Meet The Team
Dr. Gravity Goldberg
Director & Literacy Consultant
Gravity Goldberg is an educational consultant, author and founder of Gravity Goldberg, LLC. Gravity supports school districts across the country. Her work ranges from demonstrating lessons and leading workshops to working with administrators developing curriculum and customizing professional development programs. She works in classrooms from pre-kindergarten through college and in a variety of settings, both urban and suburban.​​​​
Gravity is the author of nine books on teaching including her latest release, Active Learning: 40 Teaching Methods to Engage Students in Every Class and Every Subject (Corwin, 2023) co-written with Barry Gilmore. Her book Mindsets & Moves (Corwin Literacy, 2015) put her on the world stage with its practical ways to cultivate student agency, leading to speaking engagements and foreign translations of her work.
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​Dr. Goldberg has almost 25 years of teaching experience, including positions as a science teacher, reading specialist, third grade teacher, special educator, literacy coach, staff developer, assistant professor, educational consultant, and yoga teacher. Gravity holds a B.A. and M.Ed. from Boston College and a doctorate from Teachers College. As the founding director of Gravity Goldberg, LLC she leads a team that offers side-by-side coaching and workshops that focus on teachers as decision-makers and student-led instruction. She is currently a visiting assistant professor at Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
Brianne Annitti
Literacy Consultant
Brianne Annitti is an enthusiastic educator who is passionate about her love for literacy. With a strong philosophy that we all learn together, she accentuates her positive mindset to continue to grow professionally alongside other educators . For over a decade, Brianne has worked as both an elementary teacher and literacy coach in Ramsey, NJ, where she helped support educators with different literacy based practices. Brianne has knowledge and experience in writing curriculum, being a staff developer, and fostering student & teacher independence while offering choice.
Brianne holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education and Psychology, as well as a Master of Arts in Education from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Brianne continues to evolve as a learner by taking additional graduate literacy courses, attending Columbia Teachers College workshops, and working with educators and consultants to research, collaborate, and study new theories in a classroom setting.
Dana Clark
Literacy Consultant
Dana Clark is a literacy staff developer and co-author of Read-Alouds With Heart: Literacy Lessons That Build Community, Comprehension, and Cultural Competency. With over twenty-two years of experience as a former teacher and literacy coach, Dana dedicates herself to supporting K-12 educators in implementing cutting-edge literacy practices. She is a sought-after presenter at esteemed national and local conferences including NYSRA, NCTE, Reading For The Love Of It, WSRA, LitCon, and Q10 Equity in Education.
Dana earned her BS in Education from Salve Regina University, followed by a master’s degree and certification as a reading specialist from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2004. In 2019, she furthered her education with a degree in Educational Leadership from Montclair State University. As an educator, Dana finds fulfillment in collaborating with teachers as they foster inclusive communities where students thrive in purposeful and joyful learning environments.
Erin Donelson
Literacy Consultant
Erin Donelson is a literacy consultant from Los Angeles, CA. For nearly a decade, she has been supporting educators, nationally and internationally, in their classrooms with literacy instruction and curriculum development. She has also been a teacher and literacy coach in the Washington, DC and Los Angeles areas. Erin has a master’s degree from The George Washington University. In her spare time, you will find her surfing up and down the California coast.
Jigisha Vyas
Literacy Advisor
Jigisha Vyas is a university professor, instructional coach, a certified mindful educator, and co-author of Read-Alouds with Heart: Literacy Lessons that Build Community, Comprehension, and Cultural Competence (Scholastic 2023). Having over a decade of experience, she has worked with a variety of communities and with all different age groups, and has leadership in both special and general education.
Jigisha is also a certified yoga instructor and teaches yoga and meditation to all age groups. She finds passion in the work of building student voice and student agency, while actively leading and promoting equity and anti-bias teaching in education. In her free time, Jigisha enjoys traveling, hiking, and spending time with friends and family.
Dr. Heather Frank
Literacy Consultant
A former elementary school teacher with 15 years experience in the Glen Rock Public Schools, Heather Frank brings to the team a passion for working collaboratively with teachers and other educators. She has extensive experience in writing curriculum, school and district level leadership, and staff development work focused on improving literacy-based instructional practices. Heather holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Gettysburg College and a Masters in the Art of Teaching in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from Montclair State University, where she has also served as an adjunct professor. She is certified as a Teacher of Preschool Through Grade Three, in Elementary Education, and as a Supervisor.
