Laura Kassner

Supporting Students, Grandfamilies, and Kinship Caregivers community of practice co-lead; Dissemination task lead
Laura Kassner, EdD, brings 20 years of experience across the education continuum, from early childhood and K–12 to graduate and adult education. She has served as a classroom teacher, district leader, federal grant coordinator at the state level, as well as a researcher and consultant. In addition to serving as the REL Appalachia Dissemination task lead since 2020, Kassner co-leads a community of practice focused on building the capacity of educators and school staff to support kinship caregivers and grandfamilies as they help their children thrive in school settings. Additionally, she has supported a team that is developing a professional learning toolkit focused on equipping early childhood educators to teach mathematics; co-authored the Community Math Night Facilitators’ Toolkit; and co-developed trainings with the Kentucky Department of Education on integrating social and emotional learning into mathematics instruction. Kassner holds deep commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and her strengths include building relationships, planning engaging learning experiences, and strategic communication. She earned a BA in sociology and elementary education from the University of Mary Washington, an MEd in educational leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University, and an EdD in educational leadership and policy studies from Virginia Tech.