Gettysburg curriculum leader Ann Baum spotlights teacher coaching and edtech networks

Ann Baum, director of curriculum and instruction at Gettysburg Area School District, is being featured by Influential Women for her three decades in K-12 education and her work building instructional coaching and professional learning networks in Pennsylvania. Her career highlights the growing pressure on schools to support teachers, integrate technology and keep collaboration alive across districts.

Why it matters: - Ann Baum’s career reflects a broader challenge in K-12 education: helping teachers adapt to technology, changing expectations and post-pandemic strain without losing instructional quality. - Her work shows how district leadership, coaching and cross-district networks can reduce educator isolation and support stronger teaching.

What happened: - Influential Women featured Ann Baum, director of curriculum and instruction at Gettysburg Area School District in Pennsylvania. - Baum has more than 30 years of experience in K-12 education. - Her career has centered on curriculum leadership, instructional technology and professional learning. - Baum started as a world language teacher before moving into instructional technology and coaching roles. - She has also worked with the Lincoln Intermediate Unit, where she supported instructional technology initiatives across 25 public school districts. - Baum helped develop TieNet, or Technology Integration Educator Network, a professional learning network for educators. - She remains connected to the network by sending district staff to participate.

The details: - Baum’s work has focused on helping teachers through coaching, collaboration, professional development and access to instructional tools. - She has contributed to statewide education efforts and regional collaboration across multiple school districts. - TieNet grew out of Classrooms for the Future, a Pennsylvania technology initiative that provided schools with instructional coaches. - After the first year of that initiative, Baum pushed to invite districts that had not received the grant to join monthly collaboration meetings. - The goal was to give educators from different districts a shared space to exchange ideas and build solutions together. - The resulting network still exists and includes instructional coaches and ed tech specialists. - Baum said relationships formed through the effort have remained strong across the surrounding three counties. - She also pointed to collaboration among representatives from 29 intermediate units working on what was best for children across Pennsylvania. - Baum said her three instructional coaches each year are a foundation and a lifeline within the district. - She described leadership as creating an environment where people can learn from one another and feel supported in solving problems. - Baum said integrity, high expectations and trustworthiness guide her professional and personal life. - She described herself as collaborative and noted a preference for seeing the big picture while also working sequentially through details. - Outside work, Baum said family is her greatest personal priority. She and her husband have four adult sons, three of whom have families, and six grandchildren across three states. - Baum also enjoys traveling, cruises and dance, and previously taught adult tap and jazz classes.

Between the lines: - Baum’s perspective puts a spotlight on educator retention, which she sees as one of the biggest challenges in schools today. - COVID’s lasting effects, budget constraints, shifting expectations and rapidly changing educational technology are still pressuring teachers. - Her advice to younger women in education is to give the profession time, since many leave before they fully settle into the role. - She also argues that educators often do not see the impact of their work until former students return years later. - Baum recommends keeping physical and digital folders of positive feedback from students and colleagues as a source of encouragement during difficult periods. - Her comments suggest that professional community, not individual effort alone, is a key factor in sustaining educators over time.

What’s next: - Baum said expanding edtech integration, instructional coaching, open educational resources and cross-district professional networks could give teachers more support. - Her ongoing work at Gettysburg Area School District will continue to focus on curriculum leadership, instructional strategy and helping educators adapt to change. - The broader lesson from Baum’s career is that schools may need more structures that help teachers collaborate, share resources and stay connected to purpose.

The bottom line: - Baum’s career is a case study in how instructional leadership and professional networks can strengthen schools while supporting the educators who keep them running. - More information