Pollinate with Purpose, Shine with Support

Explore the power of building a star system—a leadership model where we shine brighter, better, richer, and stronger together. Drawing from The Stargazer: Unleashing the Brilliance of Building Brighter Teams, we’ll dive into how leaders can actively choose their lens, like the James Webb Telescope, to illuminate brilliance within themselves and others. Building on the art of learning to Be Proximal, we celebrate diversity of thought and voice, recognizing that our differences make us shine brighter. By embracing and deconstructing the Compass framework, participants will have the tool necessary to help navigate leadership and teamwork effectively

Katie P. Desiderio is a proud mom to two girls, Lilly and Emme, a best-selling author of two leadership books, and a trusted partner in both learning and life. Grounded in her belief in the power of connection, she begins each day with gratitude—especially for the people who bring meaning to her life. This philosophy is at the heart of her work, where she champions every organization’s greatest asset: YOU—the people.

Katie serves as a Professor of Management and tenured faculty member at Moravian University. She is also the Principal Partner in Learning at Proximal Development, LLC, an authorized DiSC partner. Her expertise lies in leadership development and driving organizational performance through transformative learning experiences.

A champion for women leaders across the globe, Katie has collaborated with diverse professionals—from sales executives to clinicians in research and practice. Her mission is to lead with grace, spark curiosity, and inspire discovery in others, fostering growth through meaningful relationships and shared experiences.

Since earning her doctorate in Organizational Learning and Leadership, Katie has co-authored numerous scholar-practitioner journal articles, conference proceedings, and most recently national best-selling leadership fables, The Beekeeper: Pollinating Your Organization for Transformative Growth and The Stargazer: Unleashing the Brilliance of Building Brighter Teams alongside her learning partner and friend, bringing her vision of growth and collaboration to life.

Michael G. Frino is a Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Beekeeper; Pollinating Your Organization for Transformative Growth and USA Today Bestseller of The Stargazer: Unleashing the Brilliance of Building Brighter Teams. Michael has over 20 years of professional experience working for Fortune 500 companies in sales, leadership, and organizational development across the payroll/human resources, pharmaceutical, and med-tech industries.

Michael finds his flow state today from helping organizations transform their culture with a focus on the growth and development of human beings. His curiosity on how organizations optimize performance at work inspired him to obtain his PhD in Organizational Learning and Leadership in (2010) and embrace opportunities to help individuals, groups, and organizations reach their peak potential. His co-authoring of leadership fables is the culmination of decades of research and publishing with his friend, Katie P. Desiderio, in performance improvement journals to understand how organizations can provide transformational growth to their most important assets, their people.

Sponsor:

Connection Before Correction: Why Kindness Is Your Most Powerful Culture & Climate Tool

Behavior issues, mental health crises, and chronic loneliness share one root cause: disconnection. Houston Kraft, cofounder of CharacterStrong and author of *Deep Kindness*, reveals how systematic kindness practices create the psychological safety essential for learning, reducing disciplinary incidents, and supporting mental health of students and adults. Drawing on his work supporting over 12,000 schools through CharacterStrong, you’ll learn practical strategies to build a culture where kindness isn't just another thing on the plate, it IS the plate.

Houston Kraft has spent the last two decades cultivating kindness in schools. In 2016, he cofounded CharacterStrong, which today serves over 12,000 schools across 50 states and 49 countries with evidence-based curriculum and trainings. He has spoken at more than 700 campuses and events, wrote Deep Kindness (2020) and Be Kind (2023), and you may recognize the lower half of his face from his appearance on Lay's BBQ chip bags as someone who helps "spreads smiles." His message through the years has remained simple: kindness is the foundational behavior of successful schools. He has been featured on Good Morning America, CNN, Hallmark, and more as an expert on developing a more empathetic, kind world. His biggest influence remains his mom, whose best life lesson is to "hug like you mean it.”

Sponsor:

Illuminate with Joy

In this spotlight session, educator, TEDx speaker, and school administrator, Ming Shelby will share how joy is not a luxury, it's a necessity, and together, we can transform everyday moments.

Ming Shelby is a National Board Certified educator dedicated to inspiring students, teachers, and administrators through transformative learning experiences. She currently serves as the Director of Professional Learning in the western suburbs of Chicago. Ming has facilitated workshops for adults and youth across Asia, Australia, Europe, and the United States. She is also featured on TEDx and TEDEd, sharing insights that empower educators and learners.

Sponsor: