Consultants help Dallas County teachers improve through custom-designed teaching methods and coursework 

Teachers in the Dallas County school system are getting help from an organization dedicated to helping teachers teach even better.  

The organization is Georgia-based SK&C Development Group, and president and founder Samantha J. Ingram said her organization provides professional development for teachers.  

“We have teachers that comment on how this has helped them build confidence,” Ingram said. She pointed to teachers at Dallas County High School and Keith High School who have shown improvement in practices.  

SK&C has been helping the Dallas County Schools for about two years. “Dallas County has outstanding teachers and outstanding staff,” Ingram said. “But they want to get better at their craft. To do so, they have to be lifelong learners.”  

Ingram said she was once a new teacher, so she understands how hard teaching can be. Now she and her colleagues bring their experience to move teachers toward furthering their education and getting certifications.   

SK&C consultants partner with teachers and administrators to bring new ideas and methods to help better teach students. “We collaborate and come to consensus on a way forward to help them continue with their growth,” she said.  

SK&C is made up of former classroom teachers and administrators, all of whom use their experience to go into classrooms, identify strong points and build from there, according to Ingram. They recommend teaching methods and coursework designed specifically for each teacher.   

“We don’t purchase anything online,” Ingram said. “We don’t buy some other product and then give it to the school. Everything is specifically designed and developed based on the need of our customer.”   

Because they work with individual teachers, “we employ up to 30 or 40 instructional champions at one time,” Ingram said.  

The money used to pay for this service comes from federal funds given to school systems “specifically set aside for professional learning services,” Ingram said. “The federal government wants schools to develop our teachers.”  

She commended former Superintendent Hattie Shelton and current Superintendent Anthony Sampson for seeing a need and calling in SK&C, as well as the school board, which approved it.