The 2026 Northwest Connection: An Educators Conference
About this Event
You’re invited!
Designed for educators passionate about Christian education, this gathering features inspiring keynote speakers, hands-on workshops, and subject-specific strategies to enhance the teaching experience. Come be refreshed, encouraged, and strengthened in your calling to shape the minds of your students as you teach from a Christ-centered worldview.
Tuesday, August 18, 2026, 12:45 PM–5:15 PM (Check-in starts at 12:15 PM)
Wednesday, August 19, 2026, 8:15 AM–3:45 PM
The event will be held at Grand View Christian Academy (14855 S. Leland Rd, Beavercreek, OR 97004)
Registration includes lunch on Wednesday and refreshments throughout the event.
Sessions will include a variety of topics covering early learning, elementary, secondary, administrative, and general subjects.
For more information about this event, please contact:
Jacob Franklin
Precept Territory Manager
[email protected]
425.239.8468
or
Laurel Santos
Precept Educational Sales Consultant
[email protected]
564.241.9112
Featured Vendors
These organizations offer meaningful support and tools for educators.
Association of Christian Teachers and Schools
BJU Press
Corban University
Let’s Go Learn
NACCAP
Oregon Christian Education Coalition
RenewaNation
TrekAi
Tuesday
🕑: 12:15 PM
Conference Check-In Begins
🕑: 12:45 PM
Welcome & Announcements
🕑: 01:15 PM
Battling for Hearts and Minds
Host: Jeff Keaton
Info: (Keynote Session) There is a battle raging for the hearts and minds of today's children. As Christian educators, you are on the frontlines of this battle. In this presentation you will be reminded of the importance of your great work and will be encouraged to invest in this generation of children like never before.
🕑: 02:30 PM
25-Minute Refreshment Break
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Building and Maintaining Healthy Board/Head of School Relationships
Host: Dr. Deborah Miller
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) Healthy, mission-aligned relationships between the school board and the head of school are essential to the long-term stability and vitality of a Christian school. This session provides leaders with a framework for cultivating trust, clarity, and collaborative partnership with their board—particularly the board chair. Participants will gain insight into the structural, relational, and missional dynamics that characterize strong governance-leadership alignment and learn strategies for proactively nurturing these relationships.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Inspecting What You Expect, Part 1: A Discussion for Administrators on Trust
Host: Cody Carlson
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) As administrators and lead teachers, we need to ensure that our expectations are being met in the classroom. But there’s a fine line between micro-management and open-ended freedom. This session will offer a thought-provoking approach to finding the fine line that fits your organization. There will be time to build off other educators to develop a plan for formal and informal observations of your staff.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Tips for Managing the Classroom of Little Learners (PreK)
Host: Dr. Julie Madsen
Info: (Early Childhood Breakout Session) In the classroom, the use of Pathways for Preschool and Footsteps for Fours fosters age-appropriate developmental skills and discovery learning. Learn creative management tips and lesson planning strategies for educators of early childhood education.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
History Beyond the Dates and Facts
Host: Jamie Meachum
Info: (Elem./Middle Breakout Session) History should be an engaging, essential subject in the elementary classroom. Let’s look at practical ways to teach social studies that lay a foundation in government, economics, civics, culture, and history.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Yes! You Can M. A. T. H.
