Praise for
Skyrocket EDUCATOR TRAINING
Michael is the best trainer we’ve ever had work with our teachers and leaders.
Kole Knueppel
Director, Center for Transformational Educational Leadership
University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana
I have had the opportunity to work with Sonbert in a number of contexts and am always impressed by his ability to quickly diagnose classrooms and provide exactly the right professional development to support teachers and leaders to improve instruction. His Skyrocket model puts those same tools he intuitively uses into the hands of educators to support instruction.
Ryan Scallon
Assistant superintendent, The School District of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
I am elated and grateful for my Skyrocket experiences. Skyrocket is passionate about equipping school leaders with what they need to lead. The practical, easy, and fun-filled conversation enhanced our coaching sessions. My leaders can’t stop talking about things that they have learned through Skyrocket. We will Skyrocket!
Janel Hawkins
Senior director of school transformation, Milwaukee public schools
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The framework is so clear that it allows us to find the biggest levers for our struggling teachers and our more advanced teachers.
Antonio Vance
Executive director, Great Oaks Charter Schools
New York City, New York
Skyrocket has provided our principals, assistant principals, coordinators, and instructional coaches the ability to impact teachers because of the specific feedback we are able to give. I have participated in the trainings with the coordinators and instructional coaches, and we always end our trainings on fire for more learning. It has been the most impactful training for our district.
LaCreasha Stille
Assistant superintendent of curriculum, Gainesville Independent School District
Gainesville, Texas
Michael’s training combined the necessary headlines and overarching concepts in a compact crash-course that helped individuals understand how to effectively implement and fit existing structures for observation and coaching.
Michael Nguyen
Senior managing director, teacher leadership development
Teach for America
What I love about Skyrocket leader coaching is that I see the concepts that were delivered at training being implemented at our schools immediately thereafter. It is practical, best-practice skills that are instantly applicable and impactful.
Robert Rauh
Chief education officer, Milwaukee College Prep School
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Skyrocket provides high-leverage feedback and action steps to yield fast results, true to its name. In fewer than eight months of collaboration, we’ve made double-digit growth in culture and climate, measured by teacher and student data. The real-time, in-the-moment coaching has transformed my leadership and, in turn, impacted teacher effectiveness. The best professional development experience of my career!
Kellie Porter
Principal, Russell Byers Charter School
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Skyrocket helped to transform instructional coaching at our school. The framework provides teachers with clear, high-impact action items for them to focus on. The model gave our faculty a powerful list of agreed-upon expectations that will quickly improve instruction. It encourages our coaches to be more data-driven and direct in working with our teachers, and to not shy away from directly coaching and practicing instructional strategies during coaching meetings. The model is direct and easily gets teacher buy-in. We saw the quality of instruction in both our new and returning teachers improve dramatically using the model. Skyrocket was truly a school-changing program for us.
Tim Gallo
Principal, St. Thomas the Apostle School
Chicago, Illinois
By using Skyrocket, I have observed teachers developing their practice rapidly, which led to an increase in student achievement on benchmarks and exit tickets, as well as state assessments. The team at Skyrocket is changing the game by solving real-world school problems.
Rashaun Reid
Principal, KIPP Vision Academy
Atlanta, Georgia
The Skyrocket coaching framework has had such a positive impact on my leaders and teachers! The frameworks are straight to the point, the manual inspires creative coaching, and I can see the impact in my classrooms. In addition, the Skyrocket team has been super supportive every step of the way!
Joanna Hightower
CEO, Alliance for Progress Charter School
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Michael’s analysis is spot on—I admire his multilayered approach (principals, coaches, teachers, and students) and how he models the appropriate techniques. His strength of relationships allows him instant credibility and access to our teams.
Michael Gaal
Former K8 network leader, Education Achievement Authority of Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Michael’s support has been invaluable for helping us set a high bar in terms of the expectations of both adults and students as we pursue rapid growth in student outcomes. The Skyrocket rubric is highly praised and well used by our coaches because it breaks down supporting teachers into specific and actionable steps.
Lauren Vargas
Director of instructional coaching, EdConnective
The Skyrocket framework is both practical and usable. Its simplicity unmasks the elements of effective teaching that often get lost in feedback and evaluations—our teachers know exactly what skill they are working on, get meaningful practice with that skill, and apply it immediately in the classroom. The results are unmistakable.
Matthew Glass
Academic coaching manager, American Paradigm Schools
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
By the winter to spring assessment window, our ELA growth was over 132 percent and math growth was 111 percent on the MAP Assessment
