Amy Liszt, Ed.D.

Transformational Educational Leader | Expert in MTSS, Special Education, UDL, & Culturally Responsive Practices | Champion for Equity & Inclusion | Driving Excellence in Special Education & Curriculum Innovation

New York City Metropolitan Area

About

I am an equity-driven education leader with over two decades of experience transforming instruction and improving outcomes for diverse learners across schools, districts, and higher education. With a background in education leadership, special education, curriculum and instruction, I bring a unique lens to instructional leadership, grounded in inclusion, the Science of Reading, and culturally responsive pedagogy. As the Founder and Chief Education Officer of AVIVA Consulting, I partner with school districts to design and implement systems that ensure all students—especially those with disabilities and multilingual learners—receive high-quality, evidence-based instruction. In my concurrent role as Department Chair at Relay Graduate School of Education, I lead teacher preparation programs across 11 states, focusing on equity-centered instruction, UDL, MTSS, and literacy intervention. My leadership spans the classroom to the central office—serving in senior roles at New York City DOE, Chicago Public Schools, and the Massachusetts Department of Education. From designing large-scale educator evaluation systems to coaching superintendents and mentoring new teachers, I thrive at the intersection of innovation, data, and human-centered design. Relational, strategic, and deeply committed to student achievement, I believe in building systems that cultivate teacher excellence and accelerate outcomes for all learners.

Experience

  • Director of Special Education at Yonkers Public Schools
    Sep 2025 - Present · 11 mos

  • Chief Education Officer at Aviva Consulting
    Sep 2018 - Present · 7 yrs 11 mos

    -Nationally recognized expert providing consultation to districts and schools on instructional best practices aligned to state standards, Science of Reading, inclusion of students with disabilities, multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), Universal Design for Learning (UDL), data informed instruction and culturally responsive pedagogy.

  • Relay Graduate School of Education (6 yrs 2 mos)
    • Department Chair
      Jul 2022 - Sep 2025 · 3 yrs 3 mos

      -Led special education department providing graduate-level training for educators in 11 states across the US serving over 350 students -Oversaw the development of curricula for teachers pursuing dual certification in special and general education with a focus on High Leverage Practices for Students with Disabilities, the Development and Implementation of Effective IEPs, the Science of Reading Intervention, Universal Design for Learning, and Culturally Responsive Pedagogy.

    • Professor
      Aug 2019 - Jun 2022 · 2 yrs 11 mos

      -Professor and advisor of NYC graduate students pursuing dual special and general education certification

  • Citywide Director of Instructional Quality at Chicago Public Schools
    2017 - 2018 · 1 yr

    •Developed and implemented comprehensive citywide professional development to improve instructional quality and promote inclusion impacting over 52,000 students •Supervised special education administrators responsible for coaching PreK-12 special education teachers throughout Chicago Public Schools

  • Executive Director at Academy for Global Citizenship
    2016 - 2017 · 1 yr

    •Led International Baccalaureate, Spanish dual-language K-8 charter school serving 460 students •Led the effort to achieve a Level 1+ school performance rating placing AGC among the top 8% of public schools in Chicago and oversaw academic growth from 50th to 75th percentile in math and 46th to 96th percentile in reading •Spearheaded overall annual fund-raising efforts surpassing goals by 53%