MassCUE is proud to celebrate Ben Shepard as our Featured Educator for December 2025!

This Featured Educator post was written by Heather Hannon, ELA teacher at the Carroll School and member of the MassCUE Communications Committee.

As the Targeted Cognitive Interventions (TCI) Curriculum Coordinator at the Carroll School, Ben Shepard is proof that when innovation, empathy, and data-driven instruction come together, powerful learning happens. A proud Carroll alumnus, Ben’s journey has come full circle—from a student navigating his own learning differences to a leader pioneering research-based programs that transform how educators understand and support cognitive growth.

In his role, Ben oversees the Carroll School’s TCI program, which focuses on strengthening students’ processing speed, working memory, and executive functioning. His work involves analyzing data, mentoring teachers, and leading the school’s “action research” initiatives—projects designed to evaluate how instructional practices can be improved through evidence and innovation.

“The thing that I’m most excited about,” Ben explains, “is my role in what we’re calling action research—our answers to kids that aren’t meeting expectations. What else can we do? How can we teach better? How do we track that and understand it with data behind it so that we can know if we’re hitting the mark or if we need to change what we’re doing?”

This passion for data and discovery has led to groundbreaking progress. Working in collaboration with the Gabrieli Lab at MIT, Ben and his team refined and validated the TCI model, developing cognitive intervention programs that are now being submitted for publication. “Historically, our population of kids has weaknesses in processing speed and working memory,” Ben notes. “We piloted and built new interventions based on what worked—and what didn’t. We’ve now developed a consistent, research-backed program, and we just submitted it for publication.”

True to the MassCUE mission of advancing innovative teaching and learning through technology, Ben’s work is rooted in the belief that data and technology should empower—not intimidate—educators.

“Technology is imperative for what we do,” he shares. “We’ve actually built our own website and tools to streamline our interventions. The access that technology gives us—to data, to collaboration, to immediate feedback—is huge.” By developing custom tools that make cognitive data accessible and actionable, Ben ensures that every teacher can make informed instructional decisions that support each child’s unique learning journey.

Ben’s story also reflects the Carroll School’s mission of giving students the skills, strategies, and confidence to thrive. As a graduate who once walked the same hallways, he carries forward a deep empathy for the students he now serves.

“I graduated from Carroll in 2002,” Ben reflects. “I didn’t know it at the time, but that was the start of my path. The empathy and awareness that experience gave me—it’s what keeps me here. I want to make education better, to learn what kids need and what actually works.”

Through his leadership, innovation, and compassion, Ben Shepard exemplifies what it means to be a MassCUE Featured Educator—a lifelong learner committed to leveraging technology, data, and heart to ensure every student reaches their full potential.

Ben Shepard Bio:

Ben Shepard serves as the Targeted Cognitive Intervention (TCI) Curriculum Coordinator and is a member of the Data and Research team at The Carroll School in Lincoln, Waltham, and Wayland, Massachusetts. He has the pleasure of working across Carroll’s Elementary, Middle, and Upper School divisions. In this role, Mr. Shepard coordinates research, data analysis, and the deployment of the school’s TCI program.

As an alumnus of Carroll (2002), Ben is fortunate to work at a school that has had such a profound impact on his life. While giving back to Carroll’s incredible community brings him great pride, his primary professional goal is to bring evidence-based teaching approaches beyond the school’s walls to have a positive impact on education as a whole. He has learned that conducting research and curriculum development within a school environment like Carroll is challenging, requiring collaboration, dedication, and significant flexibility to iterate on ideas, strategies, and pedagogy to find successful outcomes. Through this work, it has become clear to him that in education, one size does not fit all, and he hopes to contribute to a better understanding of what works for whom.

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