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Walt Sutterlin

E-Mail: walt@sutterlearn.com

Professional Target _________

To serve as instructional leader in an elementary school in a suburban- rural school district in mid-Michigan. To use my knowledge and skills in process management, relationship building, and change management to rethink traditional school structures for improved student achievement. To work with colleagues who value children, self-reflection and learning in an organization which expects growth and continuous improvement.

Education _________

Michigan State University Master of Arts in K-12 Administration	East Lansing, MI May 2011 GPA 4.0
Oakland University Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education Highly Qualified to Teach K-8 Endorsements in: Major – Social Studies (RX), Grades 6 - 8 Minor – Language Arts (BX), Grades 6 - 8	Rochester, MI December 2006 GPA 3.87
Center for Prehospital Medicine North Carolina Paramedic Licensure	Charlotte, NC December 1998

Values & Beliefs______ _________

My work as a teacher-leader is guided and informed by the following core beliefs and values:

Children’s needs…emotional, social, academic…are the reason for our work and must come first in all of our planning, decision making, and problem solving.
Servant leadership is a virtue of improving oneself through improving others.
Continuous improvement of schools as systems is the shared expectation, resulting in improved student outcomes, employee engagement, community satisfaction, and efficiency.
Lifelong learning of, and by, individuals is nonnegotiable to contribute to society in proactive, meaningful ways.

Professional Skills_____

Manipulate and analyze large data sets
Develop SMART goals based on examination of multiple inputs
Build relationships among varieties of stakeholders
Maintain big-picture view, while respecting ground-level challenges
Develop agendas and facilitate actionable decisions

Professional Accomplishments ____________
Created protocol for principals and teachers to identify and use assessment reports efficiently and effectively to improve student achievement
Authored and promoted district-wide positive behavior escalation plan with complementary classroom and school data collection tool
Partnered with Math Curriculum Director to write district-wide, grade-level math assessments
Appointed by Superintendent to serve on interview committee to select Holt Public Schools' Executive Director of Curriculum and Professional Development
Launched monthly, cross-district, grade-level Professional Learning Community
Researched benefits of, and implemented team-teaching, multi-age classroom model of conjoined third/fourth grade students
Wrote grants and developed a podcasting reading program for first-grade students' fluency improvement
Created Fourth-Grade Reading Buddy program to enhance reading practice of younger students
Member of school and district-wide FINO (Failure Is Not an Option) school-improvement teams
Appointed MEA-RA Delegate for 2008-2010 school years
For an expanded list of accomplishments, please visit: http://www.sutterlearn.com/plans.html

Professional Experience _______

8/07 - Present

Holt Public Schools – Holt, MI
Multi-Age Elementary Teacher, 3^rd/4^th Grade, Dimondale Elementary

Plan for, guide and assess self-contained classroom

Focus on needs of each individual student:

Identifying and adjusting curriculum for at-risk learners
Incorporating Bloom’s Taxonomy into lessons and discussions
Demonstrate effective, proactive classroom management

Apply differentiated instruction:

Leveraging multiple intelligences
Addressing varied student ability levels
Developing intrinsic motivation

Adhere and enhance quality district curriculum:

Facilitate guided reading groups and independent instruction for all ability levels
Teach the writing process using the Lucy Calkins curriculum model
Use and adapt lessons from "Investigations" math curriculum, by Pearson and "Everday Mathematics" by the University of Chicago
Utilize Battle Creek Area Math & Science Center kits and activities
Grade-wide instruction of the Michigan Model health education program

Communicate with parents and colleagues through web site, conferences, phone calls and newsletters:

Maintenance of progress reports and report cards
Facilitate parent-teacher conferences
Ongoing electronic communication and very accessible

