Universal Design for Learning:
A Framework for Disrupting Inequity
Dr. Elizabeth Berquist, Coordinator, Professional Growth and Partnerships, Office of Organizational Development, Baltimore County Public School District, will deliver our keynote address, Universal Design for Learning: A Framework for Disrupting Inequity. From its inception, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) has been a framework to disrupt inequity. Educators committed to this work must continually reflect on their beliefs and practices as they work to build learning environments that address existing learner variability and eliminate barriers to instruction. This keynote session will challenge participants to consider how the UDL framework could be used to design learning experiences that move equity theory into practice; this collective recognition of inequity must remain at the heart of consideration in our work.
|
About Our Keynote Speaker
Dr. Liz Berquist is the Coordinator of Professional Learning for the Baltimore County Public School District. She has 20 years’ experience in prek-20 settings that includes eight years in the Department of Special Education at Towson University. Liz’s research has focused on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), conceptual change, and faculty professional development. At Towson, she was responsible for the design administration of a UDL Professional Development Network that introduced faculty to the UDL framework and built capacity in the design and delivery of courses. This multidisciplinary project brought together faculty from multiple colleges and is featured in Transforming Higher Ed Through UDL: An International Perspective (Routledge Press).
Liz has been a CAST faculty member since 2010, working internationally with a focus on implementation science, coaching, and professional learning communities. A frequent presenter at national conferences and an invited facilitator for the Harvard Graduate School of Education Programs in Professional Education Summer UDL Institute, Liz is also a member of the UDL Implementation and Research Network Board of Advisors and the CAST Professional Learning Advisory Council. She is featured in the UDL Series Implementation video, produced by the National Center on Universal Design for Learning. Liz contributed to and edited UDL: Moving from Exploration to Integration, the first book to consider scaled-up implementation of UDL in schools, districts, and states. With Dr. Patti Ralabate, Liz co-authored Your UDL Journey to be published by CAST in August 2019.
Liz has received the Gloria A. Neubert Excellence in Teaching Award, the Disability Support Services Teaching Award, the Office of Academic Innovation Teaching Award, and the College of Education Award for Excellence in Teaching, and was nominated for the Patricia Cross Future Leaders Award. She holds a bachelor’s degree in American Studies, a master’s degree in Special Education, and a doctoral degree in Instructional Technology.
Liz has been a CAST faculty member since 2010, working internationally with a focus on implementation science, coaching, and professional learning communities. A frequent presenter at national conferences and an invited facilitator for the Harvard Graduate School of Education Programs in Professional Education Summer UDL Institute, Liz is also a member of the UDL Implementation and Research Network Board of Advisors and the CAST Professional Learning Advisory Council. She is featured in the UDL Series Implementation video, produced by the National Center on Universal Design for Learning. Liz contributed to and edited UDL: Moving from Exploration to Integration, the first book to consider scaled-up implementation of UDL in schools, districts, and states. With Dr. Patti Ralabate, Liz co-authored Your UDL Journey to be published by CAST in August 2019.
Liz has received the Gloria A. Neubert Excellence in Teaching Award, the Disability Support Services Teaching Award, the Office of Academic Innovation Teaching Award, and the College of Education Award for Excellence in Teaching, and was nominated for the Patricia Cross Future Leaders Award. She holds a bachelor’s degree in American Studies, a master’s degree in Special Education, and a doctoral degree in Instructional Technology.