Host: Cindy Dickinson
Info: (Elementary Breakout Session) Math can be an engaging and exciting subject to teach. It is so much more than just recalling and memorizing. Interested in current ideas for your math classroom? Join me to discover ways you can M.A.T.H. M—make it interesting, A—add to their knowledge, T—take it to the next level, and H—find out how they did. By engaging, instructing, applying, and assessing, you can take your math classes as well as your students to the next level.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Five Learning Strategies for STEM Students
Host: Dr. Rebecca Weier
Info: (Middle/High School Breakout Session) The advice to “study harder” often causes discouragement for students who are already trying but not finding success. Explore five study strategies that lead to success in STEM-related subjects! This session is geared toward high school-level math and science teachers.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Manipulatives: Not Just for Elementary! (Math)
Host: Pam Litzenberger
Info: (Middle/High School Breakout Session) We know elementary teachers use hands-on manipulatives to help their students understand math, but what about in the secondary math classroom? How can we use manipulatives for algebra or geometry? Manipulatives can open the door to understanding for many students who may not understand a math concept in an abstract way. In this workshop we will discuss many manipulatives that can be used in your secondary math class to help all your students better understand math.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Redeeming the Time, All the Time
Host: Dr. Bryan Smith
Info: (General Breakout Session) Our calling in this world is to redeem the time that has been given to us (Eph. 5:16). We are to live each day attempting to restore what God has placed in our care. But how does this calling relate to our “downtime”—that portion of our lives that is neither work nor sleep? What does it mean to redeem that, and how do we educate our young people so that they live for God even when they’re just having fun? I’ll give you a hint: It has something to do with how we think about beauty.
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
Dive into the Teacher Resources of BJU Press Trove
Host: Dr. Jenny Copeland
Info: (General Breakout Session) Trove is the premier learning experience platform for those using BJU Press materials in schools. In this session, learn how to log into Trove and find teacher resources. We’ll explore the library as well as the search and filter features. We’ll then go a step further to learn about creating and using playlists, including adding custom content. The Trove assessment builder is included with teacher resources, and we’ll explore how to use test banks or custom-made questions to create assessments. Join me as we dive in and explore the exciting resources of BJU Press Trove!
🕑: 02:55 PM - 03:55 PM
BJU Press AI by TrekAi (Repeated)
Host: Erin Burchik
Info: (General Breakout Session) Discover how this new AI platform can strengthen biblical worldview instruction and support both teachers and students in your school. Join us for a special workshop introducing BJU Press AI by TrekAi—a groundbreaking AI platform trained on BJU Press materials and built to guide learning through a biblical lens and the Socratic method.
This session will explore how BJU Press AI by TrekAi empowers teachers with time-saving tools like quiz and rubric generators, paper proofreading, and a lesson plan generator, all while providing students with on-demand academic support, review, and personalized learning—without just giving away the answers. School leaders will get a firsthand look at the platform’s capabilities, its faith-aligned design, and how it integrates seamlessly with BJU Press resources.
🕑: 03:15 PM
15-Minute Break
🕑: 04:10 PM
Praise & Worship
🕑: 04:15 PM
It's All About Jesus, RIGHT?
Host: Blair Bryant
Info: (Keynote Session) Explore ways to teach students to see Jesus in all areas of activities, programs, and curriculum. The all-important question is: How do you ensure that your Christian school is truly about Christ?
🕑: 05:15 PM
Closing
Wednesday
🕑: 08:15 AM
Prayer, Praise, & Announcements
🕑: 08:25 AM
Helping Students Defend Their Faith
Host: Dr. Bryan Smith
Info: (Keynote Session) We live in an age of secular unbelief. For that reason, we need to convey to our young people not just an understanding of the Christian faith, but also skill in defending it. The challenge is that there are different approaches to defending the faith, and these approaches can be very confusing. But there is a way forward: The Bible itself shows us how to defend belief in God and His Word. That’s what we need to teach to our young people.
