2026 MWWV Speakers
Many more are coming soon! Keep checking back for the latest updates.
Brandon Leake
Poet
Brandon Leake is the season 15 winner of America’s Got Talent, a 7x Telly Award Winner, 1x SOVAS Award Winner, and 1x Emmy Award Winner. Brandon has been a Poetic Performer, Keynote Speaker, and Workshop leader for over a decade, traveling locations such as: New Zealand, Canada, Mexico, and 42 States.
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Brandon has collaborated with companies such as Meta, CBS, California Hospital Association, Good Morning America, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, and many others. Brandon’s use of personal narrative with his gifting in poetic prose allows him to speak not merely to crowds, but to their inner being, to connect one soul to another, to connect people to an intrinsic sense of communal humanity that is at times severely lacking in our world. Brandon Leake is a visionary, whos words, but most importantly actions reflect his love of Christ, people, and the world.
Babatunde Ilori
CEO, Parsec Education
Babatunde Ilori is the Chief Executive Officer at Parsec Education, where he leads strategic growth, business development, and operational excellence. Under his leadership, Parsec successfully launched a new product, Real, reinforcing its commitment to providing innovative solutions that help schools unlock the full potential of their data, with additional products on the horizon.
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Before joining Parsec, Babatunde served as Executive Director of Accountability and Communications at Madera Unified School District, spearheading strategic initiatives to enhance transparency and performance outcomes with a focus on the LCAP. He also held key roles at Fresno Unified School District, including Director of Equity and Access and Chief of Staff, where he focused on advancing equitable practices and operational efficiency.
Keynote Speaker
Student Outcomes Don’t Change Until Adult Behaviors Change™
AJ Crabill
National Education Leader
Airick Journey “AJ” Crabill’s relentless focus is on improving student outcomes. His passion for this cause, rooted in his past, is a testament to his unwavering dedication. Having experienced the challenges of bouncing in and out of foster care and attending eleven different schools, he is guided by the belief that adult behaviors have a profound influence on student outcomes.
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Drawing on his intimate familiarity with the triumphs and terrors of America’s safety nets for children, he has devoted much of his adult life to advocating for the well-being of the United States’ most vulnerable youth. He currently serves as the Senior Coach at Effective School Boards and as the Director of Governance for the Council of the Great City Schools, where he leads school board support for the nation’s largest urban school systems. He recently served as the Conservator at DeSoto (TX) Independent School District. During his guidance, DeSoto made double-digit literacy gains and improved from having F ratings in areas of academics, finance, and governance, ultimately earning the district B ratings.
He served as Deputy Commissioner at the Texas Education Agency. He spearheaded reforms as board chair of Kansas City (MO) Public Schools, which doubled the percentage of students who are literate and numerate, eventually leading KCPS to full accreditation for the first time in decades. He received the Education Commission of the State’s James Bryant Conant Award, which recognizes extraordinary individual contributions to education. He is also the author of “Great On Their Behalf: Why School Boards Fail, How Yours Can Become Effective.” His new book, “Our Tools They Deserve: Why Adults Choose Retribution, How Students Can Practice Restoration,” is about a fresh approach to school behavior that focuses on equipping students with the tools they need to succeed—both in school and beyond.
Keynote Panel
National Student Board Member Association
The NSBMA will be hosting a keynote panel of student board members during our summit. They will share their experiences in becoming leaders at their schools, learning about school governance, and representing their peers’ voices at decision-making tables. Join us for this dynamic panel discussion.
Keynote Speaker
Omar Dawood
Huddle up
Omar is a stage IV pediatric cancer survivor, physician and digital health pioneer. He is currently the CEO and a board member of Huddle Up, which is an innovative, digital health company supporting the growth, development and mental health of children and adolescents by delivering the highest quality and most consistent care.
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Previously, Omar was the Head of Commercial Strategy for BetterUp and also served as the President of BetterUp Care™ where he led the BetterUp Care™ sales, marketing, clinical, and product teams to bring hyper-personalized mental fitness and science-backed preventive solutions, including 1:1 and group coaching, to employers globally.
Prior to BetterUp, Omar served as the Chief Medical Officer and Head of Sales for Calm where he led B2B employer and health plan sales. Prior to that, Dr. Dawood served as President and Chief Medical Officer of Ginger and Ginger Medical Corporation, now Headspace Health, where he led the clinical and sales organizations, and helped to grow the company for six years. Over the past two decades, Dawood has held senior executive and advisory positions with a spectrum of healthcare companies, including Accuray, Kona Medical, AliveCor and Samsung, leading transformative change and disruptive innovation across a number of healthcare segments.
