Summer Literacy Institute

Call for Concurrent Session Speakers

The Longwood SLI committee is looking for presenters for concurrent sessions at the 2023 conference. Sessions are designed for teachers, librarians, reading specialists, administrators and others interested in literacy.

If you are interested, please complete the 2023 Summer Literacy Institute Proposal Submission Form.

​Proposals are due May 10 and presenters will be notified by May 25 if they are accepted.

Jennifer LaGarde | Workshop Presenter

Jennifer LaGarde is a lifelong teacher and learner with over 20 years in public education. Her educational passions include leveraging technology to help students develop authentic reading lives, meeting the unique needs of students living in poverty, and helping learners (of all ages) discern fact from fiction in the information they consume. Jennifer is the coauthor of the books Fact VS Fiction: Teaching Critical Thinking In the Age of Fake News (ISTE, 2018) and Developing Digital Detectives (ISTE, 2021) with Darren Hudgins.

Follow her adventures at www.librarygirl.net.

Jarrett Krosoczka | Author Keynote

Jarrett J. Krosoczka is the New York Times bestselling author/illustrator behind more than forty books for young readers, including his wildly popular Lunch Lady graphic novels, select volumes of the Star Wars™: Jedi Academy series, and Hey, Kiddo, which was a National Book Award Finalist. Krosoczka creates books with humor, heart, and deep respect for his young readers—qualities that have made his titles perennial favorites on the bookshelves of homes, libraries, and bookstores over the past twenty years. Krosoczka has garnered millions of more views online via his TED Talks and TikTok.

For more about Jarrett, visit studiojjk.com.

Terry Catasús Jennings | Author Banquet Speaker

Terry Catasús Jennings is a Cuban-American writer who immigrated to the United States after her father was jailed in Cuba by Fidel Castro’s government. She was twelve at the time and knew no English. The Little House of Hope/La casita de esperanza is a semi-autobiographical story in which immigrants give each other a helping hand in a new country. Her goal in life is to lead us to embrace our common humanity, as well as, sing the praises of Cuban food.

Learn more about Terry at www.terrycjennings.com.