Beyond Textbooks "super conference" returns to Mica Mountain High School

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Justin Chesebrough has worked at Beyond Textbooks (BT) for the last 12 years, building up a locally-founded program into one with a nationwide footprint.

“Coming together to improve education, and that's our goal, is to come alongside others and help them with any needs that they have in our organization,” says Chesebrough, director of Beyond Textbooks.

BT was originally founded in 2008 to fill a need within the Vail School District.

"We didn't have common frameworks or instructional practices across the district, so we brought teachers and leaders together and started developing frameworks to help teachers in the classroom," says Chesebrough.

One of those teachers, Brittany Strebing, says she looks forward to collaborating with other teachers.

"I think, just to see their different stories and be able to talk and chat and collaborate on different ideas and maybe see what's working for them and not working," says Strebing.

And educators from other districts in Tucson use BT too, including Assistant Superintendent Darlene Robinson from Sahuarita Unified School District.

"I believe if you ask any educator what has been the most instrumental part of their journey as an educator, (it) would be the collaboration and knowledge that they gain from each other," says Robinson.

Robinson was also a teacher who attended BT for 10 years before taking the step into the office, and her biggest takeaway:

“BT is more than a partner. It is a support system. The daily emails, contributing to lesson plans and uploading them, looking at other people's take on a certain standard. It truly established a community that we're so honored to be a part of,” says Robinson.