DR. NIKOLAI P.

EDUCATION

VITTI

npc.vitti@gmail.com (786) 334-7923

Doctorate of Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA. Education, Administration, Planning and Social Policy. 16u1 Cohort of the Urban Superintendents Program. Dissertation Topic: Developing Demand Parents: A Study of Miami-Dade 's Parent Academy. March, 2012. Presidential Fellowship, $174,000/4 Years, Harvard University, 2004 Master of Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA. Education, Administration, Planning and Social Policy. June, 2006 Master of Education, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC. Professional specialization: Secondary Social Studies. August, 2001. Masters' Thesis: Social Studies Teachers' Attitudes Toward End-of-Course Exams. December, 2001 Master Teacher Fellowship, $30,460114 months, Wake Forest University, 2000 Bachelor of Arts, History Major. Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC. Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa. May, 2000. Golden Key Honor Society, 1999

LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE

Chief Academic Officer

Miami-Dade County Public Schools
Supervise the Education Transformation Office, which leads and manages 70 traditionally lower-performing schools. 26 of which were identified as "persistently lowest-achieving" by the USDOE/FLDOE. 38 elementary schools, 19 middle schools, and 12 high schools. 50,400 students. 64% African-American, 33% Hispanic, 2% White, 1% Other, 15% English Language Learners, 13% Students with Disabil ities, and 89% Free/Reduced Lunch. Lead and manage the departments of Title I, Title II, Early Childhood/Head Start, School Improvement, Reading/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and Career and Technical Education.

2012- Present

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, School Improvement and Accountability, Education Transformation and Performance
Miami-Dado County Public Schools
Led and managed the 26 schools identified as "persistently lowest-achieving" by the USDOEIFLDOE. 9 elementary schools, 7 middle schools, and 10 high schools. 24,000 students. $120,000,000 budget. 71% African-American, 25% Hispanic, 1% White, 3% Other, 12% English Language Learners, 13% Students with Disabilities, and 91% Free/Reduced Lunch. Of 19 schools originally served, 7 schools were "Cs", 10 were "Ds", and 2 were "Fs". Now, 5 are projected "As", "2"Bs," 8 "Cs," 3 "Ds", and 1 "F". Of 26 schools served, reading proficiency has increased by 7 percentage points; math proficiency by 32 percentage points; Algebra proficiency by 10 percentage points; science proficiency by 25 percentage points; reading learning gains by 19 percentage points; reading learning gains for the lowest 25% by 37 percentage points. Reduced days of outdoor and indoor suspension from 19,180 days to 11,533 days. Each of 10 high schools improved graduation rate by an average of 12 percentage points, to an overall average of78%. College reading readiness improved by 36 percentage points and math readiness by 16 percentage points. Accelerated Participation (dual enrollment, industry certification, and Advanced Placement) improved by 49 percentage points and performance improved by 32 percentage points. Developed and led the Education Transformation Office (ETO) consisting of turnaround experts in reading, math, and science who directly support schools instructionally. Office streamlines and spearheads instructional, professional development, operational, budget, personnel, maintenance, and facility functions. Led three annual Instructional Reviews at each school to strategically tier instructional support and invest resources for improvement. Coordinated the commitment of over a million dollars of investment from businesses to expand dual enrollment and mentorship opportunities for students. Secured 20 million dollars in competitive School Improvement Grant (SIG) funds. Negotiated three Memorandums of Understandings (MOUs) with the union to provide incentive and performance pay, common planning, lesson study, use of assessments for progress monitoring, extended learning opportunities, and additional hours for parent-teacher conferences. Redesigned and remarketed high school Career Academies that lead to Dual Enrollment, Advanced Placement, or Industry Certification. Developed and implemented new enrichment courses including Freshman Experience, Sixth Grade Foundations, Creative Writing, Science Double Dosing, Algebra Readiness, and 11th and 1th grade college readiness classes. Paired each principal with a business CEO. Created an Enrichment/Intervention Plan for all students based on interim assessments. Expanded mentorship and internship opportunities for students. Upgraded technological infrastructure of schools. Expanded Parent Academy classes.

