Keynote Speakers

Dr. Lya Snell
Thursday, October 14

Dr. Lya Snell serves as the Georgia Department of Education's Mathematics Program Manager, where she works to promote equity and access to high-quality mathematics programming throughout Georgia. This includes a focus on making mathematics relevant for students through STEM/STEAM education. Dr. Snell has served in multiple leadership and teaching capacities advocating for equity in mathematics education. She has participated in numerous outreach activities in a variety of settings and serves on a number of boards involving K-12 Mathematics, as well as STEM-STEAM education.

Trena Wilkerson
Friday, October 15

Trena Wilkerson is the current President of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and is a mathematics education professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in the School of Education at Baylor University in Waco, Texas where she teaches both graduate and undergraduate mathematics education courses and conducts professional development and research. She taught high school mathematics for 18 years in Louisiana. Over the years she has been active in both her state and local NCTM affiliates in Louisiana and Texas serving in various leadership roles. Trena has been a member of NCTM for 45 years, her entire teaching career. She has published in several of NCTM’s journals, Mathematics Teacher: Learning & Teaching PK-12, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, Mathematics Teacher, Teaching Children Mathematics, and Journal of Research in Mathematics Education, chaired the MTMS Editorial Panel and served on the NCTM Board of Directors. She has received several awards for outstanding teaching and leadership over the years. Through it all she loves teaching and learning mathematics in support of current and future mathematics teachers and leaders!

Trena sees teaching mathematics as a journey that we take with our students, our colleagues, friends, family, and more each day, week, month, and year, over our lifetime. She invites you to join her on the journey!

Dr. Bernard Frost
Saturday, October 16

Dr. Bernard. E. Frost, a native of Huger, SC has been blessed to work with teachers and students across Spartanburg, Union, Cherokee, and Greenville Counties as a tutor, teacher, trainer, consultant, and educational advisor. He is currently the Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Spartanburg Seven. Dr. Frost also serves as the Southern 1 Regional Director of NCSM: Leadership in Mathematics; Southern 1, NCTM Membership and Affiliate Committee board member; Business Partner with Transforming Learning Cultures, LLC, Master Practitioner for Carnegie Learning, the Past-President of South Carolina Leaders of Mathematics Education, past Director of Teacher Quality and Staff Development for Spartanburg School District Two; and most recently the 2020 recipient of SCCTM Outstanding Contribution to Mathematics Award. With over 16 years of teaching experience and conducting professional developments, Dr. Frost’s passion for education is evident in his willingness to put forth 100% in developing professional development opportunities that assist educators’ in their ongoing process of improving instructional practices that impact student achievement.

A snapshot into his classroom modeling lessons, coaching sessions, and professional development workshops would reveal richly developed lessons guided by inquiry-based learning strategies based on students’/teachers’ needs. Students and teachers who attend his sessions are captivated and engaged in hands-on activities he provides to his attendees. Information shared at these sessions also provides attendees with a deeper understanding and reflective practices that transfer into effective teaching and learning. Facilitating professional learning sessions has given Dr. Frost the opportunity to travel around the country as a keynote speaker, trainer and consultant.

As a consummate researcher and practitioner in the field of education, Dr. Frost focuses on ways to improve instructional practices and student achievement. He continuously researches new strategies to meet the needs of administrators, instructional coaches, teachers and students. The learning gleaned from his research provides an excellent basis for comparison with previous skill sets as a classroom teacher which immediately yields dividends in its applicability to his various roles in school districts. Frost says, “Inspiring other educators provides great insight on the future of education and allows him to have an impact on it.”

Featured Speakers

Jean Lee

Jean Lee is an associate professor in the School of Education at the University of Indianapolis. She currently teaches undergraduate and graduate mathematics education and curriculum courses. Dr. Lee is a PBL-certified and a licensed secondary mathematics teacher. Her recent NCTM publications include Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships: Making Mathematics Come Alive with Project-Based Learning (2018) and Project-Based Learning in Elementary Classrooms: Making Mathematics Come Alive (2021). She also continues to work in urban and rural classrooms to support K–12 preservice teachers, as well as novice and veteran mathematics teachers. Dr. Lee has been involved in leading various professional development projects working with teachers at the state and international levels. Her research interests include project-based learning and the preparation of teachers for high-need, urban school settings.

Dr. Pamela Seda

Dr. Pamela Seda is a veteran math educator with over 30 year of experience. She is a wife, a mother of 4 adult children, the owner of Seda Educational Consulting, creator of The VANG Game math card game, and co-author of the book, Choosing to See: A Framework for Equity in the Math Classroom. She has held various positions in math education including math teacher, instructional coach, college math instructor, and district math supervisor. She is currently the mathematics coordinator for Griffin-Spalding County Schools in Georgia. Dr. Seda is passionate about changing how students experience mathematics, especially those from marginalized groups, and advocates for mathematics instruction that develops all students as mathematical thinkers and problem-solvers.

Billy Singletary

Billy Singletary has taught mathematics students at Coahulla Creek High School for the last nine years where he serves as Lead Mathematics Teacher.

He spent the previous seven years teaching mathematics students at Winder-Barrow High School and Eastbrook Middle School. As the school's lead mathematics teacher, Billy supports and collaborates with teachers at his school and across the district to implement

a rigorous and engaging curriculum to prepare students to be successful in college and careers. He teaches Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus, AP Statistics, and Algebra 1 to grade level and honors students. Demonstrating leadership in mathematics education,

Billy has led professional development in content and pedagogy for a Mathematics and Science Partnership grant, supported a summer workshop funded by a U.S. Department of Education "Improving Teacher Quality" grant, and is a regularly invited panelist for

a mathematics methods class at a local university. He has been recognized as District Teacher of the Year and District STAR Teacher. In 2017 he was recognized with the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.