chairs the WQED Community Advisory Board, serves on the board of the Bald

Paige Palmer

Student

Paige Palmer is a Lincoln Assassination researcher and writer. Skilled in all areas of Lincoln’s Assassination, while giving superior attention to researching the personal lives of Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspirators. She is well-polished in American History, World Wars and the lives of U.S. Presidents.She has spoken to a variety of groups including historical societies, civil war roundtables and private resorts. Paige is maintaining a GPA of 4.0 with plans to attend college and major in history.

Russell Graves

Student

Russell Graves is a senior at Baldwin High School, who enjoys towns and cities that are no longer as prosperous as it once was. He was born in the small town of Hanover Pennsylvania, and lived there for 13 years, and the city of York for three. He moved to Baldwin when he was almost 16, and loves it here in Pittsburgh. Growing up he loved to follow his dad around and repair things around the house, build decks, and remodeling rooms, shaping his love for work and construction. Now in his second year at Steel Center for Electrical Construction, Russell plans on joining the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers local #5, to pursue an apprenticeship there in place of attending college, and one day desires to govern a broken community. He would like to thank his mother, father, and Leanne Wilson for all their support and encouragement.

Zach Blanner

Student

Zach Blanner is a senior at Baldwin High School. He is involved in clubs including currently serving as Senior Class Vice President. Zach has a strong interest in photography and journalism, a career which he intends to pursue at a four year university this fall.