Matthew Blackmore

Matthew Blackmore

Matthew Blackmore is a nationally recognized educational administrator with a proven track record of driving significant improvements in student achievement. His leadership has resulted in two school districts, Carlisle Community School District (2018) and North Polk Community School District (2025), achieving model professional learning community status.

He oversees a comprehensive portfolio including special education, English learners, school counselors, at-risk programs, and talented and gifted education. He has demonstrated a commitment to holistic student development through the implementation of a district-wide guiding coalition for social-emotional learning, securing a $100,000 grant from the Iowa Department of Education to support this initiative.

With over 25 years of experience in public education, Matthew excels in coaching and influencing collaborative teams across the PreK-12 spectrum. Prior to his time at North Polk, Matthew was the principal of Carlisle High School in Carlisle, Iowa. He was recognized on a national level for leading what was a low-performing high school into the top 8 percent of schools in Iowa. Additionally, the Carlisle Community School District was named a Model PLC at Work® district in both 2017 and 2018. During his time in the Carlisle community, Matthew and the Wildcats were awarded High Performing and Breaking Barriers status by the Iowa Department of Education and cited by Governor Kim Reynolds for their achievements on the Iowa Assessments and for 90 percent proficiency among students of Hispanic descent.

Matthew also completed Harvard University’s rigorous Redesigning of America’s High School Institute in the summer of 2009. Additionally, Solution Tree selected Matthew as a manuscript reviewer for Best Practices at Tier 2: Supplemental Interventions for Additional Student Support (2019) and Now We’re Talking! 21 Days to High-Performance Instructional Leadership (2017). He holds a bachelor’s degree in special education and a master’s degree in school administration from Lewis University and an educational specialist degree in superintendent licensure in advanced studies from Iowa State University. Matthew has been a faculty member at Viterbo University since 2016, serving as an adjunct professor in the school of education.

PLC at Work^®

PLC at Work® experts have proven success in leading the PLC at Work process in a school or district. Work with them to implement a focus on learning, build a collaborative culture, and create a results orientation that leads to sustained, substantive school improvement.

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Beyond Labels

Beyond Labels! experts have proven success in improving outcomes for all students, including those with special needs. Work with them to develop collaborative partnerships in order to implement inclusive processes and programs that support every learner in your school community.

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Presentations by Matthew Blackmore

• The Big Ideas Series: Developing Learning, Collaboration, and Results among Equitable Classrooms
• Declaring the Power of All: Creating and Sustaining a Collaborative Culture between General and Special Educators
• Yes We Can! Six Core Beliefs That Drive Successful Collaborative Teams in SPED and General Education Classrooms
• Promising Practices to Increase Equity and Inclusion Opportunities for Students with Disabilities: A Rural District’s Journey
• The Power of Professional Learning Communities
• Building and Sustaining PLC Collective Efficacy
• RTI Strategies for the Secondary Classroom: Instructional
• Practices That Lead to Higher Levels of Learning
• PREP for Success: Purpose, Role, Effort & Progress in Highly Effective Schools
• Inclusive by Design: Building and Sustaining the All In Classroom
• Driving Data: Fueling Growth and Improvement in Your PLC
• PLCs for Secondary Success: Strategies for Middle and High School Educators
• Empowering Educators: Building Collective Efficacy with RTI