Professional Experience _______

10/06 - 06/07 1/06 - 12/06	Troy School District – Troy, MI Substitute Teacher, 5^th Grade, Troy Union Elementary Student Teacher, 5^th Grade, Troy Union Elementary Planned for, guided, and assessed 27 fifth-grade students Developed a working knowledge for teaching the writing process Used and adapted lessons from *Chicago Everyday Mathematics* Leveraged *FOSS hands-on science* teaching activities Helped to identify and adjusted curriculum for *at-risk learners* *Communicated with parents* through conferences, phone calls and newsletters Attended staff development and *school-improvement* meetings Completed *progress reports* and *report cards* Participated and co-facilitated *parent-teacher conferences* Demonstrated *effective, proactive classroom management* Created and implemented a variety of *authentic classroom activities and assessments*
9/05 - 11/05	Ferndale School District – Ferndale, MI (40 hours) Field Intern, 6^th Grade, Coolidge Intermediate Created and taught science lessons on water pollution and volcanoes
9/05 - 11/05	Lake Orion Schools – Lake Orion, MI (20 hours) Field Intern, 1^st and 7^th Grades, Moose Tree Science Preserve Delivered *interactive Earth science explorations* of ground water, soil, apples and honey; led nature walks and educational games
1/05 - 5/05	Detroit Public Schools – Detroit, MI (40 hours) Field Intern, 5^th Grade, Detroit Edison Public School Academy *Created case study* on social implications faced by disadvantaged students
9/04 - 12/04	Pontiac School District – Pontiac, MI (40 hours) Field Intern, 1^st Grade, LeBaron Elementary Assisted in delivery of Success For All reading program Experienced school-wide implementation of *Tribes* program Exposed to a large population of *English Language Learners*
1/04 - 4/04	Ferndale School District – Ferndale, MI (40 hours) Field Intern, Reading First (3^rd - 5^th), Wilson Elementary Assisted in delivery of Reading First reading program in multiple grades

Volunteer Activity _____

7/09 – Present	Holt First Presbyterian Church Youth & Children’s Musical Accompanist	Holt, MI
1/10 – 5/10	Village Summit Community Center Organized monthly supply collection and volunteer workday	Lansing, MI
1/09 – 5/09	United States Peace Corp/Dimondale Elementary Organized donation and shipment of school library	Lesotho/South Africa
8/03 - 6/04	Prince of Glory Lutheran Church Youth Group Director (Grades 7 - 12)	Madison Heights, MI
2/01 - 2/03	St. Charles & Helena Catholic Church Youth Advisor (Grades 7 - 12)	Clio, MI
1/96 - 6/97	Myers Park Presbyterian Church Substitute Preschool Teacher	Charlotte, NC
9/94 - 5/97	Myers Park Presbyterian Church Jr. High Youth Advisor	Charlotte, NC
9/93 - 5/97	Myers Park Presbyterian Church 2^nd Grade Sunday School Teacher	Charlotte, NC

Additional Experience ________

12/10 - Present	Sutterlearn.com SutterBlog Author www.sutterlearn.com/sutterblog	Lansing, MI
8/10 – 11/10	HOPE Foundation Chief Blog Author www.hopefoundation.org/blog	Lansing, MI
6/00 - 8/07	Carlson Marketing Worldwide Quality Analyst 3/04 - 8/07 Program Manager 6/00 – 3/04	Troy, MI
9/97 - 10/99	Mecklenburg EMS Agency EMT-Paramedic	Charlotte, NC
2/97 - 8/99	Carolina’s Healthcare System Emergency Medical Technician	Charlotte, NC
5/96 - 2/97	Myers Park Presbyterian Church Interim Recreation Director	Charlotte, NC

Publications & Presentations __________ _________

Grand Valley State University, Guest Presenter on general educator's role in providing behavioral video support for ASD students, Lexington Hotel, Lansing, MI, June 21, 2011
What’s Working In Schools Newsletter, Vol. 4, Issue 2: A Mission From The Heart, February 2011
MEA Voice Magazine: The Best Student, August 2009

Honors & Memberships ________

MEA/NEA Member, 2007 - present
Graduated with honors, Oakland University:

Departmental Honors
Golden Key International Honor Society

Oakland University Alumni Association Working Student Scholarship Recipient, 2006
Oakland University School of Education Dean’s List for Academics, 2003 - 2006
Oakland Community College Dean’s List for Academics, 2001 - 2002
Golden Key International Honor Society, 2002 - 2006
Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society, 2001 - 2002
Student Michigan Education Association, 2001 - 2007

Hobbies, Interests_&_Personal_trivia ____

Two wonderfully engaging children and a brilliant wife keep me happy and busy
Eighteen years, three bands, lots of songs…still learning to play guitar
I bravely taught myself to cross-stitch…while working in a fire station
Writing is a passion and strength that finds its way into most everything I do
I could never learn enough about the Civil War or Native American Culture

references____________________________ ___

Dr. Johnny Scott, Superintendent, Holt Public Schools, 517-694-5715
James Cooper, Principal, Dimondale Elementary School, Holt Public Schools, 517-694-6411
Melissa Usiak, Principal, Sycamore Elementary School, Holt Public Schools, 517-699-2185
Dr. Nancy Colflesh, Michigan State University, 517-339-5268
Kari Selleck, Director of Curriculum, Owosso Public Schools, 989-723-8131
Jessica Brown, Teacher, Dimondale Elementary School, Holt Public Schools, 517-699-7903

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Home \| Portfolio \| Classroom	Updated July 7, 2011
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