Kay Burke, Ph.D.
Kay Burke has been actively involved in education since she began her teaching career in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, in 1970. She taught Language Arts at the middle and high school levels, served as a department chairperson, dean of students, and assistant principal. She has won numerous awards including being named a Distinguished Georgia Educator by Georgia State University, DeKalb County's Teacher of the Year and a semifinalist for Georgia Teacher of the Year in 1984. She received a Certificate of Excellence Award for the Presidential Scholars Program that was presented at the White House by Secretary of Education Terrell Bell and President Ronald Reagan. She was also a member of the Southern Regional Council of the College Board.

Kay later served as the Director of the Field-Based Master's Program co-sponsored by SkyLight Professional Development and Saint Xavier University in Chicago in the 1990s. She has taught graduate courses throughout the United States and helped write traditional and online courses on classroom management, performance assessment, student and professional portfolios, and mentoring for several universities.

Dr. Burke received a Bachelor of Arts from Florida Atlantic University; a Master's of Education from the University of Central Florida; a Specialist in Educational Studies from Emory University; a certification in administration from the University of Georgia; and a doctorate in education from Georgia State University. Her dissertation focused on standardized testing and helping students prepare for college entrance examinations.

For the past 15 years, Kay has facilitated professional development workshops throughout the United States, Canada, and Australia; delivered keynote addresses; and presented at numerous regional, national, and international conferences such as Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), National Staff Development Council (NSDC), National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), National Middle School Association (NMSA), and International Reading Association (IRA).

Dr. Burke has written 11 books in the areas of classroom management; performance assessment; mentoring; and student, teacher and administrator portfolios. Her best selling books include: How to Assess Authentic Learning, 4th ed.; What to do with the kid who…: Developing Cooperation, Self-Discipline and Responsibility in the Classroom, 2nd ed.; Designing Professional Portfolios for Change; The Portfolio Connection: Student Work Linked to Standards, 2nd ed.; Mentoring Guidebook Level I: Starting the Journey; and Mentoring Guidebook Level II: Exploring Teaching Strategies, all published by Corwin Press.Her latest book and CD published in 2006 from Corwin is From Standards to Rubrics in Six Steps: Tools for Assessing Student Learning, K-8.

Currently, Kay works with a cadre of associates to conduct workshops for teachers and administrators. Her main focus is standards-aligned curriculum units and assessments. She customizes the presentations to integrate each state's specific standards and benchmarks into checklists, rubrics, and portfolios in order to create valid classroom assessments and prepare students for the high-stakes state tests. [BACK]