St. Andrew's Conference - Unlocking Learning: The Advantage of Accessibility

“Designing With, Not For” 
Led by Keynote Speaker Antonio Viva, Partner at Leadership+Design

In this interactive session, participants will apply human-centered design principles to a real lesson, practice, or student experience they want to redesign. Using a simple prototyping framework, attendees will work collaboratively to refine their ideas, gather feedback, and leave with tangible next steps for implementation. Whether you’re rethinking a unit, a school tradition, or a student support system, this session is about designing with your students in mind—and often, in partnership with them.

Recommended for: TK–12 educators, deans, advisors, and student life professionals interested in reimagining classroom learning, advisory programs, or student experiences through a human-centered design lens.

About the Presenter

Antonio Viva is a Partner at Leadership+Design. He is a seasoned educator, experience designer, strategic advisor and non-profit leader. Previously, he served as the Executive Director of Artisans Asylum, one of the oldest and largest makerspaces in the United States. Prior to his role at Artisans, Antonio spent 12 years as the Head of School at Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, MA. During his tenure, he designed and led transformative programs such as The Boston Ballet School Professional Division at Walnut Hill. He also served as Senior Research and Design Associate for Education Development Center, Inc. where he worked on a national school design project for the US Department of Education. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Union College in English and Teaching respectively.

A sought-after speaker and facilitator, Antonio is most curious about areas including creativity, design, futurist thinking, culture and leadership as a personal practice. He has been featured by numerous national and regional independent school associations across the United States. He resides in the Boston suburbs with his family and two cats and maintains his personal studio on Cape Cod.

“Empowering Every Learner: Advancing Accessibility in High School Mathematics through Inquiry-Based Practices”
Led by SAS Upper School Learning Support Faculty Betsy Auliso

Transform your math classroom into a space where every student can thrive. This interactive workshop explores how combining inquiry-based learning and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles can enhance accessibility, elevate student voice, and foster deeper mathematical understanding for all learners. Participants will engage with practical tools—like open-ended routines, choice boards, and student-created rubrics—that empower all learners, including those with learning differences. Walk away with a digital toolbox of ready-to-use strategies to implement immediately in your math classroom, making it more inclusive, engaging, and student centered.

Recommended for: Middle and high school educators, instructional coaches, and special education teachers seeking to implement accessible, inquiry-driven practices that foster student voice, agency, and equity. This session is also well-suited for administrators, consultants, and education leaders interested in deepening their understanding of how inquiry-based approaches can advance accessibility and inclusion in secondary mathematics.

About the Presenter

Betsy Aulisio has more than two decades of experience in both public and independent school settings, and she continues to share innovative teaching strategies as a member of St. Andrew’s School Learning Support faculty. Known for her infectious enthusiasm and joyful approach, Betsy has a unique talent for making mathematics engaging and accessible to all students. A graduate of Hamilton College with a Master’s in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, Betsy has dedicated her career to fostering a positive, engaging, and inclusive educational environment. Her approach emphasizes active learning, collaboration, and the belief that every student can excel in mathematics through supportive and dynamic instruction.

“Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment: An Occupational Therapy Lens on Sensory Regulation and Executive Functioning”
Led by SAS Occupational Therapist Amanda Barnes

Experience Universal Design for Learning firsthand in a session that blends occupational therapy, sensory supports, and executive functioning strategies into a fully immersive professional learning experience. Grounded in reflective practice and real examples from St. Andrew’s, this session will equip attendees with creative, practical tools to support diverse learners—and themselves! Participants will leave inspired to reimagine their classroom environments, better understand their own sensory needs, and implement inclusive strategies that truly benefit students.

Recommended for: Any teacher or staff who work with diverse learners (including, but not limited to students with learning differences, sensory processing difficulties and executive dysfunction) and who want insight on how to create a more inclusive environment that addresses specific struggles that students face related to sensory regulation and executive functioning.

About the Presenter

Amanda Barnes is a registered and licensed Occupational Therapist. She has a Master’s degree in occupational therapy and a Bachelor’s degree in psychology, and she has been a practicing occupational therapist for three years. Amanda began her career in early intervention, then worked at a K–12 special education school, and she has now been a member of the St. Andrew’s faculty for 1 year! In addition to her OT roles, she also worked as a specialized instructional assistant in an elementary school and as a home-based registered behavior technician (RBT) in ABA therapy. Amanda's experience with children of all ages and a wide range of needs—from infancy through high school—allows her to support students by building on their strengths and addressing barriers to learning, both in and outside the classroom.

“How Do We Make Inquiry Work for Students at Any Language Level?”
Led by Spanish Faculty Nadya Rivera

Inquiry is meant to center student voice—but what happens when students are still developing fluency in the language of instruction? In this interactive session, we’ll explore how to design meaningful inquiry experiences that empower all learners to ask questions, investigate, and express understanding—no matter their language level. Using identity-driven tasks, visual scaffolds, multilingual tools, and ethically applied AI, participants will leave with adaptable strategies and a mindset shift: inquiry doesn’t wait for fluency—it invites it.

Recommended for: Middle and upper school educators, language and content teachers, and curriculum designers seeking to create more inclusive, multilingual inquiry practices in diverse classrooms.

About the Presenter

Nadya Rivera is an educator and global consultant passionate about innovation, inclusion, and intercultural learning. With master’s degrees in Innovation, Technology & Education and International Business, she has led international programs as a Global Education & Innovation Coordinator, World Language Teacher, and College Counselor. A finalist for the Cambridge “Dedicated Teacher Award” (2021), Nadya inspires educators worldwide to integrate creativity, technology, and global citizenship to build more inclusive and connected classrooms.

“Access Through Inquiry: Making Space for Reflection in Place-Based Learning”
Led by SAS Coordinator of Experiential Learning Amy Tinagero

What turns a field trip into a transformative learning experience? This interactive session explores how inquiry, reflection, and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) can help deepen student engagement and impact through place-based learning. Whether local or global, travel programs and field trips become more impactful when they invite all students to connect with a place, ask big questions, and reflect on what they learn before, during, and after the experience.

Recommended for: Chaperones and teachers leading field trips or study abroad programs, and administrators looking to deepen the educational impact of travel and field-based learning through inclusive, inquiry-driven engagement.

“Passion, Purpose, and Personalization: Centering Inquiry through UDL in Student Projects” 
Led by SAS Middle School Learning Support Faculty Sara Viveiros

This session explores how Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and the International Baccalaureate (IB) framework work to create inclusive, engaging learning environments. Participants will examine two student-driven inquiry models: the Grade 10 IB Personal Project and the Grade 8 Passion Project. Through real examples and collaborative discussion, attendees will have the opportunity to reflect on these approaches and begin planning how to integrate UDL principles and inquiry-based learning into their own classrooms. This session is about blending voice, choice, and structure so that every student, regardless of ability, learning style, or confidence level, can succeed.

Recommended for: Middle and upper school educators.

About the Presenter

Sara Viveiros is a middle school Humanities and Learning Services teacher at St. Andrew’s, where she also coordinates the Personal Project. She joined the school in 2021 after working as an elementary educator in the Canadian public school system. She holds a Master’s in Education for Change from Lakehead University and recently completed a Master’s in School Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania (2024).