Standards Institute™ Atlanta

Standards Institute™  ELA sessions focus on the supports and scaffolds that work to address students’ unfinished ELA instruction while maintaining the rigor of grade-level standards and curriculum. Educators will:

• Explore the commitment, knowledge, and skills necessary to use ELA standards, texts, and tasks to provide all students access to grade-level, engaging, affirming, and meaningful — GLEAM — instruction
• Leave with a personal action plan for bringing GLEAM  instruction to life in their ELA classrooms

ELA Grade-Bands: K–5, 6–8, 9–12

Standards Institute™ Math sessions offer participants interactive, hands-on experience planning and implementing grade-level, engaging, affirming, and meaningful — GLEAM — mathematics instruction. Educators will:

• Reflect on math identities and their impact on GLEAM  math instruction
• Deepen their understanding of math instructional shifts (focus, coherence, rigor) to support GLEAM math instruction
• Learn a new approach to address students’ unfinished instruction that supports GLEAM math instruction within their school contexts
• Leave with a personal action plan for bringing GLEAM instruction to life in their math classrooms

Math Grade-Bands: K–5, 6–8, 9–12

In the Instructional Leadership Pathway, leaders build a foundation in the key concepts of ELA and math instruction to develop a deeper understanding of both subject areas. Participants will:

• Consider the key components of planning, instructional delivery, and coaching that lead to grade-level, engaging, affirming, and meaningful — GLEAM — instruction.
• Assess their roles as leaders in advancing effective instruction.
• Leave with an Instructional Vision tool, an Observation and Feedback tool, and an action plan to effectively lead GLEAM instruction in their schools.

Pathway Grade Bands: K–5, 6–8, 9–12

In the Organizational Leadership Pathway, leaders grow their organizational leadership prowess and learn to create the conditions for effective instruction by reshaping the policies and systems they lead. Participants will:

• Examine barriers to effective instruction and develop a plan to better align time, people, and resources for educational impact.
• Learn how to grow the collective efficacy and impact of educational leadership teams.
• Leave with the tools and skills necessary to create and lead more responsive, connected, and effective school systems that sustain effective instruction in every single classroom.

Pathway Role Bands: Principals and Assistant Principals K–5, Principals and Assistant Principals 6–12, District Leaders K–12

This pathway offers educators a strong foundation in standards-aligned and evidence-informed reading practices rooted in the science of reading. Educators will:

• Dive into the research on reading instruction and connect research to practice
• Develop high-leverage instructional practices (educational practices that can improve outcomes for every learner, like designing lessons in service of a goal, promoting active student engagement, collecting and assessing data, and more)
• Deliver standards-aligned and evidence-informed reading instruction

Elementary Reading Academy Grade-Bands: K–6

Participants in the Leadership for Literacy pathway will develop a foundational understanding of the science of reading and learn how to transform their instructional practices to accelerate student literacy. Leaders will:

• Learn practical knowledge about the science of reading and how to implement it across systems
• Develop tools, skills and processes for assessing school-wide literacy programs
• Identify leadership actions that help build professional capacity and introduce new opportunities for students to become successful readers and communicators

Leadership for Literacy Grade-Bands: K–5

The Achievement Network sessions support school leaders in building a draft research-based, balanced assessment plan. Participants discover strategies to decrease the time spent testing students while increasing instructional time and providing improved outcomes for all students. School leaders will:

• Learn a research-based framework for classifying assessments and how they can create a balanced assessment landscape within their school.
• Explore the current state of assessments and teacher data used to craft a draft school-wide vision for the future of effective assessments.
• Leave with a plan to gather teacher input and carry out a balanced assessment strategy with a team of teachers and leaders in the school.

School Leadership Grade-Band: K–12

The Achievement Network sessions support district and system leaders in building a draft research-based, balanced district-wide assessment plan. Participants discover how to empower educators and school leaders to increase instructional time and data usage while decreasing the time spent testing districtwide, leading to better outcomes for students in schools. District leaders will:

• Learn a research-based framework for classifying assessments and how it can create a balanced assessment landscape across the district.
• Explore strategies to empower your educators throughout the creation of your district-wide assessment plan and how to build capacity around data gathering and analysis.
• Leave with a plan to gather input from various stakeholders, invest in schools, and carry out a balanced assessment strategy across the district with a cross-functional team of leaders.

District Leadership Grade-Band: K–12

The Standards Institute will be held at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, located at 265 Peachtree Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30303.

Standards Institute will last four full days, starting Monday, July 21, and ending Thursday, July 24.  Participants are expected to arrive on Sunday, July 20.

Please contact us at the following email: SupportDesk@UnboundEd.org.

Please see the agenda tab for the Standards Institute Atlanta 2025 schedule.

Yes. Participation Certificates are sent to the email address provided during registration within three weeks after attending the Standards Institute. It will include the pathway and session attended as well as the total hours completed. Please note that Participation Certificates are only provided to those participants who attend all four days of the event. We do not provide CEUs or other credits.

We will have several keynote speakers. You can see who our Keynote Speakers will be on the About tab above.

Yes. Please stop by our Registration Check-in at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta  registration area to get your badge and pick up your UnboundEd Swag.

Sunday, July 20: 3:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Monday, July 21: 7:00 a.m. –  5:00 p.m.