Omar holds a B.A. in chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.P.H. with concentration in cancer epidemiology from Yale University, an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an M.D. from the Georgetown University School of Medicine. He went onto residency training in surgery and radiology and a fellowship in interventional radiology at the University of California San Francisco. Omar has been honored as both a Howard Hughes and a National Cancer Institute Research Scholar and was named the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society 2010 Silicon Valley Man of the Year for his leadership of national fundraising efforts supporting cancer research.
Breakout Session Speakers
Greg Klein
School Executive & Governance Coach
After serving as a middle school educator and administrator for nearly ten years, Greg worked in philanthropy for over a decade. Greg is a Certified Lead Coach for Student Outcomes Focused Governance with The Council of the Great City Schools and EffectiveSchoolBoards.com.
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He spends most of his time serving on, supporting, and coaching nonprofit boards and school boards, along with their executive leadership teams. From time to time, Greg also teaches high school geometry online with UCScout.org.
Dr. Angie Barfield
Executive Director, Black Students of California United
Dr. Angelia “Angie” Barfield is a wife, mother, daughter, friend, mentor, and community advocate. She has spent the last 20 years working with school-aged youth and families as an advocate, mentor, and basketball coach.
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She has supported school site development for Administrators, Faculty, Staff, and students in multiple districts, holding several positions throughout her educational journey. These include creating Black Student Union (BSU) affinity groups, assisting at-risk youth in grades 5 through 12, as well as their families, in finding resources to help students achieve both academic and social understanding and excellence. She is known for her student group that carried a 100% High School graduation rate for nine straight years, only ending due to the Covid Pandemic school closure. Dr. Barfield has been the creator, cultivator, and thought partner in several empowering experiences for students, particularly for Black students, throughout the State of California and in the Central Valley. Her focus is on Student Excellence, including Student Voice, and community engagement.
Dr. Barfield is a proud graduate of Clark Atlanta University, one of the oldest HBCUs in America, with a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and focused on Higher Education in support of her quest to build a fortified bridge between K-12 and Higher Ed. for students. Dr. Barfield is a co-founder and Executive Director of the Black Students of California United (BSCU), a student-led non-profit committed to cultivating leadership and educating youth in California. The BSCU’s mission is to inspire, educate, organize, and activate Youth, educators, and their communities in California to make local and structural changes to improve their quality of life. She also developed and facilitates the Ujima Collective Leadership experience for middle and high school students. She is the CEO and Lead Consultant of E Squared-Experience Excellence, LLC.
Angie was born and raised in Fresno, California, where she currently resides with her husband, Gregory, building healthy communities in the classroom and abroad.
Ally Chan
Programming Director,
National Student Board Member Association
Allyson (Ally) Chan is the Programming Director for the National Student Board Member Association. Ally served as the Student Board Member on the San Mateo County Board of Education in the 2020-2021 school year, representing over 90,000 students in the county.
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Through her position, she learned more about the power of student voice and advocated for her board’s support of AB 824 to allow student representation on California county and charter boards, an experience similar to her own. Ally is passionate about building programs centered around education advocacy, and is excited to continue uplifting student voices through building training and other programs for NSBMA.
Dr. Dennis Wiechmann
Superintendent, Sanger Unified School District
Dr. Dennis Wiechmann has served as the Superintendent of Sanger Unified School District since 2022, following a three-year tenure as the Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources and a 20-year tenure as the district’s Supervisor of Child Welfare and Attendance. With a background as a school psychologist, Dr. Wiechmann brings a deep commitment to student well-being, equity, and achievement.
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In addition to his district leadership, Dr. Wiechmann has served in higher education as an adjunct faculty member at Fresno State, where he has taught statistics and research methods to educators pursuing their master’s degrees, and as a faculty member in the Doctoral Program at California State University Channel Islands, where he has taught conflict resolution.
Under his leadership, Sanger Unified has emphasized professional learning communities, student growth models, and continuous improvement across all schools. Known for his strategic vision and collaborative leadership style, Dr. Wiechmann has championed initiatives that strengthen academic performance, modernize facilities, and build strong community partnerships. A lifelong learner and advocate for public education, he is driven by the belief that schools can and should change lives—by purpose, not by chance.
Tim Lopez
Associate Superintendent of Educational Services, Sanger Unified School District
Tim Lopez is the Associate Superintendent of Educational Services in the Sanger Unified School District, where he is in his 35th year in education. His career spans a wide range of roles, including high school science teacher, coach, athletic director, assistant principal, elementary principal, categorical director, and area administrator. While serving as principal of Fairmont School, the school was recognized as a Title I Academic Achievement School and a California Distinguished School, and he was named Fresno County Administrator of the Year in 2010.
