Ms. Stephens has been an educator for over 15 years. She has a strong focus on curriculum development and student achievement. Ms. Stephens was an instrumental part of a turnaround team that made marked improvements in math and reading on the Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP), during her first year as a curriculum specialist. The average proficiency scores in math and reading increased from 39% to 57% under her direction. Under Ms. Stephens leadership, Discovery Arts and Technology Academy was given the STEM Award for the highest math score in the district with a growth of 1.7 years based on Scantron results. In more recent years, Ms. Stephens has helped schools to continuously achieve growth of at a least 1.5 years’ growth in reading and math for the past 5 years., as well as, helped her school receive the designation of a, Reward School, by the state. Currently, Ms. Stephens designs curriculum resources and assessments that are aligned to Common Core State Standards, that are used by different schools across the country. In addition, she takes pride in coaching teachers and administrators on how to use best practices within schools and classroom environments. She also enjoys creating culturally relevant literature.