Meet the Team

Amy Pinney

Email: amy@maxteaching.com

"Professional Development Presenter,  Instructional Leader, Master Teacher, Innovator, Mentor Consultant, Teacher of the Year, Benchmark Assessment Author, Evaluator, Collaborator"

Professional Profile:

  • Accomplished career demonstrating consistent success as an educator at the elementary and middle school levels resulting in an outstanding record in student achievement
  • Extensive background in developing and implementing building and district professional development on instructional strategies and best practices in urban, suburban, and rural settings in grades Pre-K through 12 across all subject areas
  • Effective communicator with the ability to lead, establish goals, and attain results within the classroom, building, and district level • Established as an educational leader with excellent planning and organizational skills to enhance 21st century learning for teachers and students
  • Responsible for creating and developing district-wide (Pre-K-12) curricular program focusing on content literacy standards to improve student achievement 

Middle School Language Arts Educator, Willetts Middle School, Brunswick, OH, 2010 to 2011
Taught Language Arts to 120 students, incorporated research-based literacy strategies into daily instruction, integrated Social Studies content with ELA standards, and was chosen to facilitate the Building Leadership Team 

Elementary Educator, Crestview Elementary School, Brunswick, OH, 1997 to 2010
Taught self-contained classrooms for grades one, three, and four; promoted and maintained one of two Multi-Age programs in the district, developed and incorporated Language Arts theme-based independent learning program, piloted and incorporated Standards-Based teaching and grading into teaching practices, and was selected as the Intermediate Grade Span Coordinator responsible for school-wide professional development

Intermediate Grade Span Coordinator, Crestview Elementary, Brunswick City Schools, 2006-2009
Responsible for creating professional development for grades K-5 across all content areas according to building needs and focusing on the incorporation of researched-based teaching strategies to enhance student achievement and engagement; monitored use of best practices by creating teacher data folders to analyze student achievement and engagement using state testing data as part of analysis meetings 

  • Network Regional Leader for Math, Ohio Department of Education, 2014-2015  
  • Network Regional Leader for ELA, Ohio Department of Education, 2013-2014
  • District Leadership Team, Brunswick City Schools, 2011 to 2013
  • Building Leadership Team, Willetts Middle School, 2010 to 2013
  • District Professional Development Presenter, Brunswick City Schools, 2005 to 2013  
  • District Response to Intervention Team, Brunswick City Schools, 2012  
  • District “Differentiation Train the Trainer,” Brunswick City Schools, 2010 to 2011
  • District Motivation Team, Brunswick City Schools, 2006 

Educational Consultant, Cuyahoga Educational Service Center, Independence, OH, 2013-Present

  • Created and provided professional development workshops for educators across multiple counties focusing on effective literacy strategies, formative assessment, curriculum mapping, common assessment design, and infrastructure management
  • Lead and coached District Leadership Teams (DLT), Building Leadership Teams (BLT), and Teacher Based Teams (TBT) designed around best practices in instruction to develop collaboration amongst grade-level and grade-span teams
  • Used data-management systems in various districts to make instructional decisions to ensure student achievement and engagement
  • Modeled lessons incorporating highly engaging, research-based strategies in a variety of urban, suburban, and charter schools to increase student achievement
  • Developed, facilitated, and monitored district-wide Writing Across the Curriculum initiative in multiple districts
  • Created K-12 cross curricular standards-based rubrics and professional development to be used during collaborative teaming and to support vertical alignment of content literacy standards


MAX Teaching Consultant, 2011 to Present

  • Provided professional development workshops focusing on standards-based content-literacy activities to be implemented in classrooms K-12 and across all subject areas
  • Planned and modeled lessons using content-literacy activities in K-12 classrooms in urban, suburban, rural, charter, and career tech schools in all subject areas
  • Observed and coached teachers while providing specific and timely feedback for refinement and reinforcement of teaching practices
  • Created new MAX Teaching strategies now shared around the country as part of the MAX Teaching professional development workshop
  • Incorporated use of technology and 21st Century Learning skills into MAX Teaching lessons including critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity


PAR (Peer Assistance Review) Consultant, Brunswick City Schools, Brunswick, OH, 2011 to 2013

  • Coached, mentored, and evaluated new and veteran educators using Danielson-modeled and OTES evaluation rubrics
  • Created and provided professional development opportunities focusing on research-based instructional strategies
  • Modeled lessons incorporating effective teaching techniques in classrooms ranging from PreK to high school across all subject areas
  • Managed caseloads of 10-15 teachers and used observational data to develop effective instructional plans for educator improvement


Administrative Internship, Crestview Elementary, Brunswick City Schools, 2007

  • Assisted in serving a 535-student elementary school, grades K-5
  • Created and maintained a continuous improvement plan to support student achievement for school CIP goals
  • Interviewed and selected external candidates for long-term substitute position
  • Observed student teacher giving suggestions and feedback for future lessons
  • Developed a before-school breakfast program for early-arriving students
  • Produced and facilitated all activities for all staff members for several Early Release Days 
  • District Leadership and Motivation Teams, Brunswick City Schools, 2005 to 2011
  • Authored and designed 4th Grade Benchmark Assessment used yearly district-wide
  • Developed “Power Standards” for Standards-Based Report Card as a member of the Standards-Based Report Card and Pilot Committee
  • Piloted Progress Book computer-based grading system and assisted other educators to develop grading procedures, practices and teacher homepages • Piloted new Standards-Based report card and reported the benefits and concerns to administration
  • Designed professional development workshops on Everyday Math, Motivating the Unmotivated, Standard-Based Grading and Practices, Creating a Building Culture, and Whole Class Instruction with Standards, Marzano, and Differentiation 
  • Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH
    • Administrative Specialist in Curriculum, Instruction and Professional Development, 2007
    • *Currently obtaining Principal License*
  • Cleveland State University, Cleveland,
    • OH Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, 2002 
  • Hiram College, Hiram, OH
    • Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education 1-8, 1997 
Academic Honors:
  • Awards, and Certifications Most Influential Teacher Award, 2010
  • OTES (Ohio Teacher Evaluation System) Evaluation Certified, 2010  
  • Ohio Resident Educator Trained, 2010
  • Ohio Master Teacher Designation, 2008
  • Crestview Elementary Teacher of the Year, 2007
  • Ohio Praxis III Assessor, 2006  
  • Pathwise Certified, 2005  
  • Member of Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society, Hiram College, 1997 
  • Currently volunteer for a domestic violence shelter working with children groups ranging in age from four to fourteen
  • Assisted in coaching adults and children in swimming for Ohio State Special Olympics
  • Volunteered and supervised events and individuals in the Friends Forever Special Education Group
  • Coached neighborhood swim teams with children ranging from five to eighteen years of age
  • Served as a co-leader for Daisy and Brownie Girl Scout Troops  
  • Competed in a half-marathon and Olympic-distance triathlon