Media + Consulting + Keynotes
More than 300 keynotes, workshops, interviews, and seminars around the world.
Recent Keynote & Workshop Topics
Leading Change: Leveraging Technical & Adaptive Thinking...So That Problems Actually Get Solved
What School Must Be: Moving Schools Into a New - and Better - Future
The Power of One: Celebrating the Potential of Every Educator
One Size Fits Few: How Differentiated Instruction Happens & Why It Matters
Robot-Proof: Saving Our Students & Their Schools From the Future
Causing Thinking: A New Vision for Teaching & Learning
Talk Less: Real Strategies for Higher Student Engagement
Imagination, Discovery & Sharing: The Pillars of True Learning
STrEaMing Learning: Shifting Mindsets - and Practices - to Reach All Learners
The North Star: Navigate Your True Potential
Parent Is A Verb: Strategies for Household Sanity, Happiness & Success
Articles, Interviews & Media (click text for more)
"2028 NAEP Science Assessment Framework," National Assessment Governing Board 01/24
"Real Talk from the Teacher to the School Leader," AP & New Principals Academy 01/06/24
"Tackling the Education Crisis," William & Mary Alumni Magazine Fall 2023
"Educators, It's Time To Embrace AI," Connections Magazine 07/31/23
"Teachers of Promise," Leading Out The Woods podcast 09/09/22
"A Space For Joy," Ed. Magazine (Harvard Graduate School of Education), Summer 2022
"Why We're Staying In Education," Connections Magazine 02/08/22
"Creating Community For the Next Generation of Golfers," Dormie Network, November 2021
"Keeping Kids Engaged," The Roanoke Times, 05/07/20
"Classroom + Business = Junior Achievement," WFXR Fox TV, 02/20/20
"What Makes A Great Teacher?," Bristol Herald Courier, 04/08/19
"Why are tech companies the only voice talking about technology in the classroom?" Medium, 02/28/19
"Teachers of Promise...& the promise of teaching," Bristol Herald Courier, 03/04/18
"Virginia Milken Educators React To the Violence In Charlottesville," Connections Magazine, 08/15/17
"House Joint Resolution No. 811," Virginia General Assembly, 02/03/17
"Crystal Spring teacher to be saluted at White House," The Roanoke Times, 05/01/16
"Roanoke Teacher named to National Teachers Hall of Fame," WSLS 10, 03/30/16
"Crystal Spring teacher named to National Teachers Hall of Fame," The Roanoke Times, 03/29/16
"Wade Whitehead Inducted into National Teachers Hall of Fame," Connections Magazine, 03/28/16
"Igniting Teacher Leadership," by Bill Sterrett (ASCD), 12/01/16
"Crystal Spring 9th Annual Turkey Bowl Teaches Meaning of Thanksgiving," WSLS 10, 11/25/15
"Teachers of Promise, The College of William & Mary School of Education, 04/10/15
"Lowell Milken and Three Milken Educators Tout Award’s Impact," Your Voices Amplified, 02/17/15
"Our view: Starting over with school testing?," The Roanoke Times, 01/06/15
"SOL panel seeks short-term fixes with an eye toward long-range change," The Roanoke Times, 10/04/14
"Roanoke Students Learn about Weather," National Public Radio, 03/27/14
"Let’s talk about teacher leadership," The Roanoke Times, 03/26/13
"Teachers of Promise," Liberty Champion, 03/26/13
"Institute gives new teachers jump start," The Roanoke Times, 03/23/13
"Super educator helps students fly," The Roanoke Times, 09/07/12
"Discovering Virginia's Brightest Stars," The College of William & Mary School of Education, 2012
"Wade Whitehead Is A Super Teacher," Virginia Lottery, 05/09/11
"Interview: Lowell Milken & $25,000 for Exceptional Teachers," The Merrow Report, 10/13/09
"Crystal Spring Elementary's Egg-citing flight," The Roanoke Times, 11/08/08
"New teachers learn the ropes," The Roanoke Times, 10/25/07
"Principal taught vital lessons," The Roanoke Times, 01/30/07
"Performance highlights the value of children," The Roanoke Times, 01/19/06
"'Teacher Travels' follows life-changing adventures," The Roanoke Times, 09/30/05
"Sleep late, learn more?," The Roanoke Times, 01/11/05
"Panel studies school start time," The Roanoke Times, 01/29/05
2023
November 1: Presented "Leading Change" at a corporate leadership retreat
November: Featured in William & Mary Alumni Magazine
October: Presented "Leading Change" to a private executive leadership group
July 31: Featured in Connections magazine
April 21: Presented "So What?," a TEDx talk, at the Milken Educator Forum in Los Angeles.
