Willisa Davis

Willisa holds a Masters degree in Education and a bachelor's degree in Business Management. In her nearly 10-year career in education, Willisa has served in many roles. She began her career as an educator as a Teacher's Aide offering support to diverse learners in special education. Within a year, Willisa moved into the role of Assistant Dean.  In this position, her passion for equity in behavior policy was created. In response to SB100, Willisa and her team worked to develop a restorative justice-based program to reduce student suspensions and aid teachers in classroom management.

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Willisa's ability to connect to the students was recognized and awarded the additional role of student mentor. As the students shared more concerns with her, Willisa was led to the classroom where she taught Science, History, and many life lessons. She instilled in her students the importance of building connections, integrity in communication, and strategies toward effective communication.

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During her time in the classroom, Willisa served as the teacher ambassador for a program that aided in training teachers to affirm and validate the ways students' cultural linguistics in the development of behavioral expectations. As a teacher leader, Willisa helped advocate for the implementation of the MTSS

 process and aided in the development of 504 and IEP plans for diverse learners.

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One of Willisa's most rewarding accomplishments is MISUNDERSTOODTDM LLC services. It is a small corporation that she created with her son focused on the understanding that mental health is often misunderstood.  The idea began with buying belts for the boys who often came to school without wearing belts. The school's policy was to use zip ties and she was uncomfortable with the look or signal that it sent to the students. This culture change is exactly what MISUNDERSTOODTDM LLC  youth services stands for. It started with a belt yet, the goal is to teach the youth to remember to always PULL someone UP with the knowledge that they gained. 

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While Willisa began with a belt, she did not stop by simply connecting with the students. Her experiences taught her to be a more empathetic listener. She supported the staff through behavior initiatives, curriculum development, classroom management, and relationship building. As the Vice President of the Teacher's Union, Willisa supported teachers in disputes regarding labor and student discipline concerns. Recognizing that many teachers at other schools were struggling with the same concerns, Willisa and her team have developed a series of Professional Development topics to provide language and training to school districts. 

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