🕑: 09:25 AM
20-Minute Refreshment Break
🕑: 09:45 AM
Leading Up: The Role of the Head of School in Equipping the Board for Strategy
Host: Dr. Deborah Miller
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) This session will equip heads of school to “lead up"— to provide support and direction to the board in their own professional development. We will review the essential knowledge, skills, and abilities that boards should have in order to fulfill their role effectively as strategic board members. This session will also suggest strategies school leaders can adopt to develop high-functioning board members who know their roles and are able to do them well.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Inspecting What You Expect, Part 2: The Practical Side of Staff Improvement
Host: Cody Carlson
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) In this session, attendees will dive deeper into staff improvement. We will discuss ideas such as in-person observations, group teacher clinics, peer observations, mentor teacher implementation, and teacher-manual journaling. We will also discuss goal setting for each staff member and midyear staff evaluations. As there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach, the goal of this session is to provide a framework for discovering ways to honor what the Lord has called us to.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Sustaining the Motivation of Little Learners (Repeated)
Host: Dr. Julie Madsen
Info: (Early Childhood/Lower El. Breakout Session) Keeping young students consistently engaged and motivated is one of the most joyful and challenging aspects of teaching. This session explores strategies and practical techniques to foster intrinsic motivation in little learners. Participants will gain insights into the developmental needs of early childhood, the role of relationships and environment in sustaining engagement, and how to design meaningful learning experiences that spark curiosity, independence, and persistence.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Grouping in the Reading Classroom
Host: Jamie Meachum
Info: (Elementary Breakout Session) Why are reading groups important? Do they really make a difference? We’ll look at tips for creating and maintaining successful reading groups in the classroom.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Who's Running the Show?
Host: Cindy Dickinson
Info: (Elementary Breakout Session) Teachers play many roles in the classroom. One of the most important is being a classroom manager. Learn how to organize your classroom from a biblical perspective to benefit both your students and yourself. If you don’t manage your classroom, your students will!
🕑: 09:45 AM
History Through the Eyes of Faith
Host: Dr. Bryan Smith
Info: (Middle/High School Breakout Session) Christians agree that the Bible is essential to understanding history. But what is this supposed to look like in the classroom? Many teachers focus on godly character traits seen in the lives of certain individuals. But this approach often leaves the core objectives of history unaffected by biblical teaching. This workshop proposes that the key to effective biblical integration is Christian worldview shaping. Students learn Christianly when they see the past through the lens of a Christian worldview. Discover classroom practices that will help you achieve core history objectives in a distinctively Christian way.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Calling Over Career: Cultivating a Schoolwide Vision for Student Vocation
Host: Janet L. Pargeter
Info: (High School Breakout Session) Guiding students toward post-high school decisions is about more than placement, it’s about formation. In Christian education, vocation is not merely a future career choice but a lifelong response to God’s calling. This session explores how counselors, teachers, administrators, coaches, and staff all play a vital role in shaping students’ understanding of identity, gifting, and purpose. Together, we will discuss and consider how a school-wide culture of calling can move students beyond anxiety about “what’s next” toward confidence in being a loved creation of God and who He is shaping them to become.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Effective Teacher or Master Teacher: Which Are You?
Host: Pam Litzenberger
Info: (General Breakout Session) Are you the teacher who is in the profession for the summers off, break days, and 8 AM–3 PM hours? Is it just a job? Or do you desire to be the teacher who enters the teaching field to reach those difficult students and open the door to learning for them? There is a middle ground here. How can we become an effective teacher—a master teacher—the kind every administrator wants to clone—but without school taking over our lives 24/7?
🕑: 09:45 AM
Mindset Matters: Thinking Biblically About Thinking (Repeated)
Host: Dr. Rebecca Weier
Info: (General Breakout Session) The way we think and talk about our life matters. We want to help students to develop the language and thought patterns that encourage growth. As students recognize that failure is a stepping stone to success and learn to take appropriate risks, they grow.
🕑: 09:45 AM
We GET to Do This- We MUST Do This!
Host: Blair Bryant
Info: (General Breakout Session) You will be inspired to minister for the glory of God and serve with a humble and thankful heart.
🕑: 09:45 AM
Could AI Do That? Should AI Do That?
Host: Dr. Jenny Copeland
Info: (General Breakout Session) Generative AI entered the scene and has continued to make headlines nearly every day, but what is it, and how is it impacting Christian schools? Should it be banned or embraced? In this session we will talk about the basics of AI, identify pros and cons of such a tool, discuss its place in the Christian school, and explore some practical strategies for approaching AI from a strong biblical and pedagogical standpoint.
