Lynn Thompson
Education Director
Lift Orlando
Lynn Thompson serves as the Education Director for Lift Orlando and brings 38 years of experience in K–8 education, including roles as a teacher, resource teacher, assistant principal, and principal. Her work is shaped by years of leading and supporting schools through real‑world challenges and opportunities for growth.
Lynn believes that effective school redesign starts with listening to students, educators, and communities—and building schools around what learners truly need to succeed. She focuses on creating strong, collaborative environments where teachers feel supported and empowered to improve practice and rethink the student experience.
Throughout her career, Lynn has helped schools strengthen the conditions that make change possible, including trust, shared leadership, and ongoing professional learning. She approaches school redesign as an ongoing journey one that requires reflection, collaboration, and a willingness to test and refine new ideas over time.
In her role at Lift Orlando, Lynn works alongside school leaders and community partners to advance equity-focused, sustainable school redesign. She brings a practical, hopeful perspective to conversations about how schools can evolve to better serve all students.
10:15 am - 11:30 am ET
Community of Practice Workshops I-VI: Small Group Breakouts @ 2nd Floor
Reimagining K–12 School Partnerships: Bold Innovations That Drive Student Success
Room: Grand 7
This workshop will showcase three innovative partnerships with local schools designed to improve student outcomes across the cradle-to-college journey. Cherry Hill Strong will share how they established a dedicated, school-based role to ensure strong strategic implementation at the campus level. Lift Orlando will discuss how they collaborated with their district to launch a comprehensive school redesign initiative aimed at driving long-term student success. A team from Drew Charter School will present a recent case study around the approach and impact of their college and career office.
Participants will have time to speak in small groups conversations for honest, practical discussion about implementation, partnerships, and lessons learned.
11:00 am - 12:30 am ET
Workshops I-VI: Block II
Reimagining the Community Quarterback Organization in Education: A Partnership Model for School Redesign
Room: Grand 6
This session will showcase Lift Orlando’s journey into school governance and its partnership with Transcend Education to develop a community-driven school redesign at Orange Center Elementary School. As part of the session, we will share the value of a school redesign project, the Community Quarterback Organization’s role in launching it, and evidence of the early planning stages of this specific project. We hope that participants leave this session asking, “What steps should we take to partner with our local schools at this level?”
