Shelly Ellis – Executive Director of School Support & Improvement

Shelly Ellis’s diverse educational career provides her a wide perspective of the education profession. Experiences include middle school principal, middle school assistant principal, and high school counselor for Norman Public Schools. Shelly also taught middle school science at Lone Grove Public Schools and high school science in the McLoud district. In addition, Ellis also worked for the K20 Center, University of Oklahoma, as the Parent and Community Specialist for the GEAR UP for SUCCESS grant. In this capacity, Ellis traveled around the state working with counselors, principals, superintendents, and families. Shelly’s favorite job in education is her position as a mom to her public school-educated children. Shelly and her husband, Nate, have 4 children: Gabi, an OU junior; Jake and Kylie, a senior and junior respectively at Norman North High School; Will, a 7th grader at Whittier Middle School. Shelly earned her B.S. degree in Biology and her M. Ed. degree in School Counseling from East Central University in Ada, OK – Fight on East Central! Shelly is currently completing her doctorate at OU in Educational Administration, Curriculum, and Supervision. Ellis stated, “I look forward to working with all the educators and families across our Great State!”

Robin Anderson - SIG Director School Support

Robin Anderson, M.Ed., has devoted 20 years to the successful education and management of both children and adults. She most recently has worked in the Oklahoma State Department Office of Educator Effectiveness as the Special Projects Director where she was directly responsible for capacity building for 17 projects in the agency’s Southern Regional Education Board Technical Assistance Grant. The projects focused on tiered levels of support to enhance the knowledge and skills of school administrators and teachers.  Robin was one of the earliest recipients of National Board Certification in the Moore Public School district where she led a 760-student elementary school. Her goal is to show students, teachers and leaders that they are capable of much greater things than even they believe regardless of their current situation or level of knowledge.

Janie Stewart - Staff Division Coordinator School Support

Janie Stewart has worked in public education for 23 years. Janie worked for Mid-Del Schools at Carl Albert Middle School before coming to this position .  Janie feels very privileged to get to work with this elite group of devoted educators. Janie lives in Midwest City, married to Mike Stewart they have five children and ten grandchildren.

Zada Sery - Grants Consultant School Support

Zada has been the Office of School Support’s Grant Consultant since May 2015. Zada’s efforts focus mainly on the grants management system, federal allocations, and training. Previously, she worked in the Office of Federal Programs as a Program Specialist with an additional assignment to the Migrant Program. Zada has a B.A. degree in Education from Columbia College in Columbia, Missouri; she has over 11 years of grant management experience. Zada lives in Norman with her husband and adorable 4 month old son, a very old, sweet dog, and 2 feisty turtles.  Zada loves cooking, crafting & painting, and binge-watching Netflix. Zada’s mission is to provide clear technical assistance and quality customer service to aid districts in better serving their students with the efficient use of federal funds.

Shawna Wilson - School Support Specialist

Shawna Wilson, M. Ed., has 18 years of public education experience. She most recently served as the principal of Wayland Bonds Elementary for Moore Public Schools. Wayland Bonds Elementary was named a National Blue Ribbon Award Recipient in 2013 by the U.S. Department of Education. She led a 715- student elementary school serving Pre-K through 6th grade. Under her leadership, Wayland Bonds continued to be a top-performing elementary school. Shawna has a B.S. degree in Elementary Education from Northeastern State University and her M.Ed. degree in Education Administration from Southwestern Oklahoma State University. Shawna has helped influence over 5,000 children during her time as a classroom teacher and administrator. She has a passion for working with kids and believes all kids can learn. Her goal is to ensure every child experiences success in the classroom.

Dawn Miller - School Support Specialist

Dawn Miller has served in public education for ten years. Dawn comes to Oklahoma by way of Florida. From Tampa, Dawn worked for the Hillsborough County School District as a classroom teacher, instructional coach and peer evaluator. She also participated in the Measures of Effective Teaching study, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Last year, she worked for Oklahoma City Public Schools’ Professional Development Department. Along with her colleague, Dawn helped create the instructional coaching program. Dawn has a B.A. degree in Elementary Education and a M.S. degree in Organizational Leadership, Instructional Design and Organizational Training and Development. Dawn has been awarded several honors throughout her career: Distinguished Scholar by ETS for scoring in the top 5% nationally in the area of Elementary Content Knowledge, SDHC Hero of Inclusion for her work with Special Needs students and Excellence in Leadership Award from Colorado State University. Dawn’s areas of professional expertise and interests lie in both instructional and leadership coaching, as well as professional development for adult learners. She has been extensively trained by both the University of Florida’s Lastinger Center in Instructional Coaching, as well as by Jim Knight from the Instructional Coaching Group at KU’s Center for Research on Learning. Dawn is excited to travel Oklahoma as a School Support Specialist. She is looking forward to the opportunity to collaborate with educators from around the state to positively impact the students of Oklahoma.

