Member Directory
Brooks Mendenhall teaches 8th grade ELA and coaches boys soccer at Dade Middle School in Trenton, Georgia. He attended Abilene Christian University where he graduated in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in History. After graduating college, he relocated to Chattanooga, TN, and received his teaching license from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. His five years in education have been heavily informed by Learning Focused Schools. Early in his career, he worked closely with his content partner to align the 8th-grade social studies curriculum at Dade Middle School with the LFS framework. This early introduction to LFS and curriculum development left a lasting impact on his pedagogical approach.
Wanda Humphrey has been an educator for 30 years. During her career, she has taught grades K-8, been a reading interventionist, school literacy coach and served as a district literacy coordinator. She is dedicated to cultivating literacy for all students and works with administrators, instructional coaches, and teachers to intentionally utilize high-impact strategies during instruction.
Dr. Sherri Connell has been a Pennsylvania educator for more than 33 years. She began her career as a high school chemistry teacher, was the Associate Director of Science in Motion for Juniata College, was a high school principal, and for the last 13 years has been an Assistant Superintendent in charge of Curriculum and Instruction. She and her faculty began using the Learning-Focused Framework 16 years ago.
Melissa Marlett is a graduate of the University of South Florida with a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education and a Masters of Education from Saint Leo University. She worked with children with special needs for 13 years as a teacher and liaison, before joining the Learning-Focused team.
I am a mother of two amazing girls and a wife to the world's most wonderful husband. I have been in education for 16 years and love every experience I have been offered. I am currently an Assistant Principal at a phenomenal elementary school. I have been blessed to also work with Learning-Focused for the last 3 years and been a district trainer for almost 5 years.
Jennifer Partrick is a literacy specialist who shares her expertise alongside educators in school districts across the country. She specializes in helping teachers master the literacy block, demonstrating the connections between direct instruction lessons and guided reading interventions. Jennifer holds a Master’s degree in Reading with undergraduate degrees in both the Maria Montessori Method and Theater Education.
Rob Syphard received a bachelor’s degree in history education at the University of Delaware, received a master’s degree in school leadership from Wilmington University, and is currently a doctoral candidate at Wilmington University. He is entering his 9th year in education, serving as a 7th grade social studies teacher, a district literacy coach, and is currently an assistant principal.
Tracy Easterling has been in education for 30 years. She spent 10 years teaching all content to fifth graders and 8 years teaching seventh grade math. For the past 12 years, she has served as a district curriculum specialist and transitioned to an administrative position as the Extended Learning Coordinator. She still maintains her connection to teachers and students serving as the 6-8 Math Curriculum Specialist. She is passionate about coaching teachers to intentionally leverage high-impact strategies to maximize student success.