Ethel Johnson has over thirty years of experience in education as a master teacher, administrator, and professional development provider. She is retired from the South Carolina Department of Education where she served as an Education Associate and Team Leader for the Content Knowledge Unit in the Office of Teacher Effectiveness. Her tenure at the Department included planning and designing the Professional Delivery Model for implementing the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Arts, leading professional development opportunities for District Implementation Teams, K-12 teachers and administrators, higher education faculty members, and serving as an expert panel member and State liaison for State Standards implementation. Ms. Johnson also coordinated the Curriculum Specialist and Principal Leader programs, the Literacy in the Content Areas (LCAT) initiative, Data Review Training Process, and the development of the S3 curriculum for K-12 educators. Ms. Johnson has extensive experience in instructional leadership, curriculum development, and design of instructional materials. She holds an EdS in educational administration and a M.Ed. in English from the University of South Carolina. Ms. Johnson facilitates professional learning opportunities to develop the capabilities of educators as effective literacy leaders, provides support to implement the South Carolina College–and Career–Ready Standards for English Language Arts, and serves as an approved Read to Succeed Professional Development Vendor to assist educators in earning the legislated Read to Succeed endorsements. She currently teaches Read to Succeed courses in multiple districts for school and district administrators.

For a number of years, in various roles and titles, Pam Lancaster had the opportunity to coordinate literacy and early learning services for the South Carolina Department of Education. Through her role as coordinator for the South Carolina Reading Initiative and state director of the South Carolina Reading First grant, she gained extensive experience in the development and design of large-scale professional learning projects. These initiatives facilitated the training of hundreds of literacy coaches across the state. Before her retirement from the agency, Pam’s responsibilities included a focus on the incorporation of state standards into all professional learning offerings provided by agency literacy specialists and the development of the first state comprehensive literacy plan to address the ongoing issues of student literacy progress. During her tenure, she provided the vision and oversight for the design and implementation of School Literacy Leadership Teams, District Data Implementation Teams, and the Literacy in the Content Areas initiative, the Best Practices Seminar Series, Exemplary Writing Practices and Literacy Leaders programs. She also provided guidance and oversight for the implementation of early literacy standards and services including the Child Development Education Program. Pam received both her undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of South Carolina and completed numerous post-graduate hours in the area of language and literacy. She began her career in the classroom before working as a clinical faculty member at the University of South Carolina. Currently, Pam serves as an approved Read to Succeed professional development vendor to assist educators in earning the legislated Read to Succeed endorsements and provides on-going support and professional learning opportunities to early childhood and elementary teachers in districts and schools across the state.

Caroline Savage has over thirty years of experience in education as an elementary and middle school teacher, administrator, and consultant. During her tenure at the South Carolina Department of Education, she served as an Education Associate in the Office of School Leadership, working with school-based administrators. Her most recent experience was with the Unit of Literacy and Early Learning where she coordinated various state initiatives and projects including the South Carolina Reading Initiative-Middle Grades, Best Practices Seminar Series, Exemplary Writing Practices, and Literacy Leaders Program. Ms. Savage has participated in the development and implementation of South Carolina Academic Standards (2008) and development of instructional support materials. She has been actively involved in the implementation of the South Carolina College–and Career–Ready Standards for English Language Arts, providing professional development to teachers and administrators. She holds a M.Ed. in Elementary Education and Administration Education from the University of South Carolina. Ms. Savage has taught at the graduate level, providing courses for Converse College. As an approved Read to Succeed Professional Development Vendor, she currently teaches endorsement courses in multiple districts for school and district administrators.