The VMI staff, instructors and mentors, and board are made up of talented educators who have years of experience in working with mathematics teachers, school districts and schools, and state wide initiatives to support high quality mathematics education for all students.
The VMI is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Marc Hull, the Vermont Commissioner of Education from 1996-1999, and Dr. Kenneth I. Gross, UVM Mathematics Professor and founder of VMI.
As of July 2025, Kathryn Delay serves as the Executive Director of the Vermont Mathematics Initiative (VMI). She is a graduate of the VMI master's cohort in 2016 and the first post-master's cohort in 2023.
Before joining the VMI faculty, Kathryn worked as a middle school math interventionist and classroom teacher in Central Vermont. Since earning her master's degree through VMI, she has supported teachers and school leaders in developing and implementing effective math instructional practices, both within her school and nationally as a facilitator for the Ongoing Assessment Project (OGAP).
Kathryn is deeply committed to systems-level change in mathematics education. She strives to make math accessible and engaging for all learners while building confidence and a sense of belonging in every classroom.
For 20 years, Judi Laird served as the Executive Director of the highly acclaimed Vermont Mathematics Initiative (VMI) and continues to support VMI's transition part-time this year. Judi is a graduate of the first VMI cohort in 2002. Prior to joining the VMI faculty, Judi was a Presidential Award winning middle school mathematics educator, an Assessment Consultant for the Vermont State Department of Education and served as a mathematics leader for the VT Portfolio Assessment System.
Ms. Laird was the initial architect for aspects of the VMI curriculum, having developed the ‘teaching-learning’, leadership and research strands of the program. In 2008, Ms Laird led the expansion of the VMI in Cincinnati, Ohio where VMI partnered with Cincinnati Public Schools to address mathematics concerns across the city. The Cincinnati initiative continues to this day and has impacted hundreds of teachers, many of whom now serve in leadership positions in their schools or district. Ms Laird has also contributed to efforts across the US to build content-based professional development programs for teachers, assisting the Universities of Nebraska and New Mexico as they developed their own programs.
Ms. Laird was also instrumental in similar efforts in Massachusetts, Wyoming and Newcastle, Australia, and along with the VMI’s founder, Ken Gross, Judi was a frequent guest of organizations such as the Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences (CBMS), and various other national organizations focused on improved mathematics achievement.
Ms Laird has presented at numerous workshops and conferences and has taught graduate level mathematics courses to teachers throughout Vermont.
Susan is the lead mathematics instructor for VMI and has worked with them for the past 15 years as an instructor, mentor and course developer. Prior to this, she taught middle-school in northwestern Vermont for 10 years. She worked closely with Ken Gross, VMI’s founder, while he wrote Numbers, Operations, and the Language of Arithmetic (2017), which is the text used during the first year of VMI. Susan has taught mathematics and mathematics education courses at UVM, Norwich University, and Lesley University (MA). She lives with her husband on a small farm in Elmore, VT and is an avid Red Sox fan.
Bob worked for the VMI for over 15 years. Along with serving on the VMI leadership team, he oversaw the teaching/learning and action research strands of the VMI and is a lead statistics instructor.
Bob is co-author of A Focus on Fractions: Bringing research to the classroom (Routledge, 2015), and A Focus on Multiplication and Division: Bringing research to the classroom (Routledge 2017), and A Focus on Ratiso and Proportions: Bringing research to the classroom (Routledge, In development)
Over the past 16 years, Bob has been involved in numerous mathematics instructional and systemic support projects both nationally and internationally. These include initiatives with Philadelphia Public Schools, Cincinnati Public Schools, the Alabama Math Science and Technology Initiative, Queen Rania Teachers’ Academy in Amman, Jordan, and the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology and Kenan Institute Asia in Bangkok, Thailand.
Bob was an elementary and middle school teacher in Danville, Vermont for 21 years.
Fran Huntoon was an elementary school teacher for 25 years working with students from kindergarten to grade 6. Through her teaching, she discovered her passion for math. As a graduate of the Vermont Mathematics Initiative, Fran developed her leadership capacity and helped strengthen the mathematics instruction at her school. In her current role as an educational consultant, she works with teachers, coaches, and administrators to improve math instruction.
As a mentor and instructor for the Vermont Mathematics Initiative, Fran worked to help teachers deepen their understanding of mathematics and become confident, knowledgeable leaders in their classrooms and schools. In addition to her work at the VMI, she was a national trainer for OGAP; the Ongoing Assessment Project, a facilitator for The All Learners Project and one of the organizers for a series of EdCamps in Vermont focused on Multi-Tiered Systems of Support.
When she is not working with teachers and students, Fran continues to read and write about mathematics education. Her areas of interest include instructional strategies that help all students become confident mathematicians.
Priscilla Bremser was the Nathan Beman Professor of Mathematics at Middlebury College, where she has taught since 1984. She earned her B.A. at Smith College, and her Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University. Her research interests include number theory and mathematics education. A practitioner of inquiry-based methods in her own classroom, she has also published articles on active learning in undergraduate mathematics education. She has been an instructor at VMI since 2007.
Beth was previously the Superintendent of Schools for the Essex Westford School District, Essex Junction, VT. During her 30 years as an educator in Vermont she has been a classroom teacher, an instructional coach, a curriculum coordinator, an assistant superintendent and for the past seven years, a superintendent. In addition, Beth has taught assessment courses for Southern New Hampshire University’s Vermont Masters Program. She was a Math Recovery® teacher and a certified Math Recovery® teacher leader/trainer. Beth did extensive work with formative assessment trainings as well. She is currently is a member of the New England Association of School Superintendent Board and also serves on the Board for Champlain Valley Educator Development Center. Beth’s passionate about educational leadership and making a difference for students. Her three young adult children, her husband and two dogs are her pride and joy.
Karen Nee has been a middle school math teacher at Essex Middle School in Vermont for 14 years. She graduated from the VMI in 2013 and subsequently began working as a mentor for the program. Karen is a strong believer in developing systems within schools that promote student learning and teacher training. In the classroom, her students learn by doing and the focus is on understanding the math. Having moved from Boston, Karen has embraced the outdoor lifestyle that Vermont offers and enjoys spending her free time skiing and hiking.
Paul Smith is a longtime curriculum coordinator for the Windham Southeast Supervisory Union. His job responsibilities include professional development support, curriculum development and assessment in the areas of Math, Science, Health and Technology, grants management, and support for the student information system. Over the years, Paul has participated in a variety of statewide initiatives and programs, including participation in the Vermont School Leadership Project, serving as a VISMT Teacher Associate, assisting instruction for the Vermont Science Initiative, and leadership in the Vermont Learning Collaborative ESA, and the Vermont Standards and Assessment Consortium. As well, Paul has taught graduate courses at the School for International Training and Keene State College. He has written contributions for Connect magazine and for Science Scope.