Chuck Benigno

Chuck Benigno currently serves as the Superintendent for the Laurel School District, in Laurel, Mississippi, which has moved from At-Risk of Failing to Successful. He was the Vice President for Students at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and served as principal of West Jones Middle School and North Forrest High School.
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Shelley H. Billig

Shelley H. Billig is Vice President of RMC Research Corporation and currently serves as Associate Director of the Central Regional Educational Laboratory at Marzano Research Lab. She heads initiatives on closing the achievement gap in rural schools, turning around low-performing schools, and establishing measures of student growth. Dr. Billig works directly with multiple urban and rural school districts on quality reviews, instructional audits, and special initiatives such as increasing the graduation rate and evaluating the impact of specific programs, such as technological interventions, social-emotional learning, and STEM.

Lucy Johnson

A Hays County native who grew up on her family’s 3,500-acre cattle ranch along the Blanco River, Ms. Johnson attended tiny St. Stephen’s Episcopal School in Wimberley through third grade and then transferred to public schools in the Hays Consolidated Independent School District. She graduated from Jack C. Hays High School in 2002 and attended Parsons The New School for Design in New York, where she earned a bachelor’s degree.
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