Janel Cypert - School Support Specialist

Janel Cypert, M.Ed. is a double graduate of the University of Oklahoma. (BOOMER SOONER!) Janel is a Special Education teacher and taught in the classroom for 14 years. Janel has experience collaborating with teachers at the district level and supporting schools at the state level. Janel has been a School Support Specialist in the Office of School Support for two years. Janel works with schools in designation focus for the subgroup IEP. She works with schools across the state and collaborates with site leadership to support teachers in their endeavors to close the achievement gap. Janel really enjoys what she does! Janel shares, “There are amazing things being implemented in Oklahoma schools, and I am looking forward to learning and working with you this year.”

Joyce Rock - School Support Specialist

Joyce Rock joined the Office of School Support team on October 3, 2016 as a School Specialist.  Her career as an educator spans thirty years and includes teaching high school mathematics, Title VII grant director, learning styles coach, curriculum director and high school principal.  Joyce earned both her BS in Math Education and MED in School Administration from Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK. Her adventures in education include presenting professional development workshops on the Ojibwa and Hualapai reservations and four years as a principal on the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico.  Joyce and her husband, Calvin, have two children who have both inherited Joyce’s passion for education.  Lynett teaches math and physics at Connors State College, and Jimmy is an attorney in Washington, DC, where he teaches adjunct for George Washington Law School.

Tina Spence - School Support Specialist

Tina Spence, M.Ed., has 22 years public school experience. She holds a B.S.degree in special education and a M. Ed. in School Administration K-12. She has twelve years classroom experience working with students with disabilities. For the past ten years, Tina has worked at OSDE providing support to Oklahoma educators in the areas of special education, school support, and school transportation. Tina and her husband, Johnny, live in Guthrie. They have four children and five grandchildren.

 Jan Foreman - School Support Specialist

Mrs. Jan Foreman is a School Support Specialist for the southern part (Orange Region) of Oklahoma and lives with her husband, Keith, a retired superintendent, in Sulphur. Foreman graduated summa cum laude from East Central University with a M.A. degree in Secondary Education. She is a past president of RHO Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma and was awarded a Delta Kappa Gamma graduate studies scholarship. Foreman has thirty years of experience as a secondary language arts, journalism, keyboarding, and speech teacher in Sulphur Public Schools. She also served as an assistant girls coach in basketball and track, dean of students, secondary assistant principal and principal, editor of the district-wide newsletter, Title Programs representative, District Professional Development representative and chair, Southern Oklahoma Technology Center liaison, Oklahoma North Central Accreditation Association State Chair, and Oklahoma Representative of North Central Accreditation Association Data Analysis Cadre. Foreman joined OSDE in 2007 as Associate State Director of AdvancED and also served as a national reader reviewer for school improvement plans. At OSDE, Foreman has worked in the Office of High School Reform and in the Office of Curriculum and Standards as a School Support Team Leader. In her spare time, Jan enjoys riding her horse, Duke, helping her husband work his field trial dogs, and volunteering at the veterinary clinic.

Deborah Cornelison - School Support Specialist

Deborah Cornelison has been a School Support Specialist for two years. Her 32-year career in education includes East Central University adjunct instructor for three years, secondary level science teacher for 26 years, and grant writer/program director for seven, year-long, federally funded Mathematics and Science Partnerships programs providing professional development for 40 elementary and secondary teachers in Pontotoc County schools each year. She served as a 2014-15 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow in Washington, D.C., hosted by the National Science Foundation where she worked with the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program in the Division of Undergraduate Education. A National Board Certified Teacher, Deborah holds B.S. and M.Ed. degrees from East Central University.

Lorraine Eldrenkamp - School Support Specialist

Lorraine Eldrenkamp, has fourteen years public school experience and holds a B.S. degree in Early Childhood education and an M. Ed. In School Administration K-12. She most recently served as a Title I Data Strategist for Clark County School District, Quannah McCall Elementary in Las Vegas, Nevada. She served as the elected School Organizational Team Chair, board member for the 21st Century after School program, and participated in the Read by Grade Three State and district initiative as a school presenter for McCall. Lorraine has participated in national training for AVID school-wide implementation. She is originally from the suburbs of Chicago where she taught for twelve years in elementary classrooms. Lorraine served seven years as a coordinator for the 21st Century after school program at Sator Sanchez elementary and also served on the Rising Star Leadership Team for ten years. She is a recipient of the Joliet Area Great Teacher Award and has been awarded State of Illinois Senate Recognition for teaching. She is very passionate about school improvement and looks forward to supporting the schools in Oklahoma.