Keynote and Plenary Speaker Biographies

(Subject to Change)

Keynote

Equity and Access for Students in CS/Math for College & Career Success

Moderator:  Tiffany Benson, Superintendent, Travis Unified School District

Dr. Caryn Lewis currently serves as the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services for the Monterey County Office of Education (MCOE). She has spent more than 24 years in service to California’s public schools, working as a master teacher, instructional coach, school principal, director of K-12 learning, and as an assistant superintendent of educational services. Caryn is dedicated to the growth of innovative school programs and has successfully led school and district teams in a vision for empowering future-ready students. At the school and district level, Caryn’s schools were among the first in California to be recognized for Title I Academic Achievement and as National 21st Century Exemplar Schools, awarded by the Partnership for 21st Century Learning. She has received numerous state and national awards for closing equity gaps for underserved school communities, including Administrator of the Year from the California Association for Bilingual Education, and the Association for California School Administrators. Through her work at MCOE, Caryn continues to advocate for equitable access to learner-centered programs and opportunities to grow dynamic college and career pathways for all students.

Plenary Panel

Empowering Math Learners through C-STEM and Robotics

Moderator:  Dr. Ingrid Roberson, Chief Deputy Superintendent, California Department of Education

Mikey McKelvey, Director of K-12 Instruction, has been with New Haven Unified School District for over 12 years.  She is an experienced educational leader with a wide range of experiences.  She has held positions of Literacy and Assessment Program Specialist, Literacy Coach and Coordinator of EL Services, elementary school assistant principal, and principal.  She is a strong advocate of professional development for teachers and implementing innovative and academically rigorous programs to support student learning.  Ms. McKelvey has been instrumental in leading the implementation of C-STEM Program at her district to address the needs of all students, with a special focus on at-promise and EL students.  The concerted effort at the district and school level has resulted in strong growth in students’ math assessment scores at Hillview Crest Elementary School.

Stella Castillo is the Principal of Hillview Crest Elementary School in New Haven Unified School District.  A granulate of Hillview Crest Elementary School and a long-time community member, she is passionate about providing the best learning opportunities for students at Hillview Crest to ensure that they have strong foundation in math and computer science to succeed in college and career.   Her vision and inspiring leadership, and support has propelled teachers at Hillview Crest to work together as a team to engage students in fun, hands-on learning in math with coding and robotics, resulting in an impressive gain in math test scores.  

Brittany Casey has over thirteen years of teaching experience in New Haven Unified School District. As a member of the original teacher cohort that piloted the C-STEM program at Hillview Crest Elementary School, she taught C-STEM the first year.  In her current role as a Math and C-STEM Teacher on Special Assignment, she plays a leading role in the district-wide implementation of the UC Davis C-STEM program with students from TK to Algebra 1, equipping young learners to apply coding and robotics as tools for problem-solving, collaboration, and real-world mathematical thinking. Ms. Casey was recognized at the UC Davis C-STEM Conference 2024 for her leadership and the meaningful contributions she has made to the success of the program at NHUSD. Throughout her career, she has prioritized building strong relationships and empowering all learners to explore the possibilities of STEM.  Ms. Casey holds a B.S. in Education with a minor in Special Education from the University of Oregon and a master's degree in educational technology leadership from CSU East Bay.

Cordelia Lim is a teacher at Hillview Crest Elementary School in New Haven Unified School District.  She has been instrumental in motivating lower elementary school teachers and students to fully implement UC Davis C-STEM program at her school, taking a leadership role in the organization of the school's first RoboPlay Challenge Competition for 1st and 2nd graders.  Her enthusiasm and strong and dedicated implementation of C-STEM in the classroom led to her being recognized as a C-STEM Teacher of the Year in 2024, a prestigious recognition for top C-STEM teachers with strong impact on student progress and achievement in Math.