Teacher Leaders

beth aliBeth Ali, East Paulding High School
2018 Summer Institute

KMWP positively influenced my teaching in the classroom by first giving me confidence in my own skill as a writer. By helping me acknowledge the importance of my voice the KMWP Institute process helped me see the needs of my students to be able to also feel the freedom and acceptance of their voices. I participated in KMWP in the summer of 2018 and since then I have been able to open up more writing opportunities for my students and many have come back to tell me how much their writing improved thanks to these processes. I have nothing but gratitude for what KMWP has given me to be a better teacher.

I believe that if all subjects could include the journaling process then more critical thinking skills would be developed along with writing skills.

shaina andersonShaina Anderson, Etowah High School
2017 Summer Institute

I participated in the 2017 Summer Institute. KMWP positively influenced my teaching by providing practical writing strategies to use with my students and by encouraging me to make time for my own writing. The SI inspired me to find ways to keep my students writing and to keep their writing experiences meaningful and fun!

heather bartonHeather Barton, Etowah High School
2017 Summer Institute

I was a part of KMWP’s 2017 Summer Institute and I found that the experience opened doors I never knew were possible before attending. Personally, I grew in my confidence as a writer and that confidence trickled into my classroom in new and interesting ways. I learned to write WITH and BESIDE my students; I embraced the struggle that writing is for so many of us. This led to a deeper connection, to a building of a community of writers that continues to thrive in my classroom today.

chrissy harrisChrissy Harris, East Paulding High School
2015 Summer Institute

KMWP renewed my love for writing and helped me to bring that enthusiasm back to students. Consequently, my students have discovered their love of writing. This is the best professional development I have participated in as a teacher.

kearstin jacobsKearstin Jacobs, Lovinggood Middle School
2019 Summer Institute

KMWP has had such a positive impact on my classroom teaching. By developing my skills as a writer, the program taught me how to find the writer in each one of my students. Their best practices make it easy to address students’ individual needs and equipped me with the tools necessary to facilitate quality writing instruction.

amy juddAmy Judd, Keheley Elementary School
2018 Summer Institute

Participating in the KMWP summer institute was by far the best professional development I’ve been involved in during my 16 years in education. Connecting with like-minded professionals who wanted to better their craft of teaching not only inspired me to do better, but it also re-energized my writing lessons. And the fun & learning doesn’t stop when the summer is over. Staying involved with KMWP has kept the momentum from summer institute going strong throughout the school year!

amanda montgomeryAmanda Montgomery, Park Street Elem. School
2014 Summer Institute

I first became involved with the Kennesaw Mountain Writing Project in 2014 when I went through the Summer Institute. I was a struggling new teacher, looking for support outside of the typical professional development provided by my district. Since then, KMWP has impacted me on many levels. It provided me with a plethora of practical and engaging activities to take directly into my classroom and a resource for help when I needed it. Most importantly, it taught me how to be a teacher leader and empower others in my profession. This is the most valuable professional development community I have ever participated in and I encourage any teacher or school looking for assistance with literacy in the classroom to reach out to KMWP.

heather nelson-kiddHeather Nelson-Kidd, River Ridge High School
2019 Summer Institute

My experience in KMWP reminded me that writing can be fun in the classroom. Admittedly, I’ve never been good at creative writing, and that insecurity has always manifested in my teaching. I don’t assign much creative writing because I worried that I wouldn’t know how to help guide my students. KMWP provided me with so many strategies to prompt and improve creative writing, as well as how to address the technical writing and the reading standards in more creative ways. I have much more confidence in this type of writing myself, and I’m more excited and apt to engage with my students in this way. Outside of that, I’ve made friends and a support group from my KMWP cohort that could not be more valuable. It’s refreshing to be able to reach out to people with entirely different experiences teaching–in different counties, different grade levels, different demographics– and learn from them.

jennifer scrivnerJennifer Scrivner, Cherokee County Schools
1995 Summer Institute

KMWP was the best high-quality professional development in writing I have ever experienced – the NWP model creates a space for teachers as writers to share ideas and collaborate on writing strategies in a job-embedded experience that promotes rigor and engaged learners. Truly, my summer fellowship left an indelible mark on my professional experience as an educator.

stephanie vasquezStephanie Vasquez, Campbell Middle School
2012 Summer Institute

Being a part of KMWP has helped me to grow as a writer…to understand that it may be challenging for students to sit down and spontaneously write to an assigned writing prompt. I understand the importance of teacher modeling, exemplars, and collaborative brainstorming to support struggling writers.

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