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In his current role, Mr. Lopez provides oversight and guidance for Curriculum and Instruction, Pupil Services, and Child Welfare and Attendance, and supervises the Area Superintendents across
district school sites. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychobiology from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a Master’s degree in Educational Administration, along with his teaching and administrative credentials, from California State University, Fresno.
Thomas Soto
Director of Educational Services, Sanger Unified School District
Thomas Soto has served as the Director of Educational Services for Sanger Unified School District since 2019, leading districtwide coordination between technology, data, and curriculum departments to enhance efficiency and student outcomes. With over 23 years of service in Sanger Unified, his career reflects a deep commitment to instructional leadership, equity, and continuous improvement.
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Prior to his current role, Mr. Soto served as Deputy Principal and Assistant Principal at Sanger High School, where he guided curriculum and professional development for over 130 teachers and 3,000 students, advanced graduation and instructional systems, and mentored future site leaders. His earlier roles as District Instructional Specialist and English Curriculum Support Provider focused on aligning K–12 literacy practices, transitioning to Common Core Standards, and fostering professional learning communities.
Katie Gault
Coordinator of Data & Assessment, Sanger Unified School District
Katie Gault has served as the Coordinator of Data & Assessment in Sanger Unified since 2021, leading the district’s Data Team. In this role, she partners with district and school leaders to gather, analyze, and apply data from local and state assessments, including the California School Dashboard. She also oversees the district’s student information system, CALPADS reporting, and a variety of data platforms that help educators make informed instructional decisions.
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Prior to her current role, Katie worked as a District Instructional Specialist and classroom teacher in Sanger Unified, where she has served for 18 years. She has presented at multiple educational conferences, including California Educational Research Association (CERA), the California Assessment Conference, EdTech Teacher, and others. Katie is passionate about using data to empower educators and improve outcomes for all students.
Session 3B • Student voice
Genavieve Koenigshofer
Executive Director, GENup
Genavieve Koenigshofer (she/her) is the Executive Director of GENup and a first-year MPP student at the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy. Her journey in education reform began in her senior year of high school, when she served as a student board member for the Capistrano Unified School District. She then spent 4 years as Chief of Staff of GENup, where she helped pass dozens of pro-student bills and worked with hundreds of student leaders.
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Genavieve graduated from UC San Diego in 2024, where she worked with Associated Students to fight for comprehensive disability services reform and affordable housing opportunities. She recently completed the Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs in Los Angeles. Now, as an MPP student, she hopes to learn how to design policy that is effective, implementable, and actionable at the local level.
Session 3B • Student voice
Ananya Akkaraju
Co-Chief of Partnerships, GENup
Ananya Akkaraju (she/her) is the Co-Chief of Partnerships at GENup and is a senior at Dublin High School in Dublin, CA. Her passion for education reform and activism began when she joined her district’s curriculum council in her sophomore year, and later as a member of her school’s GENup club. Through her role at GENup, Ananya aims to connect partners and expand GENup’s network to create a community of teachers, advocates, legislators, and individuals from diverse backgrounds.
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Outside of GENup, Ananya is also the founder and CEO of her own 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EmpowerHer Education, which provides curricula to teachers in rural areas globally with the intention of supporting the education of girls in those areas. Ananya is heavily involved in other education initiatives, is passionate about gender equality, and is an advocate for women’s rights.
Session 3A • School Board
Dr. Sean Richey
Interim Superintendent/Chief Academic Officer, Los Banos Unified School District
Dr. Sean Richey oversees all aspects of the Los Banos Unified School District (LBUSD), which includes nearly 11,000 students. He has served in LBUSD for nearly 7 years. Prior to working at LBUSD, Dr. Richey spent 10 years as a high school, elementary, and continuation high school principal in the Riverbank Unified School District.
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Under Dr. Richey’s leadership, LBUSD implemented professional learning committees (PLC), restorative practices, improvement science strategies, positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS), robust English learner instruction, and districtwide assessments. This has led to increases in student achievement, decreases in chronic absenteeism and suspensions, as well as stronger systems of support for students and their families.
Session 3A • School Board
Karen Ellington
Coordinator of Assessment and Accountability, Los Banos Unified School District
Karen Ellington is the Coordinator of Assessment and Accountability for Los Banos Unified School District, where she leads the collection, validation, and reporting of accountability data. She also supports schools through training, compliance monitoring, and actionable reporting that informs instructional planning and student progress. In this role, Karen functions as the Aeries Administrator and LEA Coordinator for CALPADS, CAASPP, and ELPAC.