🕑: 10:45 AM
20-Minute Refreshment Break
🕑: 11:05 AM
Putting Out the Dumpster Fire: Transforming Dysfunctional Boards into...
Host: Dr. Debroah Miller
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) Putting Out the Dumpster Fire: Transforming Dysfunctional Boards into Healthy, Mission-Aligned Governance Teams. Every board has its challenges, but some consistently struggle with patterns of dysfunction that undermine mission effectiveness. This session will examine the qualities of healthy and dysfunctional boards, diagnose common roots of dysfunction, and suggest redemptive strategies to help boards move toward unity, clarity, accountability, and purposeful governance.
🕑: 11:05 AM
The Mission-Driven School: Seek Ye First
Host: Blair Bryant
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) This session will help you set priorities to create and define your mission as a Christian school. Is your school’s mission statement effective and realistic?
🕑: 11:05 AM
How to Shape Early Childhood Education with a Biblical Worldview
Host: Dr. Julie Madsen
Info: (Early Childhood Breakout Session) In this session, learn how to encourage growth in your students by using a biblical worldview in all aspects of teaching. You will learn how to incorporate biblical teaching in your classroom to strengthen your students’ emotional skills, cognitive development, spiritual growth, and thinking habits. This session also covers Christian values to instill in students, such as compassion, honesty, love, and forgiveness.
🕑: 11:05 AM
Assessing Reading: Making Sense of the Pieces to Form the Whole Grade
Host: Jamie Meachum
Info: (Elementary Breakout Session) Watching students develop skills in reading is rewarding! Both the student and the teacher get excited when progress is made. In this session we will explore clear, objective methods for assessing reading, and remove the guesswork from the grade.
🕑: 11:05 AM
Supercharged Learning Centers!
Host: Cindy Dickinson
Info: (Elementary Breakout Session) Are you tired of juggling rotations during reading time? Rotation one: meet with the teacher—check. Rotation two: independent seatwork—check. But what about rotation three—learning centers? In this session, you’ll learn how to structure your reading block for maximum impact and discover easy-to-implement learning center ideas that keep students engaged and learning independently. Walk away with practical strategies, time-saving tips, and a tool kit of reproducible ideas designed to make your reading block smoother and more effective than ever.
🕑: 11:05 AM
Overcoming Math Anxiety
Host: Pam Litzenberger
Info: (Middle/High School Breakout Session) As many as 25%–50% of pre-college students have math anxiety. In this workshop, we will discuss this fear, where it may have originated, and most importantly, how we, as their math teachers, can help our students overcome their anxiety. We will also talk about math myths and how they affect our students.
🕑: 11:05 AM - 12:05 PM
The Thankful Leper: A Model Example of Joy in a Fallen and Broken World
Host: Dwight Nelson
Info: (General/Bible Breakout Session)This session is designed to encourage educators to remain mindful that God is continually at work in every circumstance to fulfill His will. Through biblical examples including Lazarus, Job, and the ten lepers, we will explore how faith and action play a vital role in spiritual restoration and healing. We will also examine the profound ways God may permit pain, suffering, and even death to deepen faith and reveal His glory. This session will emphasize the importance of responding to God’s miracles and His steadfast faithfulness with gratitude and praise. During the session, I will share my own personal testimony of struggling with and overcoming substance abuse. Come be encouraged to trust in God’s redemptive power and be inspired to cultivate hearts that glorify God in every season of life. (Speaker will provide CEU)
🕑: 11:05 AM
Mindset Matters: Thinking Biblically About Thinking (Repeated)
Host: Dr. Rebecca Weier
Info: (General Breakout Session) The way we think and talk about our life matters. We want to help students to develop the language and thought patterns that encourage growth. As students recognize that failure is a stepping stone to success and learn to take appropriate risks, they grow.
