As a Teacher Leader in Residence, Julie Eckhardt, brings to Open Up Resources more than 39 years of experience in the field of education. She began her career as an elementary teacher gaining 33 years of classroom experience. Serving as an adjunct instructor for Iowa Wesleyan College she taught reading endorsement classes and has been a member of the Building Literacy for Social Studies Cadre for the Iowa Department of Education. During the 5 years she served as an Instructional/Data Coach for a grade 4 – 8 middle school, Julie helped lead district wide implementation of EL Education’s K – 8 Language Arts Curriculum. Today, Julie enjoys designing professional learning experiences and working with those who are piloting or implementing this high-quality curriculum.