WCPSS 2026 Summer Leadership Conference

Student Support Services and Special Education are partnering together to launch work around Restorative Mindsets in school climates. This presentation will talk about the opportunity to begin work focused on creating a restorative school climate in their school. We will discuss training and coaching that may be available to schools but also how schools might create systems within their school to move to a restorative mindset. Learning Model Connection: See Me

School leaders will explore ways to plan, communicate, and address inequities in students’ experiences in the school environment.

This session highlights the collaborative work of ALC Teacher Jesse DiMartino and Principal Anne Marie Adkins in restructuring a middle school Alternative Learning Center to better align with the Wake County Public School System Strategic Plan. The presentation focuses on designing a responsive support model that prioritizes student engagement, increased attendance, and the development of CASEL social-emotional competencies. Central to this approach is the belief that the Alternative Learning Center is a support structure for all students, not solely a space for those receiving disciplinary consequences. Instead, it serves as a proactive environment where students can access targeted interventions, build self-regulation skills, and strengthen their connection to the school community.Participants will learn how restorative practices, structured reflection, and individualized supports were implemented for students. The goal is to decrease student recidivism who repeatedly demonstrate Level I and Level II behaviors as outlined in the Student Code of Conduct. The restructuring emphasizes skill-building, accountability, and instructional continuity with the goals of increasing students’ instructional seat time in core classrooms and decreasing suspension rates for minor offenses. Attendees will gain practical strategies for creating structured, supportive environments that help students develop the behavioral and social-emotional skills necessary to successfully re-engage in the general education setting.

This session will provide an overview of school based Family Engagement data sets, and how different data points can lead schools to select a variety of School Improvement Indicators outside of E 1.06. This session will include existing data sets, ways to gather additional data from students, families & staff, and how the approach to specific data trends may live in an "E" indicator outside of E1.06.

In this session, we introduce a K-12 Digital Literacy Progression framework. Built around ten essential questions and rooted in the NC Digital Learning Standards, this curriculum integrates curated expert materials with high-quality, custom-designed resources. While the curriculum is meant to be delivered by certified school librarians, the framework is engineered to serve as the foundation for district-wide alignment, providing the instructional scaffolding all staff need to support digital literacy. Session Outcomes Strategic Leadership: Learn how librarians across the district are already engaged in digital literacy instruction and how you might provide necessary support to position your librarians as instructional leaders. Instructional Excellence: Explore curriculum maps and sample lessons that demonstrate rigorous, standards-based instruction infused with high-impact instructional strategies.

Realizing the vision of "Onward Together" requires a leadership commitment to removing barriers before they even exist. In this session, leaders will explore Universal Design for Learning (UDL) not just as a classroom strategy, but as a systemic lever for equity. Aligned with Lever 1 (Challenge Me!), we will examine how UDL frameworks empower students to become Empowered Learners (DLS.EL.1) by providing multiple means of engagement and representation. Participants will leave with a leadership lens for evaluating standards-driven instruction that ensures every student, regardless of variability, is challenged and supported.