🕑: 11:05 AM
What Does It Mean to Be Created in the Image of God?
Host: Jeff Keaton
Info: (General Breakout Session) What makes you valuable? Your answer to this question will in many ways determine your level of success and happiness in life. Today, millions of young people believe that they are simply highly evolved animals. They believe that the strong survive and the weak die. A wrong answer to the question of “What makes us valuable?” can produce terrible consequences in the real lives of people.
In this session, Jeff Keaton will answer this critical question focusing on these two major truths: 1) There is a DISTINCT and MASSIVE difference between humans and all other CREATURES. 2) What likenesses of GOD do we possess that other SPECIES do not possess, at the same level, and again, what DIFFERENCE does this make in the real world?
🕑: 11:05 AM
Assessments in Action: Assessment Tools You Can Use Today
Host: Dr. Jenny Copeland
Info: (General Breakout Session) Using an assortment of assessment tools brings variety and increased engagement to the classroom . . . not to mention, they are fun! If you are looking to mix up how you create or give assessments, this session will give you a selection of tools you can start using today! We will explore technology tools from BJU Press as well as a variety of other digital assessment resources.
🕑: 11:05 AM
BJU Press AI by TrekAi (Repeated)
Host: Erin Burchik
Info: (General Breakout Session) Discover how this new AI platform can strengthen biblical worldview instruction and support both teachers and students in your school. Join us for a special workshop introducing BJU Press AI by TrekAi—a groundbreaking AI platform trained on BJU Press materials and built to guide learning through a biblical lens and the Socratic method.
This session will explore how BJU Press AI by TrekAi empowers teachers with time-saving tools like quiz and rubric generators, paper proofreading, and a lesson plan generator, all while providing students with on-demand academic support, review, and personalized learning—without just giving away the answers. School leaders will get a firsthand look at the platform’s capabilities, its faith-aligned design, and how it integrates seamlessly with BJU Press resources.
🕑: 12:05 PM
Lunch
🕑: 01:05 PM
What Kind of Leader Will You Be?
Host: Blair Bryant
Info: (Administrative Breakout Session) In this session we will look at some different leadership styles and develop strategies for becoming and training humble servant leaders.
🕑: 01:05 PM
Sustaining the Motivation of Little Learners
Host: Dr. Julie Madsen
Info: (Early Childhood/Lower El. Breakout Session) Keeping young students consistently engaged and motivated is one of the most joyful and challenging aspects of teaching. This session explores strategies and practical techniques to foster intrinsic motivation in little learners. Participants will gain insights into the developmental needs of early childhood, the role of relationships and environment in sustaining engagement, and how to design meaningful learning experiences that spark curiosity, independence, and persistence.
🕑: 01:05 PM
Magnifying Science as We Observe the World Around Us
Host: Jamie Meachum
Info: (Elem./Middle Breakout Session) What is needed to be a scientist, and can anyone be one? Let’s look at fun ways to help students observe, touch, and discover the world using STEM and the five senses.
🕑: 01:05 PM
4 Attitudes of a Learner
Host: Dr. Rebecca Weier
Info: (General Breakout Session) Zig Ziglar said, “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.” Every year we see students finish high school with stellar grades who struggle to manage their lives on their own when they graduate. Learn the four attitudes that will propel your students to thrive personally, academically, socially, and spiritually.
🕑: 01:05 PM
Teaching English Christianly
Host: Dr. Bryan Smith
Info: (Middle/High School Breakout Session) Can writing, grammar, and literature be taught Christianly? Absolutely—but only if we approach these subjects in the right way. Effective biblical integration in English focuses on Christian worldview shaping. Students learn Christianly as they are taught to see English from a Christian worldview. Learn about effective practices that will enable you to achieve core language arts objectives in a distinctively Christian way.
