Major Partners
Western Michigan University
Reading Now Network (RNN)
MAISA-General Education Leadership Network (GELN)
Meet the Entire HIL Project Team
The HIL Project Team:
- Supports 76 school buildings and their leaders (and interacts with a control group of an additional 75 schools)
- Partners with 17 intermediate school districts (ISDs) or educational service agencies (ESAs)
- Engages 50-160 school district superintendents
- Collaborates with multiple partners, including professional associations, the Michigan Department of education, business/community groups, and nonprofits
WMU Management Team
Dr. Patricia Reeves– Project Director and Principal Investigator
Dr. Jianping Shen– Co-Project Director and Co-Principal Investigator
Dr. Lisa Ryan– Assistant Project Director
Elizabeth Shaffer – Administrative Assistant
Dr. Dustin Anderson– Assistant Project Director
Von Vanderwiel – Administrative Assistant
WMU Research Support Team
Najat Elgeberi – Educational Leadership, Research and Technology Doctoral Assistant
Yunzheng Zheng – Educational Leadership, Research and Technology Doctoral Assistant
Huang Wu – Educational Leadership, Research and Technology Doctoral Assistant
Jeremy Andrick– WMU Graduate College Doctoral Assistant
Dr. LaSonja Roberts – Educational Leadership, Research and Technology Assistant Professor
Coordinator Team
Helps with selection and training of Implementation Facilitators, communication with schools, districts and ISDs, supporting Implementation Facilitators, and working with Partner Team.
Dr. Dorothy VanderJagt – RNN Field Study Team and iFireUp, LLC
Derek Wheaton – MEMSPA Leadership Matters and Derek Wheaton Consulting, LLC
Laurie Schmitt – Allegan ESA Assistant Superintendent
Diane Talo – St. Joseph ISD Director of Instructional Leadership
Dr. Jennifer Sell – Calhoun ISD Assistant Superintendent for DCIA
Dr. Janice Brown – Executive Director Emeritus of the Kalamazoo Promise
Dr. Kyle Mayer – Ottawa Area ISD Assistant Superintendent
Dr. Doug Greer – Ottawa Area ISD Director of School Improvement
Our Facilitators
“We have fantastic group of facilitators.”
Meet the Facilitators
Meet the Partner Team
Participating Schools & ISDs
Our Funders
- U.S. Department of Education – Supporting Effective Educator Development Grant Program: $12.5Million Grant Award to WMU for years 1-3 of the HIL Project; $9+Million possible for years 4-5
- Guido A. and Elizabeth H. Binda Foundation – $240,000 Grant to Ottawa Area ISD for Classroom Libraries in Calhoun County Elementary Schools
- State of Michigan and Michigan Department of Education, $6 Million Allocation for Early Literacy Coaches in FY2017-18
- State of Michigan Intermediate School Districts: Matching funding for the State of Michigan Literacy Coach funding
- Other contributions to Literacy and Leadership Pending
Major Supporters
(Providing significant in-kind and matching fund support):
- Allegan Area ESA
- Kalamazoo RESA
- Kent ISD
- Ottawa Area ESD
- Joseph ISD
- Van Buren ISD
- Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators (MAISA)
- Michigan Association of Middle School Principals (MEMSPA)
- Talent 2025 of West Michigan
- Western Michigan University:
- College of Education and Human Development
- Department of Educational Leadership, Research, and Technology
- Graduate College
- Office of the Vice President for Research