As an Assistant Professor of Special Education and Dyslexia Program Coordinator in the Inclusive Education Department at Kennesaw State University, I specialize in teacher education, bilingual/English Learner education, and special education. My work focuses on fostering partnerships between the university and school districts, with an emphasis on community engagement and the design of a Teacher Residency program for bilingual special and general education pre-service teachers. I also conduct research and present on bi/multilingual English Learners, special education policy, and literacy instruction for English Learners with learning disabilities.

Fowler Middle School case manager and remedial reading classes

This position has opened my eyes to the immense barriers to graduation middle school and high school students face in their daily lives. My students have come to school sharing stories of witnessing armed robbery a Plaid Pantry the night before, evicted from their apartment, suffering from domestic violence, and gang-related violence in their neighborhood. My role is to be a trusted ally. If I can pass along hope, these students may have a chance to rise above their circumstances.• Design a credit recovery program for students who have dropped out of all other district middle school & high school programs• Develop online coursework using Pearson’s Gradpoint online courses• Counsel and Advocate for students to obtain, extended, modified or regular high school diploma

Implemented a School-wide Literacy initiative with significant results in student achievement across grades K-5, for example: • 2010-11: End of year 73% of Kindergarten students at-risk of not meeting literacy benchmarks by 2011-12: End of year 66% of Kindergarten students met• 2012 Accepted Workshop Presenter: “Conflict Resolution for the Global Citizen” at AASSA’s Educators Conference, Quito, Ecuador• Led preK-5 reading curriculum adoption with budget of $200,000 for materials• 2011 Trained as a DIBELS MentorLeadership Roles• Documenting & Using Results Committee Chair for the 2011-12 Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) Accreditation Review (QAR)• Literacy Committee Chair• Student Support Services Team Facilitator• Strategic Plan Review Committee Member

Implemented and facilitated school-wide process of Response to Intervention by:• Screened students for intensive academic and behavior support• Coordinated Student Intervention multi-disciplinary team including SLP, ESL, Assistant Principal, Counselor, and teachers• 2009 Led district-wide implementation of AIMSweb Progress Monitoring database adoption • 2008 SRA Seattle Response to Intervention Institute: Keynote Speakers: Fuchs & Fuchs• 2007 Positive Behavior Support Conference• Designed School-wide systems to teach behavior expectations and prevent behavior incidents • Implemented Behavior Support Plans based on Functional Behavior Assessments • Trained Classified & Certified Staff on Positive Behavior Supports for Classroom management & Response to Intervention StrategiesDirect Support for Students, Teachers, & Parents• Crafted and Implemented Individual Education Programs for students with a range of disabilities, most commonly: Communication Disorders, Learning Disabilities, Emotional Disturbance, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Hearing Impairments