UA Little Rock Consultant Information and Course Descriptions for July 21-24, 2026

Marshall Welch, Alpena School District 5, Alpena AR

AP Biology – Combined (New and Experienced Teachers)

Marshall Welch has been a high school science educator for 35 years with the last 28 of those at Alpena High School in northwest Arkansas. He works also as a part-time faculty member at North Arkansas College where he is a physical science, astronomy, and biology instructor. While at Alpena, he has taught AP Biology for 19 years. In 2015, Marshall was recognized as a National Board Certified Teacher. He adheres to a curriculum framework driven instruction philosophy that has resulted in 100% of his students earning a 3, or higher, on the AP Biology Exam in the last 2 years.
Marshall initiated a competitive high school science research program that has over 1,400 regional, state, and international science fair awards won by students. He has had the privilege of mentoring 24 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair finalists. He has also collaborated with the Alpena FFA Chapter to produce over 100 National FFA Agriscience Fair Finalists. Fifteen of those were national award winners earning 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place honors.

Marshall was selected among a small group of high school science educators to be trained as a College Board Professional Development Consultant in April 2013. He was trained in Chicago and has presented professional development events for the New York Stem Initiative, Texas Gear Up, Oklahoma Department of Education, California Department of Education, AP Regional Conference, AP National Conference, China Workshop and Summit (Shanghai, China), and the Los Angeles Unified School District along with local events in Arkansas. He has presented over 60 Advanced Placement Summer Institutes in Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Costa Rica. He finds the move to a framework driven and inquiry-based curriculum in the AP sciences an interesting challenge and enjoys helping teachers transition to this direction of AP Science education.

Course Description

The 2025 AP Biology APSI will acquaint teachers with the eight Units and spiraling of the four Big Ideas found in the AP Biology curriculum framework. Participants will take an in-depth look at the AP Biology Course Exam and Description and how it is organized into Big Ideas, Units, Enduring Understandings, Essential Knowledge statements, Learning Objectives, and Science Practices. Each day will address a unit found in the curriculum framework. Each day will also include an AP Strategy session designed to enhance an AP Biology learning environment by moving from teacher to student-centered instruction. AP Concepts will also be offered in a daily session to help teachers assist students toward skills needed in an AP Biology class. Select AP Biology labs that correlate to each unit will be included. Additionally, inquiry investigation will be performed to help the teacher move from guided to more open-inquiry labs for their students. Participants are asked to have basic classroom supplies, a calculator, personal protective equipment and supplies for laboratory activities, and an internet capable electronic device if available. Through practice, sharing of ideas, discussions, and modeling, it is the intention that participants will become more skilled in instructing their students to become more successful in achieving the skills necessary in the AP Biology program of study.

What to Bring

Laptop, USB drive to save your work

Chris Buczek

AP Chemistry – Combined (New and Experienced teachers)

Course Description

What participants will take with them? 

Access to everything developed for Chemistry and AP Chemistry by the lead consultant.

Scott Cole,

AP Environmental Science

What participants should bring:

• A good attitude!
• The willingness to work and share with others
• Laptop to access course materials during the institute

Melissa Livings

AP Music Theory

Course Description

Kris Campos – High School, Cedar Park, TX

AP Spanish Language and Culture (New and Experienced Teachers)

Kris Campos has been a Spanish teacher at Cedar Park High School in the suburbs of Austin, Texas since 2008, where she also serves as Department Chair for Languages other than English and Sponsor of the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica. Prior to moving to Texas, she taught for 10 years at Topeka West High School in Topeka, Kansas. Kris has taught AP Spanish Language and Culture for 25 years, and has also taught all other levels of Spanish, from Spanish I through AP Spanish Literature. She has participated in the AP Reading since 2004, as a Reader, Table Leader, Sample Selector and most recently as Question Leader. In addition to serving as an AP Consultant and AP Mentor, Kris has also presented workshops at local conferences and served as a mentor for new AP teachers in her district. She received both her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees from Kansas State University.

Course Description

This comprehensive workshop is designed to help all teachers of AP Spanish Language and Culture, whether they are new to AP or have years of experience and are looking to refresh and refine their teaching. We will cover all aspects of the course and exam, from designing and planning the course to implementing and assessing instruction. We will explore the Course and Exam Description and provide guidance on how to design and pace the course. We will also cover the six themes of the course, the three modes of communication (interpretive, interpersonal and presentational), and the role of culture. We will explore sources for authentic materials, and place a special focus on AP Classroom and its many resources that can enhance our teaching. Sample classroom activities and materials will be provided, and participants will have multiple opportunities to work collaboratively and share best practices for developing student proficiency. In addition, we will develop thematic units that the participants can take and use in their classes.

Some specific topics that will be covered are:

• How to sign up for the AP Audit
• How to become a member of the AP Community
• How to ensure equity and access for our students
• How to develop vocabulary
• How to incorporate literature into the language course
• How to develop cultural proficiency using the 3 Ps
• How to most effectively use AP Classroom resources, such as AP Daily Videos, Personal Progress Checks and the AP Question Bank
• How to apply the scoring guidelines to student samples of the free response questions

Sherry Ross – Auburndale High School,  Auburndale, FL

AP Art and Design for teachers New to AP

Sherry Ross is an art teacher of nearly thirty years teaching all levels and a wide variety of media. She has over twenty years of experience teaching AP Art and Design and has served as College Board APAD Reader for a decade. She has worked to build AP programs at several Title One schools and has served as mentor and resource to her colleagues. She created online resources for Fiveable.me so that students across the county could have a greater chance of success on their APAD test.
An award winning Artist, Ross specializes in painting and photography, but jokes that she has Art ADD, as she loves experimenting with all media. She lives in Central Florida with her family, a dog, assorted cats, and a small herd of chickens.

Course Description

The AP Art and Design APSI is designed to provide teachers with a deeper understanding of the course and the requirements for successful completion by their students. We will examine the College Board Course and Exam Description (CED), explore the rubrics, and create personal artwork for teachers to use as exemplars in instruction. There will be dedicated instructional segments, ample time for question and answers, course planning exercises, and asynchronous work time for individual artwork creation. No prior experience teaching AP is needed.