March 25: Keynoted the 20th Teachers of Promise Institute
2022
September 26: Presented "Solutions to the Teacher Shortage" to the Milken Educator Network
September 20: Presented "Leading Change" at the Virginia Tech Pamplin College of Business
September 9: Featured guest on Leading Out the Woods podcast
August 7: Presented "The Power of One" at the Courageous Leadership Institute at the College of William & Mary
Summer: Featured in "A Space For Joy" (Harvard Ed. Magazine)
June 27: Presented "Classroom Cornerstones: Teaching the Way(s) Learners Learn" at the College of William & Mary
March 25 & 26: Keynoted 19th Teachers of Promise Institute in Midlothian, VA.
February 8: Featured in "Why We're Staying In Education" (Connections Magazine)
2021
Fall: Completed certification in School Management & Leadership at Harvard University.
July 19: Presented "Leading Change" to managers from the automobile, real estate development, construction, and event planning industries in Knoxville, TN.
June 15: Presented "Harvests Unseen" to Pfizer's Richmond Power team.
March 20: Keynoted 18th Teachers of Promise Institute (fully virtual event)
2020
November 10: Presented "So What? (Attracting and Retaining the World's Best Teachers)" to the nationwide Milken Educator Network
Summer: Taught "Parent Is A Verb" to local parents seeking to navigate the challenges of the pandemic.
Summer: Completed "Leading People," phase three of Harvard University's School Leadership & Management Program.
June 17: Presented "Adaptive Thinking: Making the Most of School Reopening" to the leadership team of Bristol (VA) Public Schools
June-November: Served on the "I, Too, Am the Dream" national advisory board at the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream in Washington, D.C. (opening 2021)
March 28: Presented "I Dare You," a TEDx talk, at the National Education Forum in Indianapolis, IN. (postponed due to coronavirus pandemic)
March 27 & 28: Directed and keynoted the 17th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond, VA. (canceled due to coronavirus pandemic)
January: Trained teachers in STrEaM and Project-Based Learning teaching mindsets, strategies, and techniques in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
2019
Fall: Completed "Leading Schools," phase two of Harvard University's School Leadership & Management program.
November 26: Assisted Virginia First Lady Pamela Northam with presentation of the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award in Hopewell, VA.
September & October: Presented "Parent Is a Verb," a five-week parenting class at Raleigh Court Presbyterian Church in Roanoke, VA.
August: Trained teachers in STrEaM and Project-Based Learning teaching mindsets, strategies, and techniques in Dubai and Ajman, United Arab Emirates
July 16: Presented to School of Education students at The College of William & Mary.
June 20: Presented to School of Education students at The College of William & Mary.
June 18: Met with FableVision's Peter & Paul Reynolds to vision the future of school
March 29 & 30: Directed and keynoted the 16th Teachers of Promise Institute in Midlothian, VA.
March 23: Presented "So What?," a TEDx talk, at the National Education Forum in New Orleans, LA.
February 13: Keynoted "Tech Choices In Education" at George Washington University
2018
Fall: Completed "Leading Change," phase one of Harvard University's School Leadership & Management program.
July 5: Spoke to students from The College of William & Mary’s School of Education.
June 11: Keynoted the Teachers As Leaders Summit in Lynchburg, VA.
June 5: Spoke to students from The College of William & Mary’s School of Education.
April 16: Keynoted the Virginia Association for Learning Environments Annual Conference in Williamsburg.
March 22: Presented "Voyage Bravely," a TEDx talk, at the National Education Forum in National Harbor, Maryland.
March 21: Met with members of US Congress on Capitol Hill to discuss education policy and practice.
March 2 & 3: Directed and keynoted the 15th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond.
2017
November 15: Assisted Governor Terry McAuliffe with the presentation of the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award in Richmond.
August 3: Moderated “Most Likely To Succeed," a panel, and presented a full day Project-Based Learning workshop to the teachers and staff of Bristol, VA Public Schools.
August 2: Keynoted Norton City Public Schools' convocation (“PBL 2.0: Leveraging Relationships For Success”) in Norton, VA.
July 27: Spoke to students from The College of William & Mary’s School of Education.
July 20 & Friday, July 21: Played in the State Open of Virginia at Ballyhack Golf Club.
June 14: Keynoted the Urban Education Institute in Lynchburg, VA.
March 24 & 25: Directed and keynoted the 14th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond, VA.
January 6: Visited Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, GA.
2016
December 2: Presented “The Power of One” to Teachers For Tomorrow students at William Fleming High School.
