Kelly Carvajal Hageman
Kelly Carvajal Hageman is the Chief Academic Officer for Milford School District. Previously, she served as Director of Curriculum and Instruction in the Seaford School District, managing school accountability and federal programs (Title I, II, III, and IV) in additional to her primary responsibility for supervising all teaching and learning. Since 2012, she has helped support continuous improvement throughout the district and across content areas, with Seaford documenting significant increases in academic achievement and equity. Between 2015-2019, 3-8th grade ELA proficiency on SBAC increased by 18%; during this same period, mathematic proficiency increased by 20%.
Kelly’s advocacy on behalf of high-quality instruction for all learners, including linguistically and culturally diverse students, is embedded throughout all her work. She is currently pursuing doctoral studies at the University of Delaware which includes researching literacy and English learners. Kelly previously studied at the University of Connecticut, earning both graduate and undergraduate degrees in multicultural and multilingual education. She serves as a state advisory board member for the Delaware EL Strategic Plan, the Delaware State Literacy Plan, and the Delaware Equity Design Team.
Kelly is on Twitter at @CarvajalHageman. You can also connect with her on LinkedIn.
Seaford’s Implementation Journey
In 2016, Seaford adopted Bookworms Reading and Writing for K-5. In 2020, Seaford Middle School adopted MS Bookworms for 6-8. Meanwhile, Seaford High School adopted StudySync for 9-12. In math, the district launched Illustrative Math in 2018-19 for middle school and extended the curriculum to high school in 2019-20. In 2021-22, they will also implement Illustrative Math at the elementary level.
Seaford partners with the University of Delaware Professional Development Center for Educators (PDCE) for professional learning to support both Bookworms and Illustrative Mathematics. TNTP provides professional learning support for StudySync.
In the first year of implementation, PDCE provided professional development for all teachers and leaders focused on the science of learning in the new curricula. Since then, they have differentiated instruction for different grade levels, for teachers vs. leaders, and for math and literacy. Coaches from the University of Development work directly with teachers and also with district-based reading specialists, literacy coaches, and math coaches who redeliver learning to teachers.
