Mason (VA)  TNLI Fellows Bios

TNLI Mason Fellows

Kelly Ayers
As a fifth grade teacher at Providence Elementary, Fairfax County Public Schools, and an educator for seventeen years, Kelly has led her fellow staff members for the past five years in conducting inquiry research in collaboration with GMU. Previous research includes ‘Student Achievement in Mathematics’ which findings were published with other GMU partnership schools’ findings in the “NEA Crosswalks.”  Kelly has spoken with other Providence staff members at several national conferences including AACTE and the National Holmes Partnership for Education Conference. Kelly has a Bachelor of Science in Education from Indiana University of PA and a Masters of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies (MAIS) from George Mason University.

Michelle Crabill is a School Based Technology Specialist at Kings Park Elementary School in Springfield, VA. This is her 13th year in education, 6th year participating in Teacher Research, and second year in TNLI. Prior to becoming a SBTS at Kings Park, she was a third grade teacher:  6 years in Fairfax County and 6 years in Maryland. Her professional accomplishments include receiving a Master's Degree in Instructional Technology, participating in Teacher Research, being a teacher mentor, and becoming a School Based Technology Specialist. Michelle loves working with teachers to enhance their instructional strategies through the use of technology. The excitement in the children’s faces is priceless. When she is not teaching or working on the computer, she enjoys spending quality time with her husband and daughters.

Megan Garnett is the US History Team Leader at Robinson Secondary School where she teaches United States/Virginia History , IB History of the Americas, and Combating Intolerance. Her two main research interests include teacher evaluation and teacher collaboration. Working with two professors from George Mason University, Megan has coordinated a program at her school called “Operation Observation” where high school students observe student teaching interns and provide those interns with feedback on their teaching from the “student’s perspective.” In an effort to examine the effects of teacher collaboration on teacher efficacy and student achievement, Megan has been leading a team of twelve teachers at her school in an action research project designed to improve student research and writing skills in social studies classes. This project utilizes teacher collaboration and scaffolding as a means to make research papers more meaningful for students and more manageable for teachers. Megan earned her undergraduate degree in education at Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania and her master’s degree in history at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. She is currently pursuing her PhD in education at George Mason University.

Linda Smith is the International Baccalaureate (IB) Coordinator at Randolph Elementary School in Arlington, Virginia. She brings her own international perspective to her work as a native of Toronto, Canada.  She serves as the Primary Years Program Vice President for the Mid - Atlantic Regional Coalition of IB Schools and as Clinical Faculty for George Mason University's Professional Development School partnership with Randolph Elementary.  Linda is an active presenter, consultant and workshop leader for IBO and teaches ESL Methodology for the Office of Adult Learning and Professional Development, GMU and IBO Teacher Practitioner Award coursework for GMU’s Center for International Education. For the past number of years, she has engaged in teacher research studying the relationship between teacher and student inquiry practices and their link to building comprehension of enduring understandings.  

TNLI Mason Staff

Penelope M. Earley, Ph.D. is founding Director of the Center for Education Policy and a professor in the Graduate School of Education at George Mason University.  Before joining the GMU faculty, Earley was a vice president with the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.  At AACTE she directed federal and state governmental relations, issue analysis, policy studies, and public relations. Dr. Earley's areas of research include federal and state education policy and governance, public policy regarding teacher education, and gender equity issues.

Dr. Earley has served on a member of a number of educational advisory boards including the NCES Consultative Committee on Title II Accountability; AASCU Commission on Teacher Preparation, Accountability, and Evaluation; Teacher Mentor Project; and Coalition for Women's Appointments in Government.  She has authored book chapters for Teacher Education for Democracy and Social Justice, The Politics of Education Yearbook, Handbook of Research on Teacher Education, What is a Qualified, Capable Teacher? and Developing Language Teachers for a Changing World as well as various issue briefs and journal articles. She is co-founder of the North American Collaborative for Education Policy Study. In 2001 she received the Martha J. Fields Award for Excellence in Education from the National Association of State Directors of Special Education.

Gail V. Ritchie
This is Gail’s eighth year with TNLI.  A National Board Certified Early Childhood Generalist, she recently returned to the school-level as an Instructional Coach, after two years as a Resource Teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools’ Department of Professional Learning and Training.  Gail completed her doctorate with a dissertation study entitled “Teacher Research as A Habit of Mind.” Additional research interests include early literacy, differentiated learning, and early childhood development. Gail has two basketball-crazy sons (one played for Virginia Tech), and one very spoiled cat. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, music, and watching videos.