Fostering teamwork and collaboration has been the hallmark of Principal Lucy Salazar’s leadership throughout her 22 year career as an administrator, Title I facilitator, and classroom teacher. Currently principal of K-5 Alvarado Elementary School in Signal Hill, California, Salazar has served in two Title I schools in her career. Both have earned recognition for making sustained academic gains and closing the achievement gap under her leadership, successes which she credits to the power of goal-oriented, collaborative teaching grounded in a fierce commitment to equity. At Alvarado, Salazar believes workshop teaching has been key to sustained growth over the years, and she has worked to strengthen the delivery of this methodology by building structures for individualized professional development that have led to self-motivated and collaborative learning in her staff. Doing so has improved retention and heightened teacher self-reflection, allowing her team to effectively hone Math and Literacy instruction to elevate student achievement in these key content areas. By pairing structured opportunities for mentorship with effective systems for rigorous, data-driven planning, Salazar has helped her school uphold shared expectations for growth while creating a professional and cultural climate that she believes matches the dedication of her teachers. Salazar holds a B.A. from California State University-San Diego, a M.A. from California State University-Long Beach, and an Ed.D. from the University of Southern California.