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From Pillars to Practice

 

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.October 22nd, 2025.

Community Schools are more than a model—they’re a movement rooted in relationships, whole child support, and collective action. This summit will spotlight practical strategies, inspiring stories, and scalable solutions from leaders implementing the Community Schools approach.

What to Expect:

  • Real-world strategies that schools and districts are using to remove barriers to learning
  • Stories from the field showing how partnerships are improving student and family outcomes
  • A fully virtual summit so you can join from anywhere and access sessions on your schedule
  • Models for collaboration between educators, families, and community-based organizations
  • Tools you can use to strengthen implementation at any stage of your community school journey

Whether you’re early in implementation or scaling what works, this virtual event will provide tools, models, and ideas to help your school community thrive.

Q: Are the sessions live?
A: No, all of the interviews are pre-recorded videos and available for you to watch at your convenience. 

Q: When will the videos be available? 
A: The videos will be sent out around 5am the day of the summit, and will be available for an entire week. 

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.Speakers & Presenters.

  • Dr. Donnie Ray Hale, Jr.

Dr. Donnie Ray Hale, Jr.
Vice President of Strategic Partnership and Community Engagement, Institute for Educational Leadership

  • Dr. Trina Nurse

Dr. Trina Nurse
Program Manager,
Office of Community Schools, 
NYC Public Schools

  • Marisa Gamboa

Marisa Gamboa
Executive Leadership Coach, Community Schools
Central Valley Regional Technical Assistance Center, Office of the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools

  • David Castro Jr.

David Castro Jr.
Executive Leadership Coach
Central Valley Regional Technical Assistance Center, Office of the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools

  • Norm Stewart

Norm Stewart
Superintendent
Marsing Joint School District #363

  • Dr. Loretta Whitson
    Dr. Loretta Whitson is the founder and executive director of the California Association of School Counselors (CASC), the second-largest state association representing school counselors in the nation.

Dr. Loretta Whitson 
Founder and Executive Director of the California Association of School Counselors

  • Lezya Weglarz
    Lezya Weglarz wears many hats in the school counseling profession. She currently serves as a Project Specialist for the San Diego County Office of Education where she supports K12 School Counseling across San Diego County.

Lezya Weglarz 
Project Specialist, San Diego County Office of Education

  • Lauren Boyher
    Lauren is a school counselor at Cambridge Elementary in San Antonio, TX, a 2019 National School of Character. She is currently in her 17th year as a school counselor and serves as the Texas Coordinator for Character.org. 

Lauren Boyher 
School Counselor, Cambridge Elementary & Texas Coordinator for Character.org

  • Matthew McClain
    Matthew McClain has been a school counselor in rural Northeast Colorado since 2005. He spent 10 years counseling at the 5th and 6th grade level, then spent 6 years at the high school level, and is currently at the elementary level since 2021.

Matthew McClain 
School Counselor & the Executive Director for the Colorado School Counselor Association

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.Your Host For The Summit.

Alisha Hill (3)
.Dr. Alisha Hill.


Dr. Ruth Alisha Hill is an accomplished educator, leader, author, and coach, currently serving as the Executive Director of Professional Services at CharacterStrong. With over 22 years of experience in education, she has worked in rural, urban, secondary, and post-secondary settings, bringing a broad perspective to supporting students and educators. Before joining CharacterStrong, Dr. Ruth served in various leadership roles within Gwinnett County Public Schools, including Director of Staff Development and Coordinator of Teacher and Leader Effectiveness. She has also held roles as a teacher, Academy Leader, Adjunct Professor, Literacy Coordinator, and Director of Programs. Dr. Ruth is passionate about fostering meaningful student engagement, empowering educators, and creating safe, supportive learning environments. She is a sought-after speaker and facilitator on topics such as coaching, student voice, psychological safety, culturally responsive teaching, and educator well-being.

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