Dr. Jay McTighe

Author, McTighe & Associates

Jay McTighe is an accomplished author, having coauthored eighteen books, including the award-winning and best-selling Understanding by Design^® (UbD) series with Grant Wiggins. UbD is a renowned framework for designing curriculum units called “Backward Design.” He has written more than 60 articles and book chapters and has been published in leading journals, including Educational Leadership (ASCD) and Education Week.

McTighe has an extensive background in professional development and is a regular speaker at national, state, and district conferences and workshops. He has conducted workshops in 48 states, seven Canadian provinces, and internationally in 41 countries on six continents.

McTighe provides consulting services to schools, districts, regional service agencies, and state departments of education. He has served as director of the Maryland Assessment Consortium, a collaboration of school districts developing and sharing formative performance assessments. He helped lead standards-based reforms at the Maryland State Department of Education, including the development of performance-based statewide assessments. He was selected to participate in the Educational Policy Fellowship Program through the Institute for Educational Leadership in Washington, D.C. Plus, he served as a member of the National Assessment Forum, a coalition of education and civil rights organizations advocating reforms in national, state, and local assessment policies and practices.

McTighe attended the College of William and Mary, earning his undergraduate degree. At the University of Maryland, he earned his master’s degree, then completed post-graduate studies at The Johns Hopkins University.