Mark Merrell has 25 years of experience in public education. As the principal of James Madison High School in Fairfax County, Virginia, Mark introduced the ideas of the professional learning community process six years ago. His work transforming staff knowledge of the PLC process, as well as his experience sustaining the PLCs, has provided consistent school improvement as reflected through improved student achievement. Most recently, Mark has been involved with using PLC teams and professional literacy to review and revise assessment practices to leverage student achievement. Mark has been a presenter at multiple national conferences, including the NASSP and ASCD, and has worked extensively with administrators and teachers in Fairfax County Public Schools on topics such as sustaining PLCs, developing formative assessments, and analyzing assessment data. Mark has the expertise to facilitate workshops on introducing and sustaining PLCs, as well as how to find time in the school day for teachers to collaborate. Mark is committed to making every workshop or presentation practical and useful by employing real-world success stories and by translating the theoretical to the practical.