Tuesday, July 22: 7:00a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

We will have several special events throughout the duration of the event. Please refer to the Special Events tab for more details.

Participants are required to attend all four days of the event in the same Pathway and grade band they registered for.  Those attending all four days will receive a participation certificate.

• ELA: K–5, 6–8, 9–12
• Leadership: K–5, 6–8, 9–12
• Math: K–5, 6–8, 9–12
• Science: K–5, 6–8, 9–12
• UnboundEd Planning Process (UPP): K–5, 6–12
• Multilingual Learners (MLs): K–5, 6–12
• CORE Learning: Elementary Reading Academy: K–6
• CORE Learning: Leadership for Literacy: K–5
• Achievement Network (ANet): Empowering Teachers Through Assessments
• Achievement Network (ANet): Assessment Planning for Districts

For more information about the pathways, see the Pathways tab.

Yes, school districts/organizations attending Standards Institute will have ample opportunities to meet daily for Team Time (at the end of each day).  Your team will be able to reflect on the overall learning from the event, discuss implications, and determine the priority actions to take when you return to your school district or network. You will find the assigned location where your team can meet in the UnboundEd app.

Our pathways content has been updated to focus on equitable instructional practices and examining bias focused on planning toward grade-level engaging, affirming, and meaningful (GLEAM™) instruction.  If you are attending again, we recommend taking the UnboundEd Planning Process™ pathway, which introduces participants to a set of powerful practices for bringing GLEAM™ instruction to life in ELA and math classrooms.  Please note: these pathways are geared toward teachers, so if you are a coach or leader, please come with your “teacher lens” during the learning.

Unfortunately, there was not enough interest in the Level 2 pathways in the past, so we were unable to continue them for 2025.

We do have pathways centered around “the how” of putting the learning into action. This is the UnboundEd Planning Process™ or UPP pathway.  We encourage returning participants or anyone interested in putting the work into action to attend these sessions.  You can find more information on the Pathways tab above.

Standards Institute is an immersive and transformative four-day in-person learning experience appropriate for teachers, coaches, and leaders. This highly interactive experience focuses on the mindsets, planning, and instructional actions required for implementing grade-level, engaging, affirming, and meaningful (GLEAM™) instruction. They will identify specific mindsets and practices that embody GLEAM instruction for their chosen pathway. Throughout the sessions, participants will reflect on and commit to specific action steps aligned with GLEAM instruction in their chosen pathway. Participants leave Standards Institute with a repertoire of practical strategies and a personal action plan for bringing GLEAM instruction to life.  You can find more information on the Pathways tab above.

Registration for Standards Institute is $2,100.00 per participant.

The Standards Institute price includes attendance to the pathway session for the duration of the event (four days), lunch for all four days, access to special events and keynotes, snacks, and materials. Breakfast and dinner are not included, nor are airfare and expenses.

We accept all major credit cards or purchase orders for payment.

Yes, there is. Please contact support at  supportdesk@unbounded.org for additional information.

Refunds will be provided if cancellations are made by June 15, 2025.   Modifications may be made online until July 5, 2025. Registrations can be transferred to another person at your organization until July 5, 2025. After July 5, 2025, please contact support at SupportDesk@UnboundEd.org.

We provide lunch and snacks to participants during the event. Breakfast and dinner are not included.

The hotel for participants to stay at while attending the Atlanta Standards Institute is the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. Please see the Location tab at the top of the page for more details. Participants are eligible to receive a discounted rate when booking through the link available on the Location tab.

We do not provide transportation from the Atlanta Hartsfield – Jackson Airport to the Hyatt Regency.

We encourage participants to use public transportation when available. Participants can use MARTA trains from the airport (Gold or Red line) to Peachtree Center. The station is located 2 blocks from the hotel.

Yes, parking is available for a fee.

Valet Parking:

Valet parking is available in a protected underground garage. This includes 24-hour access to your vehicle with in/out privileges. Vehicles are picked up in the motor lobby, located on level LL3 of the atrium tower. Parking may be limited due to high demand.

Self-Parking:

Although there is no official hotel self-parking, Hyatt guests may elect to self-park at designated off-property locations and enjoy discounted rates with no in/out privileges. As events in the city warrant, parking costs at non-Hyatt facilities are subject to change without notice. We do not recommend parking in any open, unsecured lots.

Yes, we will have ADA accommodations available at the event.  We will also have a Mother’s room, a prayer room, and wheelchair access.  Please make sure to include specific needs when you complete your registration.

Yes, gender-neutral bathrooms are available at the venue, which will be clearly labeled. If you have any questions regarding the location of the gender-neutral bathrooms, please stop by the Help desk upon arrival at the event.

You can register for the Atlanta Standards Institute via the Register Now button until July 5, 2025

Register

Click on the Already Registered link here. From there, you can modify your registration until July 5. We cannot accommodate changes when you arrive at Standards Institute. If you experience any issues with updating your registration, please contact SupportDesk@UnboundEd.org.

Standards Institute Participants are placed in sessions randomly to learn from one another. Changing sessions at the Standards Institute will not be allowed.

Please indicate any dietary restrictions when you register. If you have additional questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at SupportDesk@unbounded.org.

Lunch will be served buffet style on Monday through Thursday.

We will provide lunch and snacks, including beverages. Breakfast and dinner are not provided.

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Event Hashtag: #StandardsInstitute