2021 ECSTEM Highlights

Keynote Speaker

Omo Moses was born in Tanzania, East Africa in 1972. He is the former Executive Director and founding member of the Young People's Project (YPP), a national non-profit organization with programs in over ten US cities that utilize mathematics to prepare students to succeed in school and in life. YPP evolved out of the Algebra Project, which grew out of the Civil Rights activism of the Algebra Project's founder and MacArthur Genius Grant winner Bob Moses, Omo's father. Omo founded MathTalk, a community based ed tech start up, in 2015. MathTalk products help adults and kids enjoy math everywhere! One of four siblings, Omo grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, attended the University of Pittsburgh and George Washington University on basketball scholarships, where he majored in mathematics and minored in creative writing. He received the Black Issues in Higher Education Sports–Scholar Award as well as the school's Creative Writing Award. Omo is the producer of Finding Our Folk, an award-winning student-filmed documentary featuring the Grammy nominated Hot 8 Brass Band that tells the story of members of YPP who organized themselves and others to respond to the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Omo is a member of the MSNBC Grio 100, a Huffington Post Person of the Day, a Barr Foundation Fellow and father of two precocious little ones, Johari who is 7, and Kamara who is 5.

Panel of Experts

Developing Digital Balance For Our Littlest Learners

Young children are exposed to more media and technology, and at earlier ages, than ever before. Explore with us how to nurture kids' development as responsible consumers and creators of technology and how to empower educators and families as media mentors. Join Common Sense Education to unpack the latest research about young children's technology use and leave inspired with strategies that help develop balanced, healthy digital habits that are foundational for today's young digital citizens.

About Common Sense:

Common Sense is the leading non-profit organization dedicated to helping families thrive in a world of media and technology. Through WideOpenSchool.org and CommonSense.org/education, Common Sense provides access to free, high quality, and easy to use media and educational resources.

Tali Horowitz is the New York Education Director at Common Sense, where she works with educators and families to empower kids to meaningfully harness the power of media and technology for learning and life. Her passions include helping educators and families effectively navigate the digital world and building cultural competency. She has worked in a variety of educational settings focused on developing these passions, including as an elementary school teacher in the New York City Department of Education and the San Francisco Unified School District. In 2013, she received a Fulbright Fellowship to research culturally responsive pedagogy in New Zealand. In her free time she loves face-to-face interactions with friends and family.

Tali Horowitz

Melissa Cleaver joined Common Sense in August 2019 and is the Common Sense Education Outreach Manager for Nebraska and Omaha Public Schools. Providing consultations, professional development workshops and conference presentations on digital citizenship, digital literacy and responsible use of technology. She recently completed an Early Childhood Endorsement through Creighton University. Holds her Master of Education in Elementary Administration from Concordia University and Bachelor of Science in Education from University of Nebraska-Omaha. Prior to joining the Common Sense team she served as Instructional Technology Coordinator facilitating technology professional development that supports administrators and educators as 21st Century leaders for the Omaha Public Schools. She was also a CADRE associate and adjunct instructor at University of Nebraska-Omaha. She has 20 years of experience in both elementary and secondary settings as an art educator inspiring innovation and creativity earning her the 2015 Nebraska Elementary Art Educator of the Year Award. Melissa has presented at numerous national and state conferences on the importance of arts integration, developing innovation and collaboration skills and establishing healthy online habits of mind for 21st Century Learners.

Melissa Cleaver

Jamie Nunez is the Bay Area Regional Manager at Common Sense and supports school districts in their efforts to implement digital wellness initiatives. For over 17 years, Jamie has redefined education practices by designing creative learning opportunities for educators. As a former teacher, school administrator, and after school director, Jamie has facilitated hundreds of professional development workshops on student engagement in digital spaces. When not working, Jamie can be found on the beach teaching his 5-year-old how to surf in the chilly ocean.

Common Sense

Featured Presenters

Douglas Clements is a researcher and curriculum developer who directs research funded by the National Science Foundation and the Institute of Education Sciences and has published over 130 refereed research studies, 23 books, 87 chapters, and 300 additional publications. He has served on the U.S. President's National Mathematics Advisory Panel, the Common Core State Standards committee of the National Governor's Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, the National Research Council's Committee on Early Mathematics, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics national curriculum and Principles and Standards committees, and is and co-author each of their reports. A prolific and widely cited scholar, he has earned external grant support totaling over $20 million, including major grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education.

Doug Clements