Calling all music, theater, and visual arts teachers! Let’s talk about assessment. That’s not a scary concept. Assessment is just gathering evidence of individual student achievement. While it might look different in a music, theater, or visual arts classroom than it does in math, we can still do it! Imagine the changing faces of a Rubik’s cube. In this session we will explore three tools that are each a “best fit” depending on your current situation. Most important, each tool can be used for three critical purposes—student reflection, assessment, and teacher feedback. Take away examples ready to use or adapt for your music, theater, or visual arts classes next week.

Put AI to work to better meet the needs of every learner. Participants will explore practical, hands-on strategies for using AI tools to personalize learning, support students who need additional help and provide enriching challenges for advanced learners. Attendees will leave with tangible ways to use AI to strengthen differentiated instruction in the classroom.

Catholic schools hold strong beliefs about the dignity of the human person, formation of the whole child, mercy, belonging and care, but how consistently are those beliefs reflected in everyday practice? Drawing from A Light Unto My Path: A Model of Accompaniment for Fostering Mental Wellness, this interactive session will help leaders examine how Catholic identity shapes schoolwide, classroom and student-support practices. Through assessment and reflection, participants will identify strengths, uncover gaps between beliefs and practice, and determine realistic areas for growth. Attendees will leave with practical next steps for building a coherent culture of accompaniment that supports the mental wellness of every student.

Build positive behavior while staying rooted in the values of our Catholic faith. Participants will explore evidence-based strategies for promoting positive behavior and addressing a range of student behavioral needs. Attendees will leave with practical tools and resources to strengthen their approach to behavior support while helping students grow in the values Catholic schools seek to instill.

Designed for early childhood educators and leaders, this session highlights the resources and opportunities available through Child Care Aware of Minnesota. Participants will explore professional development, financial support, capacity-building resources and Parent Aware, Minnesota’s Quality Rating and Improvement System, and learn how these programs can support their early childhood communities.

Strengthen the partnership between principals and administrative assistants by leveraging each other’s unique strengths and gifts. Participants will explore practical ways to increase efficiency, strengthen collaboration and better serve their school’s mission. Attendees will leave with tools for building effective systems that create lasting impact.

School leaders are often called upon to communicate during moments of crisis, uncertainty and change. This session will share practical strategies and real-world examples to help leaders prepare for difficult situations, develop clear and compassionate messages, navigate challenging conversations and avoid common communication pitfalls. Participants will leave with ready-to-use tools and frameworks to communicate with confidence, strengthen trust and lead their school communities through the unexpected.

Designed for educators, instructional coaches and school leaders with foundational knowledge of multilingual learner instruction, this session takes the next step in supporting language development and academic achievement. Participants will explore strategies for Tier 1, 2 and 3 vocabulary instruction, creating language objectives aligned with content goals, and using WIDA proficiency levels to inform instruction. Through practical examples, attendees will learn how to differentiate tasks and supports while maintaining high expectations and rigorous learning opportunities for all students.

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*This session meets Minnesota state licensure requirements. 

Great fundraising is a team effort. This session explores how Catholic school leaders, faculty, staff, board members, and volunteers all play a vital role in advancing your school's mission. Learn how to articulate a compelling case for support, engage stakeholders as true partners, and turn everyday conversations into lasting donor relationships. Leave with practical tools to strengthen your school's culture of philanthropy and advance the mission together.

The conversations leaders tend to avoid are often the ones that shape culture the most. This fast-paced session equips principals, heads of school, and pastors with a simple framework for preparing for and leading high-stakes, emotionally charged conversations with clarity, confidence, and intention. Through real-world examples and guided reflection, participants will build awareness of their mindset, stay grounded under pressure, and structure conversations that preserve relationships while driving accountability. Leave with practical tools and language you can apply in your very next difficult conversation.

Build confident counters and fluent math thinkers through concrete manipulatives, engaging games, and visual strategies that deepen preschool – second grade students' understanding of addition and subtraction. This interactive session explores playful, hands-on approaches that strengthen foundational math skills without relying on drill.

Any subject can be approached from a Catholic point of view so that it is taught and experienced as part of a coherent, compelling, and beautiful picture of the world. This workshop introduces 4 questions to help any teacher think about any subject in an authentic and integrated Catholic way.

Discover how to integrate developmentally appropriate mindfulness, movement, and social-emotional learning into early education settings. Explore the impact of trauma and stress on children and adults while learning practical, research-based strategies to support self-regulation, manage big feelings, and build classroom community. Leave with breathing exercises, regulating movement, relaxation practices, and SEL activities you can use immediately, along with strategies to support both the children in your care and your own well-being.

Make more room for challenge and deeper learning with curriculum compacting. Participants will explore how to identify content gifted and advanced learners have already mastered and replace repetitive instruction with meaningful opportunities for enrichment and acceleration. Through practical elementary and middle school examples, attendees will learn strategies for pre-assessment, documentation and planning while maintaining alignment with standards and instructional goals.

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*This session meets Minnesota state licensure requirements. 

Strengthen literacy instruction for students in grades 5–8 with practical strategies that meet a range of learning needs. Participants will explore ways to build reading comprehension, vocabulary, fluency and written expression while supporting students who need additional intervention. Attendees will leave with classroom-ready strategies to make literacy instruction accessible, engaging and responsive to all learners.

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*This session meets Minnesota state licensure requirements. 

Do you find yourself saying the psalms rather than praying with the psalms? These ancient prayers of the church are recited at every Mass, and prayed in the Liturgy of the Hours by all ordained clergy and consecrated religious. Yet, for many, they remain a mystery. This workshop offers an introduction to the beautiful Hebrew poetry of the psalms, their organization and structure, and ways of praying with them that move beyond recitation toward relationship with Christ and peace.

Explore the C-STEM Lending Library through a fast-paced, hands-on workshop featuring engaging K–8 STEM resources, including robotics kits, coding tools, engineering challenges, and scientific investigation materials. Rotate through interactive stations as you test resources, discover what's available to borrow, and learn how to integrate them into your curriculum. Whether you're new to STEM or an experienced educator, you'll leave with ideas and resources to spark curiosity and support student-centered learning.

Forming Catholic hearts and minds requires a thriving, aligned faculty. Yet leaders constantly face hiring shortages, turnover, and burnout - challenges that often stem from a fragmented school culture. Discover practical, field-tested strategies to attract, inspire, and retain mission-fit teachers. From rethinking school schedules and professional development to improving communication and staff perks, this session offers actionable insights to help you support and care for your faculty as deeply as you do your students.

This session provides educators with a deeper understanding of dyslexia, including what it is, how it presents in the brain and common characteristics seen in the classroom. Participants will explore the role of the MTSS process in identifying and supporting students with dyslexia and related conditions, while gaining practical information they can apply in their classrooms. The session will also examine the updated definition of dyslexia and what it means for educators.

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*This session meets Minnesota state licensure requirements.