🕑: 01:05 PM - 02:05 PM
The Thankful Leper: A Model Example of Joy in a Fallen and Broken World
Host: Dwight Nelson
Info: (General/Bible Breakout Session)This session is designed to encourage educators to remain mindful that God is continually at work in every circumstance to fulfill His will. Through biblical examples including Lazarus, Job, and the ten lepers, we will explore how faith and action play a vital role in spiritual restoration and healing. We will also examine the profound ways God may permit pain, suffering, and even death to deepen faith and reveal His glory. This session will emphasize the importance of responding to God’s miracles and His steadfast faithfulness with gratitude and praise. During the session, I will share my own personal testimony of struggling with and overcoming substance abuse. Come be encouraged to trust in God’s redemptive power and be inspired to cultivate hearts that glorify God in every season of life. (Speaker will provide CEU)
🕑: 01:05 PM
Breaking Free from Burnout
Host: Pam Litzenberger
Info: (General Breakout Session) From first-year teachers to veteran teachers, the rate of teacher burnout is rising steadily. Why are teachers feeling exhausted and desiring to leave the profession? How can we as teachers recognize the signs of burnout, and how can we reverse this process? How can administrators help teachers avoid burnout before it happens? This workshop will help both teachers and administrators address and deal with burnout.
🕑: 01:05 PM
Instructional Strategies to Differentiate
Host: Cindy Dickinson
Info: (General Breakout Session) Do you feel like your students sometimes just aren’t getting it? Are you looking for ways to provide differentiated instruction or new ways to present concepts? Instructional strategies are like vehicles that get students from where they are to where they need to be. Learn instructional strategies that can be used to differentiate. Discuss and determine which strategies can meet your students’ needs best. Leave with a list of instructional strategies that you can use in your classroom right away.
🕑: 01:05 PM
If I Don't Teach Bible Class, How Well Do I Really Need to "Know" My Bible?
Host: Dr. Deborah Miller
Info: (General Breakout Session) This session affirms that every Christian educator—regardless of subject area—must cultivate a deep, growing knowledge of Scripture. The Bible forms the foundation of a Christian teacher’s calling, shapes worldview integration, and influences every dimension of teaching, including curriculum design, pedagogy, assessment, and classroom culture. Participants will explore why scriptural fluency is essential for guiding students toward spiritual formation and will receive practical, achievable methods for ongoing biblical study.
🕑: 01:05 PM
From Typing to Transforming: Using Technology to Transform the Learning Experi
Host: Dr. Jenny Copeland
Info: (General Breakout Session) Unlock the potential of technology in your classroom. Move beyond simply replacing traditional methods with digital devices and tools to literally transforming learning using technology. In this workshop, we will unpack the SAMR model—a practical framework that guides educators in integrating technology to enhance and revitalize learning experiences. From simple substitution to redefining tasks in ways previously unimaginable, you’ll discover actionable strategies to create more dynamic, engaging, and interactive lessons. Whether you’re a tech novice or looking to refine your skills, this hands-on, practical workshop will inspire you to level up your teaching with confidence.
🕑: 01:05 PM - 02:05 PM
You’re Not My Friend Anymore
Host: Rachel Cruice
Info: (Upper Elementary Breakout Session) Friendship can feel like everything—or nothing—in the life of an elementary-aged girl. One moment there are giggles and shared secrets, and the next, hurt feelings and broken bonds. In this workshop, we will discuss how we can help our girls navigate the ups and downs of friendships in a way that pleases Christ.
🕑: 02:05 PM
15-Minute Break
🕑: 02:20 PM
Praise & Worship
🕑: 02:25 PM
Characteristics of a Vibrant Christian School
Host: Jeff Keaton
Info: (Keynote Session) Every Christian school hopes to be a place where Christ is central and children are thriving. However, there are many barriers that prevent schools from reaching these lofty goals. In this presentation Jeff will share with you the key characteristics that are necessary for your school to reach a level of vibrancy that will produce the Christian leaders of tomorrow.
🕑: 03:25 PM
Closing Announcements
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 35.00 to USD 45.00
