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Learn more about our Deeper Learning Storytellers! In this Den Talk, audience members can engage in a Q & A with these opening speakers.
Andre Spicer, a career educator of 27 years, has had the honor of serving children, families and communities as a Teacher, Dean, Coordinator, Principal and Instructional Director, Administrator of Instruction and Superintendent.
Andre grew up in Compton, California where he learned first-hand, the perils of inequities, systemic racism and oppression plaguing our inner city public schools. Before becoming an educator, Andre served in the United States Marine Corps (1988-1992). A veteran of the Persian Gulf War, Andre uses many of the leadership qualities that he learned serving alongside some of the world’s finest men and women.
Andre attended California State University Long Beach to obtain a BA in History and Teaching Credential. He attended CSUDH earning a master’s degree in Educational Leadership. Today, Andre is a PhD student at Claremont Graduate University where he is engaged in research on college access for Black and Latinx students while sharpening his tools as an urban leader.
As principal, Andre eliminated barriers through a cycle of continuous improvement, professional development and training emphasizing the importance of cultural awareness and the persistent achievement gap of Latinx students and Black students. As Administrators of Instruction for LD Central, Andre’s responsibilities included, aligning student needs with resources to ensure academic success, while assisting the Local District Superintendent and Community of Schools in providing instructional support to all schools within the service area.
Mr. Spicer served proudly as President of the LAUSD Council of Black Administrators. During his tenure, the membership of over 400 administrators gained knowledge on how to better serve the communities of under-served students. Andre and team ensured that the Black Educational Civil Rights Agenda was at the forefront of their work, and under his leadership members of COBA collaborated to advocate for the acceleration of black student achievement. As President, Andre oversaw the 40th and 41st Annual Black Child Conference and Scholarship Luncheons. Attended annually by over 1000 faculty members and parents, the conference provides workshops on a variety of topics including CLRP, MTSS, College Board, and student access to STEM and STEAM education, all vital tools to help ensure equity throughout our schools.
Currently Andre is serving as the Region South Superintendent for Los Angeles Unified School District
Kristin DeLaTorre holds a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Florida Atlantic University. She is an educator in South Florida with 19 years of teaching experience. She has been nominated for the Dwyer Award in the area of Elementary Education and twice in the area of Stem-Project Based Learning Education. Kristin serves as a mentor for the Innovative Schools Project in the School District of Palm Beach County, where she supports teachers with implementing project-based learning in their classes. Her classroom has become a learning space for teachers and leaders as she works closely with the Innovative Schools Lead Instructional Program Developers and the Assistant Superintendent for Palm Beach County schools, helping teachers integrate Project Based Learning. This implementation will allow this methodology to be utilized across more schools in Palm Beach County. Kristin spends summers as a lead trainer for the Inquiry Project Collaborative as well as onboarding new teachers in the methods of Inquiry and Project Based Learning. Kristin started her work at The Conservatory School in the fall of 2015. In her time at TCS she has immersed herself in the PBL process and shown her students a greater understanding and empathy for the world beyond themselves. Over the past seven years, her students have been involved with, raised money, or donated goods for The Water Project in Africa, HIP Africa, Challenged Athletes Foundation, UNICEF, El Sol Food Bank, Rocking Horse Foundation, The National Honey Bee Conservancy, The World Wildlife Fund, and bought an acre of land in the South American Rainforest. The consistent mantra in her classroom is “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. Kristin has also become an expert in student-led learning, developing and implementing creative practices in the classroom that emphasizes self-directed education, creativity, and discovery, rather than rote memorization. Students are encouraged to incorporate their own interests into projects, within their current topic. Kristin strives to offer students agency and having their voices heard as they work together as a collective towards setting goals, being reflective and acting responsibly to effect change.
You can always check out her classroom on Twitter: @delatorretcs.
Walter Cortina, 19, is Bridgemakers President and Co-Founder. Led by Minnesota youth from backgrounds of extreme adversity, Bridgemakers amplifies the voice and mentors the leadership of under-resourced youth to bridge America’s toughest gaps. Walter became homeless at 13 after his parents were deported to Mexico. The Minneapolis native worked three jobs to support himself and his family and encountered the juvenile justice system. Experiencing trauma and poverty at an early age, Walter discovered his passion to channel anger and pain into action and purpose. At 15, he created and led Venture Academy’s Changemakers team to advocate for student-centered school improvement. At 17, he interned for the Minneapolis Foundation CEO and co-keynoted the Teacher-Powered Schools National Conference.
After losing their jobs in the 2020 pandemic shutdown, Walter and other youth built a bipartisan statewide coalition that generated 65 media features, successfully sued the State of Minnesota and permanently changed state law, bringing $33 million in unemployment benefits to 20,000 eligible students. Walter’s journey is featured in Sam Seidel’s Hip-Hop Genius 2.0: Remixing High School Education (Rowman & Littlefield, 2022). The first in his family to graduate high school, he graduated from the High School for Recording Arts (HSRA) in St. Paul last May. Walter’s life purpose is to create a world in which youth have the resources, mentorship, access, and opportunities to be leaders of their destiny to create a better tomorrow for everyone.
