About The Efficacious Educator
We help secondary school leaders build clear, consistent, developmentally aligned systems—so adolescents grow, teachers thrive, and schools regain coherence and confidence.
Why I Started The Efficacious Educator
Every teacher and leader deserves to feel capable (efficacious) and supported, especially when student needs are rising, and systems feel fragmented. I founded The Efficacious Educator because I’ve seen, again and again, that when educators understand adolescent development and respond together with consistency, everything changes.
Schools become calmer.
Students engage more deeply.
Adults feel less reactive and more confident.
And the work becomes human again.
My mission is simple: To help leaders and teams design the systems and practices that allow adolescents—and the adults who serve them—to thrive.
My Story
More than 25 years ago, I began as a middle and high school teacher. Later, as an assistant principal suddenly responsible for schoolwide behavior, I learned quickly that punishment doesn’t create lasting change. Students needed instruction in missing skills, clear routines, and predictable systems of support—not more consequences.
This realization shifted the trajectory of my career.
After earning a master’s in School Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, I worked as a Peer Observer in Denver Public Schools and then spent over a decade with Engaging Schools, partnering with districts across the country to redesign discipline practices, strengthen school climate, and embed social-emotional learning.
Along the way, I co-authored Engaged Classrooms: The Art and Craft of Reaching and Teaching All Learners and contributed to Embedding Social and Emotional Learning in High School Classrooms (both available for free through CASEL).
Through these experiences, I have seen what becomes possible when educators share a belief in their collective power and work together with clarity, consistency, and developmental alignment. Schools become safer. Students experience belonging and purpose. And teachers rediscover joy in their work.
Today, I live in Durango, Colorado with my husband and two teenage daughters—and I remain deeply committed to helping schools grow alongside the adolescents in their care.
Mission
We help schools translate the science of adolescent development into everyday practice, strengthening climate, culture, and collective efficacy so every student and every educator can thrive.
Vision
We envision developmentally responsive schools where educators, united by collective efficacy, design predictable, human-centered systems that nurture adolescents’ curiosity, connection, and capacity to thrive.
What We Do
MTSS System Redesign Coaching
We help MTSS leaders and teams build clear, coherent, developmentally aligned systems that reduce reactivity and increase consistency.1:1 Leadership Coaching for Assistant Principals
Supporting APs in transforming reactive discipline into predictable, developmental, and instructional behavior systems—while building teacher coaching routines that reduce referrals.Professional Learning & Courses
Research-based, practice-driven learning for teachers and teams, including The First Two Weeks of School course.Podcast & Newsletter
Stories of collective efficacy, practical tools, and research you can use immediately.
Impact Snapshot
Our work has helped schools like New Britain HS (CT) and Mount Rainier HS (WA) build safer, more responsive systems that align with adolescent development, resulting in better attendance, stronger relationships, and educators who believe they can make a difference.
Ready to See What’s Possible?
Whether you're seeking schoolwide system redesign or individualized leadership support, I’d love to connect.