10th Annual Literacy Leaders Conference
February 24th 2024
The Writing’s on the Wall: Literacy for All
JOIN US!
Come join the Jefferson County Reading Council and Shepherd University for the Annual Literacy Leaders Conference. A teacher-friendly conference, this professional development event offers a wide variety of sessions that focus on literacy across the curriculum and in the real world.
Content will be offered in Early, Elementary and Secondary Education
Content will be offered in Early, Elementary and Secondary Education
KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
Dr. Mary K. Tedrow

Keynote title:
The Right to Tell Stories: Meaning Making, Freedom, and Joy
Professional Bio:
Jessica Salfia is a writer and teacher from Martinsburg, West Virginia. Jessica has been a public-school teacher in West Virginia for 18 years and is currently a teacher at Spring Mills High School where she serves as the department chair and teaches Advanced Placement Language and Composition, English 11, and English 9, co-coordinates the Reset program, and is an assistant volleyball coach. She was the 2016 Berkeley County Teacher of the Year and was the recipient of the Berkeley County Diversity Councils 2021-2022 Equity and Inclusion Award. Her writing has appeared in the Charleston-Gazette Mail, West Virginia Living Magazine’s Blog, multiple volumes of the Anthology of Appalachian Writers, and the Washington Post. Her poem, “Rootbound” was selected for the 2018 Women of Appalachia Project, and she was the winner of the 2016 and 2019 West Virginia Fiction Competitions. She is the co-editor of the book 55 Strong: Inside the West Virginia Teachers’ Strike, and most recently her poem “First Lines of Emails I Received While Quarantining” was featured in several publications and media outlets around the world and is anthologized in The Covid Arts Project. When she’s not teaching, writing, or advocating for public education, you’ll find her in the woods with her three kids or paddling down a creek somewhere.
The Right to Tell Stories: Meaning Making, Freedom, and Joy
Professional Bio:
Jessica Salfia is a writer and teacher from Martinsburg, West Virginia. Jessica has been a public-school teacher in West Virginia for 18 years and is currently a teacher at Spring Mills High School where she serves as the department chair and teaches Advanced Placement Language and Composition, English 11, and English 9, co-coordinates the Reset program, and is an assistant volleyball coach. She was the 2016 Berkeley County Teacher of the Year and was the recipient of the Berkeley County Diversity Councils 2021-2022 Equity and Inclusion Award. Her writing has appeared in the Charleston-Gazette Mail, West Virginia Living Magazine’s Blog, multiple volumes of the Anthology of Appalachian Writers, and the Washington Post. Her poem, “Rootbound” was selected for the 2018 Women of Appalachia Project, and she was the winner of the 2016 and 2019 West Virginia Fiction Competitions. She is the co-editor of the book 55 Strong: Inside the West Virginia Teachers’ Strike, and most recently her poem “First Lines of Emails I Received While Quarantining” was featured in several publications and media outlets around the world and is anthologized in The Covid Arts Project. When she’s not teaching, writing, or advocating for public education, you’ll find her in the woods with her three kids or paddling down a creek somewhere.
We encourage you to preregister online through March 21 for a discounted price.
Registration also includes lunch. $25 Preregistration $198.00 three credit EDPD **subject to change $10 Teacher Candidate Preregistration *Presenters attend FREE. $40 Walk-In Registration the day of the conference |
Tenth Annual Literacy Leaders Conference
Feb. 24th 2024 8:00-9:00 Registration and Poster Session 9:00-10:00 Welcome and Keynote Address - Auditorium Workshops 10:15-11:15 Session 1 11:30-12:30 Session 2 1:15-2:15 Session 3 2:30-3:30 Session 4 3:30-4:00 Closing Remarks and Door Prizes in the Auditorium 4:00 EDPD 699 Credit Option Follow-up Expectations Overview in the Auditorium. Click here for session and speaker details: www.canva.com/design/DAFbVBHyqW0/23IyTFfSaDJxAXlBbsEACw/view?utm_content=DAFbVBHyqW0&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=viewer |
CALL FOR PROPOSALS & POSTER PRESENTATIONS
If you are interested in presenting at the Literacy Leaders Conference or are a student interested in submitting a poster presentation, please use the links below to learn more about the process and submit your proposals.