Karen Cordell is an Educational Services Consultant with CORE. Growing up in rural Mississippi, she credits her grandmother for nurturing her love of mathematics. Ms. Cordell obtained her bachelor’s degree in mathematics education from Mississippi State University and began her teaching career at a small high school in the Mississippi Delta. She later moved to New Jersey and continued teaching in high school, later transitioning to middle school. During her 30 years of classroom teaching, Ms. Cordell taught grades 6 – 12, basic skills through Pre-Calculus. She earned her master’s degree in Educational Leadership from The College of New Jersey. Her thesis and research focus were on effective practices that promote reflective practitioners. Through her research and own implementation of such practices in her classes, she saw a transformation amongst her students – students seeking understanding and ownership of their learning, students engaged in and talking about mathematics.

Ms. Cordell’s belief that all students deserve equitable access to rigorous curriculum and exceptional teachers led her to coaching/consulting work nationwide. Whether providing meaningful, impactful learning experiences to entire teams or partnering with individual teachers to build rapport, trust, and buy-in, Ms. Cordell contends that lasting change starts with a growth mindset. Empowering teachers with ongoing support, focused on highly effective teaching practices and timely/relevant learning experiences, is critical to improving mathematics instruction and promoting greater student success.

A few areas of teacher/leader support and professional development provided by Ms. Cordell include building content knowledge, curriculum pacing and standards alignment, checking student understanding and providing actionable feedback, adapting lessons to further enhance the rigor and cultural responsiveness, and data analysis to guide practice. Ms. Cordell maintains her commitment to and passion for the teaching and learning of mathematics, partnering with educational leaders and teachers to tackle current challenges facing educators nationwide.

Ms. Cordell holds Secondary Mathematics Certifications in the states of New Jersey and Florida and is a member of NCTM. She and her husband reside in Tennessee part of the year and Florida for the rest.