Heather earned a doctorate in the Teacher Education and Teacher Development PhD program at Montclair State University. Her research interests, including teacher leadership, professional learning, and literacy, inform her work with teachers and students. If pressed to say what most defines her as an educator, she says it's her curiosity about—and commitment to—supporting students throughout the learning process as they move towards independence. You can follow her on Twitter @HeatherAFrank.
Renee Houser​​
Literacy Consultant
Renee Houser is a literacy consultant and co-author of the What Do I Teach Readers Tomorrow series of teacher resource books. Previously, Renee taught in the New York City public school system, worked as a staff developer at the Reading and Writing Project and as an adjunct professor at Teacher’s College, both at Columbia University, and co-founded Growing Educators, a literacy consulting company in Los Angeles, CA. Now living in North Carolina, Renee has started a new literacy consulting practice and is excited to launch her next project, The Teacher’s Toolkit for Independent Reading in collaboration with long time friend and colleague, Gravity Goldberg. She holds master’s degrees from both Old Dominion University and Fordham University and is currently studying the Reggio Emila approach to early childhood through the University of California Los Angeles.
Lily Howard Scott
Literacy Consultant
Lily Howard Scott is an educator who is deeply committed to weaving social and emotional learning (SEL) throughout all areas of literacy curricula. She received her MS.Ed in Teaching Literacy and Childhood General Education from Bank Street College of Education, where she now teaches in the Continuing Professional Studies department. For nearly 10 years, Lily taught elementary school in both private and public settings, and at heart she’ll always identify as a third grade teacher.
Lily believes that social, emotional, and academic learning are inextricably linked: students who feel uniquely known and valued at school are able to take the risks that inspire meaningful learning. She has led professional development for educators around the country on topics including cultivating emotional literacy through reading and writing instruction, normalizing vulnerability in the classroom, and helping children identify and celebrate their unique strengths. She was a featured speaker at the 2019 Collaborative for Social, Emotional, and Academic Learning (CASEL) SEL Exchange, and her writing about the importance of a flexible, child-centered approach to teaching and learning has been published in The Washington Post.
Jaime Margolies
Literacy Consultant
Jaime Margolies began supporting colleagues while working at a Blue Ribbon honored school, attended leadership groups at Columbia Teachers College, and working with colleagues to grow their literacy practice. She transitioned into her work as a literacy consultant which allowed her to impact teachers and students beyond her school. Jaime is the co-author of two books published by Scholastic: The Complete Year in Reading and Writing: Grade 1 and The Great Eight Management Strategies for the Reading and Writing Classroom. Jaime supports teachers at all levels to implement best practices in literacy through a balanced approach. Teachers experience success as they are coached in a gradual release model where labsites and one-on-one coaching support learning.
As a graduate of Bank Street College with a Masters Degree in Special Education, Jaime specializes in supporting all learners. She supports teachers in understanding and recognizing the importance of setting up systems towards independence for all learners. Jaime also works to support co-teaching models and Tier I and Tier II interventions. She works in both inclusive schools and special education schools. Her work with teachers, principals, literacy coaches, paras/assistant teachers and parents helps to create schools and communities where all students are successful.
Georgie Marley
Literacy Consultant
Georgie Marley is a graduate of The Australian National University and the University of Sydney, Georgie brings significant international experience to her literacy consulting. She taught in Australia, England and Hungary before moving to the US with her family. Georgie has extensive experience working as both a classroom teacher and a special needs teacher ensuring that differentiation is a normal element of her literacy practice.
In her role as a literacy consultant, Georgie leads workshops and lesson study on all aspects of the teaching of reading and writing including reading and writing workshop, small group instruction, independent reading, and conferring. She specializes in book curation, curriculum development, creating new and innovative units of study for all grades as well as working with new and experienced teachers to better their practice in all aspects of literacy. Georgie is also co-author of the book Homework Pages for Independent Reading from Scholastic.
Julie McAuley
Director of Operations
Julie studied at Pace University, graduating with her BBA in Marketing, specialty in advertising and promotion, along with an art minor. Prior to entering the world of education, Julie worked in the graphic design industry as a print production director. Her creative sense and business background make her an excellent balance to our literacy team.
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Julie lives in New Jersey with her husband and two sons.
