Sarah Merkt

(she/her)

PROGRAM & CURRICULUM DIRECTOR

 

During my six years working in International Schools without gifted programs, I came across many gifted students who had not yet been recognized as gifted. They were often identified by their weaknesses rather than their strengths, and the support they received was remedial and limited only to improving easily identifiable skills, such as handwriting or executive function skills. After moving back to America and working in a school for gifted learners, I could see the significant difference and the vital importance of identifying gifted learners early in their lives and pairing them with educators who cultivated the environment and designed curriculum to support and challenge these often misunderstood children. As time continued, I knew that I wanted my impact to reach more gifted students, both locally and globally, and I was thrilled to find Cresconova, a company with a mission to do just that. I am looking forward to connecting with families and students and helping to guide them on their path to a transformative educational experience that recognizes and celebrates their unique gifts, while supporting their growth areas. Cresconova is a home for these learners.

EDUCATION

Middle Childhood Education (BA), Xavier University 2013, Dean’s List, Gold X-Key Award

100 Scholars Program, University of California-Berkeley 2019 Georgia Scholarship, 2005

 

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

Conference Presentations

Innovative Learning Conference, The Nueva School 2018

  • “Inspired Learning and the Future of Elementary Education,” 2023
  • “The Monomyth Module: Developing an Interdisciplinary Year-long Curriculum,” 2019
Conference Attendance and Curricular Training
  • SXSW Education Conference 2022 & 2023
  • White Privilege Conference 2021
  • Design Thinking Institute, The Nueva School 2020
  • Stanford Dyslexia Conference 2019
  • Anti-Bias Training, The Nueva School 2019
  • Structured Word Inquiry (SWI) Conference, The Nueva School 2019
  • Junior Great Books, 2018
  • Equity & Inclusion Conference, The Nueva School 2018
  • 21st Century Learning Conference, Hong Kong 2017
  • Thinking Map Foundation Training, Shanghai 2016
  • Baldrige Foundation Training: Jim Shipley, Shanghai 2016
  • Project-Based Learning: The Buck Institute, Shanghai 2015
  • Singapore Math Training, Shanghai 2015
  • Inquiry Teaching Training: Kath Murdoch, New Zealand 2013
  • Lucy Calkins, Writer’s & Reader’s Workshop Training 2012
 

RELATED WORK EXPERIENCE

Lead Teacher and Leadership Team Member

THE NUEVA SCHOOL, AUGUST 2018-JUNE 2022

At Nueva, I taught gifted students in my 4th Grade Humanities classroom for four years. In addition to leading the 4th Grade Team, I was selected as a member of the Lower School Curriculum Development and Literacy Team, the Lower School Leadership Team, and the K-12 Wellness Team based on my leadership potential.

Curriculum Researcher and Designer

JOINT US-CHINA CONSORTIUM ON CLEAN ENERGY (JUCCCE), MARCH 2016-JULY 2018

I researched and developed curriculum for China’s first healthy initiative program created for children ages 5-9. I designed lesson plans to serve both seasoned and new teachers, as well as created and piloted a teacher training program-accessible online and in-person. I collaborated to gamify my curriculum with a team from Octalysis, and our program has been used to teach nutrition to over 1 million children and is available in both Mandarin and English.

Lead Teacher

SHANGHAI AMERICAN SCHOOL, SMIC-INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, FRIMLEY PRIMARY SCHOOL, AUGUST 2013-JULY 2018

In Shanghai, I taught at two schools: 4th Grade at Shanghai American School and 3rd Grade at SMIC-International School. I was an important collaborator on my respective teams and used these initial years in my practice to seek feedback and iterate on my pedagogy to become a stronger teacher. I also completed my student teaching in New Zealand at Frimley Primary School in a 4th Grade classroom.

Program Manager and Experiential Educator

CAMP MANITO-WISH YMCA AUGUST 2009-AUGUST 2013

In the summers off during college, I worked leading wilderness education trips that lasted for 2-45 days for students ages 10-17. In my final summer, I served as the Wilderness Program Manager, overseeing the staff, participants, and logistics for over 20 extended wilderness trips in America & Canada.

EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY:

Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel." -Socrates

This quote encapsulates many of my beliefs about the power of education. I lead with joy and create transformational learning opportunities through my intentional design of student-centered curriculum. I want my students to approach all subjects with curiosity, and begin to see how everything is connected-not one subject exists in a vacuum. I aim to leave students with more questions than answers, so they internalize that learning is an ever-growing and cyclical process. There is always more joy and wisdom to unearth.