College of Education

Education

• Doctorate in progress
• Ed.S., School Psychology, Miami University (Oxford, OH), 1995
• MS, School Psychology, Miami University (Oxford, OH), 1993
• BA, Psychology, Skidmore College (Saratoga Springs, NY), 1992

Biography

Before joining the faculty of the Department of Special Education at EMU, I served for almost 15 years in public schools as a school psychologist, educational trainer, and consultant. Throughout my school-based career, I worked directly with K–12 students certified with a wide variety of disabilities, both pre- and post-referral. My first eight years were spent in southwestern Ohio, where I was immersed in the Response-to-Intervention (RTI) model of service delivery. During my time in Michigan, I continued to assess and intervene with at-risk students but also presented county-wide and school-based workshops as well as consulted with multiple school districts in the areas of collaborative teaming and problem solving, scientifically-based academic and behavioral interventions, curriculum-based assessment, IEP goal writing, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. I came to EMU in 2008 to educate future special education teachers with the hope of making a difference in students' lives on a larger scale.

Interests and Expertise

Research Interests

• Higher education pedagogy
• Universal design for learning
• Response-to-intervention (academic and behavioral)
• Collaborative problem solving
• Curriculum-based measurement
• Positive behavior supports
• Universal design for learning

Courses

• SPCI 240: Introductory Clinical Experiences in Cognitive Impairment
• SPEI 240: Introductory Clinical Experiences in Emotional Impairment
• SPGN 3232W Writing for Professionals in Special Education
• SPGN 390 Measurement and Diagnosis in Special Education
• SPGN 461 Classroom Management and Intervention Strategies for Students with Disabilities
• SPLI 396: Assessment Methods for Students with Learning Disabilities and Other Mild Disabilities
• SPLI 678: Assessment and Advanced Diagnostic Prescriptive Programming for Special Education Students

Publications and Presentations

Selected Publications

• "Abolishing the Myths of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder"
        Michigan Council for Exceptional Children (Grand Rapids, Michigan) March 2012
• "Bricks and Mortar: The Integral Relationship Between Universal Design for Learning and Learning Styles"
        International Learning Styles Network Conference (Bronx, New York) July 2012
• "The Fantastic Four (and a Little Bit More): Evidence-Based Reading Interventions for Home and School"
        Michigan Council for Exceptional Children (Grand Rapids, Michigan) March 2012
• "Revolutionary Redesign: An Extreme Makeover of a Core Teacher Preparation Course"
        Michigan Association of Teacher Educators Fall Conference (Livonia, Michigan) October 2011
• Lilly Conference on College & University Teaching – South (Greensboro, North Carolina) February 2012
        The Teaching Professor Conference (Washington, DC) June 2012

Memberships

• Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders (CCBD)
• Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
• National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)