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Karen’s more than 30-year career with LBUSD spans classroom, special education, site administration, and adult education. Her leadership style is structured, analytical, and solutions-oriented, yet relational, grounded in the belief that sustainable change occurs when people understand both the “why” and the “how.”
Parsec Team
Session 2C • Parsec Products & Services
Dino Mangano
Learning Integration Specialist
Dino Mangano started as a high school teacher in Detroit, and spent most of his career in the charter world, teaching at a project-based charter there until 2016. He then moved to California, growing into a variety of roles, from Instructional Coach, to teaching at the Teacher Prep Program at UC Merced, to iReady training for Curriculum Associates. He’s finally found his home at Parsec Education, supporting our partners and helping them make the most out of their data.
Session 2C • Parsec Products & Services
Patrick Swisher
Lead Education Analyst
Patrick joined Parsec in 2024 and currently serves as a lead on the Partner Success Team. He taught 6th grade for most of his career before moving into several different instructional coaching roles, including Curriculum and Instruction as well as a new teacher support mentor. Finally he served as an Assessment and Data Support Specialist, working with district and school leaders to support data literacy, accountability, and assessment practices. Patrick’s personal mission is to focus on the practical application of data with the goal of supporting student advancement in every system we partner with.
Session 1C • Parsec Products & Services
Jody Hooker-Silva
Learning Integration Specialist
Jody joined Parsec Education in 2025 as a Learning Integration Specialist. Her background helps bridge the classroom and data, drawing from her years as a high school English teacher and literacy specialist in the Central Valley. She discovered her passion for systems while serving as a Teacher on Special Assignment, where she led the development of credit recovery and intervention programs. Jody is committed to collaborating with district and school leaders, empowering them to navigate their data and systems with confidence.
Session 1C • Parsec Products & Services
Toni Galvan
Education Analyst
Toni Galvan joined Parsec Education in 2025 as an Education Analyst after nearly a decade of service in Texas’s third-largest public school district. Beginning as a high school math teacher, she quickly transitioned into leadership roles as a department chair and lead mentor, eventually writing district-wide math curriculum based on campus-level data trends. Most recently, Toni served as a Math Instructional Coach in the Curriculum & Instruction office, focusing on building data literacy among campus leaders and teacher teams. At Parsec, she is dedicated to telling the full story behind the data, ensuring insights lead to clear, positive growth for every partner district.
Session 3A • Parsec Products & Services
Kimberly Tumambing
Marketing Coordinator
With a background in journalism and English, Kim is a writer at heart and enjoys translating complex information into language people can actually connect with. Her experience working in flex-based charter schools, along with years in customer service & organizational roles, shapes her practical and people-first approach. Kimberly believes strongly in communication, transparency, and using both data and real experiences to support thoughtful decision-making. She is passionate about helping educators and school communities share their successes, learn from challenges, and keep students at the center of the story.
Session 3C • Parsec Products & Services
Margaret Ameel, Ph.D.
Director of Partner Success
Margaret Ameel is a dynamic professional dedicated to student success, boasting over 25 years in educational leadership and development. With a proven track record of enhancing student achievement and engagement through innovative strategies and team development, she has made significant impacts in the field. Originally from Detroit, MI, Margaret has excelled in charter school turnaround and development, earning advanced degrees in Leadership and Instructional Practice, and a Ph.D. in Charter School Operations and Management from Eastern Michigan University. Her passion and expertise drive her commitment to fostering educational excellence.
Session 3C • Parsec Products & Services
Martha Moore
Learning Integration Specialist
Martha Moore is an education expert with years of experience in school leadership, coaching, and statewide policy. Formerly the lead for the Educator Effectiveness team at the Tennessee Department of Education, she now brings her expertise in project management and leadership coaching to Parsec Education. Martha is a champion of “data-driven empathy,” believing that the right information enables educators to pinpoint student needs and change lives. She is committed to the idea that numbers should never provide easy answers, but rather inspire the deep questions that lead to systemic growth.
Ready to lead with
student voice?
Over the past three years, the Measure What We Value Summit has grown from a bold idea into a meaningful tradition. In Year 1, we asked: What if we measured what we truly value?
In Year 2, we amplified bold voices like Jamila Lyiscott, Chaka Booker, and Pepper Miller who challenged us to rethink success. Now, in Year 3, we’re turning student voice into systems change, showing what’s possible when leadership has student success at the center of all decisions.