October 18: Spoke to undergraduate education students at Liberty University about the challenges and rewards of the teaching profession.
August 3: Keynoted Norton City Public Schools' Convocation (“Project-Based Learning”).
August 3: Moderated "Most Likely To Succeed," a panel featuring education stakeholders from across southwestern Virginia.
July 26: Spoke to students from The College of William & Mary’s School of Education.
July 14 & 15: Played in the State Open of Virginia at Ballyhack Golf Club.
June 23: Spoke to students from The College of William & Mary’s School of Education.
June 11: Honored the National Teachers Hall of Fame’s 25th Anniversary Celebration in Kansas City, KS.
June 9: Inducted into the National Teachers Hall of Fame in Emporia, KS.
June 7: Interviewed about education issues and policy live on the air at KVOE in Emporia, KS,
May 3: Met with President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington, D.C.
April 29: Met with United States Department of Education senior staff to discuss education policy and practice in America.
March 25: Announced as inductee to the National Teachers Hall of Fame.
March 18 & 19: Directed and keynoted the 13th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond, VA.
March 17: Keynoted spring meeting of the VA Association of Colleges for Teacher Education and the Association of Teacher Educators In VA at Roanoke College.
2015
December 5: Performed with The SwayKatz, western Virginia’s finest swing band.
October 24: Keynoted the Southwest Virginia Reading Council’s annual fall conference in Abingdon, VA.
September 20: Recognized as a Virginia Lottery Super Teacher at the St. Louis Rams-Washington Redskins game at FedEx Field in Landover, MD.
September 1: Joined Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe to vision improvements in public schools.
August 5: Presented a workshop on differentiated instruction to the secondary teachers at Parkway Christian Academy in Roanoke, VA.
July 30: Presented “The Reality of Classroom Teaching Part II” to the Assessment 2.0 Subcommittee of the SOL Innovation Committee in Richmond, VA.
July 17: Met with Clay Shirky to discuss progress in teaching and learning and to imagine a new paradigm for reaching the needs of every learner.
July 6: Interviewed by ASCD on teacher leadership.
June 25: Presented "Building A Great Year One" to the School of Education at the College of William & Mary.
June 8: Keynoted and presetned two workshop sessions at the ECET2 Growing Together Summit in Durango, CO.
May 19, 2015: Presented “The Reality of Classroom Teaching: Part I” to the Assessment 2.0 Subcommittee of the SOL Innovation Committee in Richmond, VA.
March 31: Presented about the work of the SOL Innovation Committee at the Roanoke Valley (VA) Governor’s School for Science & Technology.
March 24: Met with the Virginia Standards of Learning Innovation Committee in Richmond, VA.
March 20 & 21: Directed and keynoted the 12th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond, VA.
February 25: Met with the Reynolds Center for Teaching, Learning, and Creativity Board of Directors in Dedham, MA.
February 3: Interviewed by Jane Stoddard Williams for Bloomberg EDU, a national radio program devoted to covering education in America.
January 6: Profiled in The Roanoke Times's editorial column about improving standards, assessment, and accountability.
2014
September 9: Presented to the Roanoke chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma about teacher quality and efforts to build it in tomorrow’s educators.
August 19: Met with the Virginia SOL Innovation Elementary Subcommittee in Richmond, VA.
August 14: Keynoted the Transformative Teaching Conference in Seattle, WA.
August 13: Keynoted Old Dominion University’s Teacher Candidate Convocation in Norfolk, VA.
July 15: Met with the Virginia SOL Innovation Committee in Richmond, VA.
June 24: Spoke to graduate students in the College of William & Mary School of Education
June 17: Led a Teachers of Promise Institute Executive Board Planning & Development Retreat.
June 10: Met with Virginia General Assembly Delegate Sam Rasoul to discuss the #profitmotive and its impact on education policy.
April 10: Presented about authentic assessment to the Roanoke City School Board Chair.
March 21 & 22: Keynote and directed the 11th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond, VA.
February 25: Interviewed by National Public Radio about his approach to teaching Science and inquiry.
January & February: Moderated a Roanoke discussion series on Diane Ravitch’s Reign of Error.
2013
September 20: Recognized as a Virginia Lottery Super Teacher during the Washington Redskins-Chicago Bears football game at FedEx Field in Landover, MD.
August 8: Presented "Social Networking: Considerations for the Public School Educator, at the Roanoke City Public Schools New Teacher Orientation.
July 16: Keynoted Virginia Highlands Community College Summer Symposium on Education in Abingdon, VA.
March 22 & 23: Keynoted the 10th Teachers of Promise Institute in Richmond, VA.