Our story

We’re educators like you, in schools nearly every day, and we understand the challenges you face—we’re here to help.

Like all dedicated educators, we aimed high. We trusted each day would be spent teaching to the standards. We invested time, money, and hope into tools that promised results—but those results didn’t meet our expectations. We realized the missing piece: without people sharing deep knowledge of the standards, no program can truly work.

It became clear that adding tools wasn’t enough. We had to address the real issues behind student struggles. That realization ignited a fire in us to stop relying on promises and start building what educators actually need—a system aligned to standards that empowers every educator to experience them.

So in 2018, we founded Smart Learning Systems in North Carolina and created DOT IT. We hope you love it as much as we do.

The Mission

We develop educators in a standards first approach by providing coherent resources, uncompromised assessments, and coordinated teamwork all on one platform.

We provide guidance, support, tools, and constraints that help educators navigate the educational landscape to provide every student with a standards first grade level experience.

The Vision

We envision optimal educational environments, where students are driven to tackle challenges and strive for excellence within a supportive and dynamic community. Here, creativity and critical thinking are honed through rigorous exploration. There are classrooms fueled by curiosity that push the boundaries of discovery, champion individual talents and prepare students for academic success, setting the stage for lifelong learning and the relentless pursuit of personal growth.

Want to learn more about us?

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The Approach

We're all about building capacity through shared responsibility and distributed leadership, and we've got the research to back us up. DOT IT is engineered to motivate users with delightful resources that save time and secure quick wins. It's so simple to use, there is no need for complicated technical training. If you think you need help, we are happy to provide it!

checkmark Every resource in DOT IT is centered on the standards.
checkmark Teachers use DOT IT quizzes to inform lessons and optimize weekly planning time.
checkmark Coaches use DOT IT common assessments to inform coaching cycles every three weeks.
checkmark Administrators use DOT IT benchmarks to inform professional development every quarter.
DOT IT approach graphic

Our Values

Everything we do is guided by these core values.

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Standards-first knowledge

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Shared expectations

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Consistency across classrooms

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Productive teamwork

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Ownership of outcomes

Our Leadership Team

Susan, a founder of DOT IT

Susan Milliones

Co-founder

Susan Milliones has consulted with districts and trained thousands of educators at every level across the United States in instructional improvement and organizational change. She is a graduate of the Learning Forward Academy for professional learning. She has presented at National Conferences including National Title 1 and has worked on federal grants for MTSS implementation. Her work with district and school leaders to raise expectations in purposeful teams has closed achievement gaps and improved the quality of educational experiences for students and adults alike. Susan is a co-founder and systems developer for DOT IT software tools.

Laurie, a founder of DOT IT

Laurie McDanel

Co-founder

Laurie McDanel has an Ed.S in School Administration and a Master's in Special Education from Western Carolina University. She received her B.S. from the University of Tennessee. She has 20 years of special education classroom experience and 10 years of leadership experience at the school and district levels. Her innovative leadership as a Special Education Director led to the significant closure of achievement gaps for students with disabilities in her district. Laurie is the co-founder and application designer of DOT IT.

Britt, a founder of DOT IT

Britt McDanel

Chief Technology Officer

Having grown up around educators, Britt holds tremendous respect for the work that you do, taking special note of the flexibility and empathy that your jobs require. After graduating from Wake Forest University, he channeled that respect into the creation of the suite of DOT IT Software. Britt is responsible for the development, enhancement, and security of DOT IT, ensuring that our software suite is quicker, clearer, and better than any other tool on the market. Britt is happy to field any questions on optimizing your school's usage of DOT IT Software.

Brad, a technology leader at DOT IT

Bradley McDanel, Ph.D.

Software Engineer

Bradley, who holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Harvard University and M.S. and B.S. degrees from Wake Forest University, brings his passion for teaching and practical learning to DOT IT. As a professor at Franklin & Marshall College, Brad is known for his hands-on approach and dedication to making deep learning concepts accessible to students. In his spare time, Brad enjoys online chess. At DOT IT, Brad combines his expertise and understanding of student needs to contribute to a platform that supports educators and learners in an effective and user-friendly way.

James, a customer success leader at DOT IT

James Stevenson

District Success Manager

James acquired a B.S. degree in Computer Science from Centre College, who then went on to work at a Fortune 500 company. He is our collaborative, energetic customer success advocate and in-house creative. His expertise in software engineering and experience design manifests in our intuitive, self-guided software that has a human touch. James will be happy to demonstrate the full power of DOT IT professional development and software to find a package that's right for your teams.

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