2010-2012

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

Implemented Positive Behavior Support in all schools. Designed Project Lead initiative to develop future principals and assistant principals for urban schools through resident and internship process. Developed ETO Task Force to bring together community stakeholders to support turnaround process. Introduced Coaching and Teacher Academies focusing on effective instructional delivery, data analysis, lesson study, New Sunshine State/Common Core Standards, and use of technology to improve student engagement. Coordinated networking visits with principals, assistant principals, instructional coaches, and teachers to showcase best practices and provide job-embedded professional development through walkthroughs. Partnered with Teach for America, City Year, and College Summit. Served as advisor to Superintendent as Florida's Chair of Race to the Top MOU committee. Recognized as district model for turnaround by USDOE, FLDOE, and districts throughout country. Served as media contact for turnaround effort for the district. Two-time Broad Finalist for Excellence in Urban Education

Deputy Chancellor of School Improvement Achievement Florida Department of Education

and Student

2009 - 2010

Reorganized and supervised Bureaus of School Improvement, Title I, Federal Programs, Office of Equal Opportunity, Guidance, Just Read, Florida!, Early Learning, and Community and Parent Outreach. Managed nearly $800 million in various federal and state programs and initiatives. Served as Florida's lead for struggling schools throughout the Race to the Top and-School Improvement Grant application and initial implementation process. Provided professional development and technical assistance to superintendents, district administrators, principals, and teachers on numerous school improvement and Federal Program initiatives. Initiated and developed policy for Florida's Differentiated Accountability Plan, which was the state's school improvement plan that improved 79% of the lowest-performing schools by one or more letter grades for two consecutive years. Led, trained, supervised, and expanded five regional offices throughout the state consisting of a Regional Executive Director, Instructional Specialists, and Reading Coordinators who directly supported the state's lowest performing schools and their districts. Served as the media contact for Differentiated Accountability.

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

Bureau Chief of School Improvement/Regional Differentiated Accountability Executive

2008 - 2009

Director for Region One/Lead Executive Director for

Florida Department of Education

Spearheaded the implementation of Differentiated Accountability's Pilot, which merged existing No Child Left Behind (NCLB), state statute, and State Board requirements related to school improvement and accountability under one system. Initiative led to 79% of targeted schools improving their school letter grade by one or more grades. Some of which went from "Fs" to "As" and made AYP. Supervised five regional offices each consisting of a Regional Executive Director and four Instructional Specialists who provided direct support to the state's lowest performing schools and their districts. Developed an Instructional Review process to conduct instructional reviews at the state's lowest-performing schools. Developed the Knowledge Capture Project to identify the effective practices that were implemented statewide to turnaround the state's lowest performing schools. Redesigned the state's School Improvement Plan, District Improvement Plan, Restructuring Plan, and Mid-Year Report. Developed and presented bi-monthly status reports on the state's lowest-performing schools to the State Board of Education. Supervised four Instructional Specialists to provide direct assistance to Region One's lowest-performing schools. Support resulted in increasing the school grades of 6 out of7 targeted schools by one or more letter grades. Two schools increased their letter grade from an "F" to an "A" and made AYP. Assisted superintendents and district leadership teams in mobilizing resources and personnel to target the specific needs of their lowest-performing schools. Conducted Instructional Reviews to targeted schools in Region One. Provided professional development on instructional leadership and the development of School Improvement Plans to school site and district administrators in Region One. Reviewed School Improvement, District Improvement, K-12, and Title I Plans for the lowest-performing districts and schools in Region One. Coordinated school site and district professional development on effective teaching in the content area, data analysis, differentiated instruction, writing, and effective instructional coaching in Region One. Led 25 directors or specialists in the Bureau of School Improvement on various projects and initiatives including outreach programs to low-performing schools, Pupil Progression Planning, Career Academies, and School Advisory Councils. Managed nearly $15.5 million in grants and general revenue for numerous programs within the Bureau.

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

Principal; Homestead Middle School
Miami-Dade County Public Schools

2007 -2008

Increased FCAT Letter Grade from a "D" to a high "B" Increased proficiency in reading by 7 percentage points, mathematics by 10 percentage points, science by 18 percentage points, and writing by 3 percentage points. Increased "learning gains" in reading by 8 percentage points and mathematics by 15 percentage points. Increased growth of "lowest 25%" in reading by 3 percentage points and mathematics by 16 percentage points. Implemented International Baccalaureate (IB) Program. Instituted uniform policy. Named strongest Language Arts/Reading Program in Region VI by district. Reduced outdoor suspension rate by 70%. Increased student attendance by 3 percentage points (led district in the highest increase in attendance ). Assisted both assistant principals in being admitted to the Principal Preparation Program. Maintained financial status without exemptions. Two time City of Homestead "Certificate of Recognition" Recipient, 2007-2008

Knowledge Management Officer

Miami-Dade County Public Schools

2007

Served on Senior Cabinet. Co-planned and facilitated COMSTAT meetings among Senior Staff and Regional Superintendents to strengthen district's lowest-performing schools, which led the district to increase its attendance rate and decrease its suspension rate. Analyzed data to identify problem areas in schools and conducted instructional walkthroughs to provide principals with instructional support. Aligned and coordinated district and Regional Center resources and strategies to address problem areas. Spearheaded Senior Cabinet's "Collegial Collaborative" meetings. Vetted District initiatives prior to implementation. Incorporated feedback from all district departments. Served as Superintendent's representative on Early Learning Coalition and Homeless Trust boards. Conducted instructional audit of the district's Early Childhood Programs. Assisted in the development and negotiation of innovative professional development for district's noninstructional personnel.

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

Prepared district staff for the development and presentation of Board items. Broad Prize Finalist for Excellence in Urban Education.

Intern to Superintendent

Dr. Rudolph F. Crew

2006

Miami-Dade County Public Schools

Participated on Senior Cabinet. Served as Project Leader of District Assistance Team Formed over fifty Focus Teams to conduct instructional walkthroughs of schools district-wide. Designed classroom walkthrough tool for district-wide school visits. Trained Focus Teams on use of walkthrough tool and school visit protocol. Developed professional development menu for Focus Teams. Coordinated Focus Team visits to schools. Reviewed, compiled, and assessed feedback from Focus Team visits. Met with Deputies and Regional Superintendents to review feedback from Focus Team visits and determine school-site intervention. Assisted Superintendent in the selection of A-Items for School Board Meetings. Broad Prize Finalist for Excellence in Urban Education

Head Dean of Students; Fordham Leadership Academy High School New York City Public Schools
Opened smaller high school within former 4,000 student high school.

2003-2005

Designed and implemented innovative discipline strategies which united the roles of guidance counselors, deans, teachers, principals and parents to significantly improve student achievement, increase attendance, and reduce suspension rate. Supported first and second year teachers by creating individualized classroom management models. Represented school at Regional Suspension Hearings.

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

TEACHING EXPERIENCE 2003/05
Fordham Leadership Academy High School New York City Schools T.R. Educational Campus, 500 East Fordham Road, Bronx, NY 10458 Joseph Wade Middle School (Professions and Careers Academy) New York City Public Schools 1865 Morris Avenue, Bronx, NY 10453 Carver High School Forsyth County Schools 3545 Carver School Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27105 Parkland High School Forsyth County Schools 1600 Brewer Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27127.

2002/03

2001/02

2001

PROFESSIONAL

PRESENTATIONS

May, 2012 - Florida Sterling Leadership Conference

"Succession Management in Struggling Schools: Building the Bench for Urban Instructional Leadership in MiamiDade County Public Schools" Orlando, FL

May, 2012 - National City Year Conference

"Insight to Action: Effective District-wide Approaches to Turning around Low Performing Schools" Washington, D.C.

April, 2012 - Symposium on Response to Intervention (RtI)

"The Education Transformation (ETO) and RtI" Fort Lauderdale, FL

April, 2012 - University of Miami Education Symposium

"The Effects of High-Stakes Testing with Alfie Kohn" Miami, FL

March, 2012 - Florida International

University STEM Conference

"Aligning STEM Initiatives Across K-12, University, Non-profit, and Business Entities" Miami, FL

January, 2012 - Miami Fellows

"Challenge of Turning Around Lower-Performing Schools" Miami, FL

October, 2011 - Association of Latino Administrators

and Superintendents

(ALAS)

"The Education Transformation Office: Building, Sustaining, and Accelerating Miami-Dade County's Lower Performing Schools" San Francisco, CA

October, 2011 - Carnegie Learning School Improvement Summit

"School Improvement, New Standards, Accountability, and Technology" Washington, D.C.

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

September, 2011 - McGraw Hill Innovation in Education Summit "K-16 Digital Solutions: Are they Capable of Driving Student Achievement and are they Scalable" New York City, NY August, 2011 - Aspen Institute Senior Congressional Retreat
"Implementing the School Improvement Grant: Successes and Challenges at the State, District, and School Level" Queenstown, Maryland

June, 2011 - Florida Department of Education's Leadership Conference

"Education Transformation Office: Build, Sustain, and Accelerate" Tampa, FL

June, 2011 - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

"Debate on History of Florida's Education Reforms" Miami, FL

June, 2011 - Title I Conference

"Education Transformation Office: Build, Sustain, and Accelerate" Orlando, FL

May, 2011 - City Year National Conference

Panel Discussion on School Turnaround Washington, D.C.

February, 2011 - United States Department of Education National Webinar

"The Miami-Dade County Public School Story"

December, 2010 - Cambium Learning Superintendents' Solutions Summit

"Overcoming the Odds: All Systems Go! Increasing Student Achievement in Miami-Dade County Public Schools" Washington, D.C.

July, 2010 - Florida Department of Education's Leadership Conference

"Lessons Learned: Two Years of Leading School Improvement in Florida" Tampa. FL

July, 2010 - North East Florida Educational Consortium Conference

"Instructional Leadership in Low-Performing Schools" Daytona Beach, FL

June, 2010 - Florida Association of Management Information Systems Conference

"Update on Differentiated Accountability" Tallahassee, FL

May, 2010 - Southern Regional Educational Board

Panel Discussion on School Improvement, Race to the Top, and School Improvement Grants Washington, D.C.

May, 2010 - Florida Negotiators Conference

"Differentiated Accountability Requirements and Negotiating with Unions" Daytona Beach, FL

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

May, 2010 - Florida Organization ofInstructional Leaders Conference "Curriculum Changes through Differentiated Accountability" Lake Mary, FL April, 2010 - Association of State and Federal Education Program Administrators "Update on School Improvement Grants and Differentiated Accountability" Orlando, FL March, 2010 - Gadsden County School Board "Effective and Strategic Use of Title I Funds to Drive School Improvement" Gadsden County, FL November, 2009 - Florida Organization "Update on Differentiated Accountability" Orlando, FL of Instructional Leaders Conference Conference

November, 2009 - Florida Charter Conference "Update on Differentiated Accountability" Orlando, FL October, 2009 - Florida Education Association Conference "Differentiated Accountability and Union Concerns and Issues" Orlando, FL September, 2009- Florida Association "Changes to School Improvement Grant" Orlando, FL of District School Superintendents

September, 2009 - Florida Association for Staff Development Conference "Implications for Professional Development through Differentiated Accountability" Tampa, FL September, 2009 - Exceptional Student Education Conference "Implications for Exceptional Student Education through Differentiated Accountability" Tampa, FL September, 2009 - National Association for the Advancement "School Improvement Successes and Challenges in Florida" Miami,FL August, 2009 - Differentiated Tallahassee, Miami, and Tampa Accountability of Colored People

Rule Development

Workshops

August, 2009 - Madison County District and School Administrators "Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Madison County, FL July, 2009 - Gadsden County District and School Administrators "Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Gadsden County, FL July, 2009 - Walton County District and School Administrators "Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Walton County, FL

Nikolai P. Vitti ...Continued

July, 2009 - Gulf County District and School Administrators
"Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Gulf County, FL

July, 2009 - Calhoun County District and School Administrators

"Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Calhoun County, FL

June, 2009 - Panhandle Area Education Consortium Conference

"Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Chipley, FL

May, 2009 - FOIL Conference

"Update on Differentiated Accountability" Tampa, FL

May, 2009 - Leon County District and School Administrators

"Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Leon County, FL

May, 2009 - Escambia County District and School Administrators

"Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Escambia County, FL

April, 2009 - Title I Conference

"Update on Differentiated Accountability" Daytona, FL

February, 2009 - Title I Conference

"Update on Differentiated Accountability" Tampa, FL

February, 2009 - Florida Reading Supervisors Conference

"Reading Strategies for School Improvement" Tampa, FL

January, 2009 - Franklin County School Board Workshop

"Instructional Leadership and School Improvement" Franklin County, FL

July, 2008 - Just Read, Florida Conference

"Literacy Leadership Team and Improving Literacy Instruction at Homestead Middle School" Miami, FL

July, 2008 - Nova Southeastern University

"Effective Principal Leadership in Low-Performing Schools" Miami, FL