2013 University of Louisville Special Education Conference Speakers

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Erik Carter

Erik Carter is an Associate Professor in the Department Special Education at Vanderbilt University. His research and teaching focuses on evidence-based strategies for supporting access to the general curriculum and promoting valued roles in school, work, and community settings for children and adults with intellectual disability, autism, and other developmental disabilities. He has published widely in the areas of educational and transition services for children and youth with severe disabilities. His most recent books are The New Transition Handbook: Strategies High School Teachers Use that Work (Brookes Publishing), Peer Support Strategies: Improving All Student’s Social Lives and Learning (Brookes Publishing), and Peer Buddy Programs for Successful Secondary School Inclusion (Brookes Publishing).

Jill Cook

Jill Cook is a Behavior Interventionist in Campbell County Schools where she provides extensive training, daily direct support, and model teaches for teachers administrators and students identified with autism spectrum disorder, moderate and severe disabilities, and students with emotional behavior disabilities. She received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Kentucky in Special Education, Elementary Education and Early Childhood/Special Education. Additionally, she is Nationally Board Certified as an Exceptional Needs Specialist. Mrs. Cook has worked in this field for over twenty years. During this time, she has been the lead teacher in several different classrooms including students with autism spectrum disorder and preschool. She has developed effective programming strategies to meet the individual needs of this unique population.

Justin T. Cooper, M.Ed.

Justin T. Cooper is an Assistant Professor of Learning and Behavioral Disorders in the Department of Special Education at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky. He received his Ed.D. in learning and behavioral disorders from the University of Kentucky, his M.Ed. in special education from the University of Southern Mississippi, and his B.S in elementary and special education from Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. He has been a special education classroom teacher in Utah, Wyoming, and Florida, working primarily with elementary and middle school students who have learning disabilities and emotional and behavioral disorders. Dr. Cooper has provided training and professional development to classroom teachers on a variety of topics related to academic instruction and behavior management techniques. His interests include instructional interventions to improve the academic and social-behavioral success of students with disabilities, academic and behavioral response to intervention, and the postsecondary success of students with disabilities.

Ginevera Courtade, Ph.D.

Dr. Ginevera Courtade is an assistant professor in Special Education at the University of Louisville. Her research focuses on teaching academics to students with moderate/ severe intellectual disability.

Monica Delano, Ph.D.

Dr. Monica Delano is an associate professor of Special Education at the University of Louisville. Prior to earning her doctorate, Dr. Delano spent over fifteen years working with individuals with disabilities as a behavioral consultant and a public school teacher. Her research focuses on social and academic supports for individuals with ASD. Dr. Delano frequently publishes in scholarly journals and presents at national conferences. The Council for Exceptional Children recently published her book, A Guide to Teaching Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Dr. Delano serves on the editorial board of Research and Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities.

Laura Ferguson, M.Ed., BCBA

Laura Ferguson received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Louisville. During her undergraduate years she began working in homes providing one on one therapy to children with Autism. She then went on to get her Master’s in Education with an emphasis in Autism from the University of Louisville. She continued to work in homes providing therapy, training staff, and consulting with families. In 2010 Laura became a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). After receiving her BCBA she moved to New York to work as an instructor at the Carbone Clinic. Currently she serves as a field training coordinator at the Kentucky Autism Training Center.

Trisha Gallagher, Ed.D.

Trisha Gallagher, autism specialist for Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS), earned a B.S. in Psychology from Penn State, M.Ed. In Special Education from West Chester University, and Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Organization Development from University of Louisville. Dr. Gallagher’s dissertation analyzed the social networks of parents of children with autism. She has worked specifically with children with autism since 1997. Dr. Gallagher has held the positions of classroom teacher, program coordinator, consultant, and specialist. Currently, she supervises programming for children with autism in all types of placements and trains school personnel in Evidence Based Practices (EBPs) for students with autism. As a member of the state autism team, Dr. Gallagher, assisted in the development of the KY Parent Guide for Autism, coordinated the first model classrooms in KY for the state partnership with the National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorders, and trains a cadre of 40 professionals on EBPs for students with autism in JCPS. Recently, Dr. Gallagher reviewed research for the next round of EBPs released by the National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Karen Karp

Karen S. Karp is a professor of mathematics education at the University of Louisville (Kentucky). Prior to entering the field of teacher education. She was an elementary school teacher in New York. Karen is a co- author of Feisty Females: Inspiring Girls to Think Mathematically, which is aligned with her research interests on teaching mathematics to diverse populations. With Jennifer, Karen co edited Growing Professionally: Readings from NCTM Publications for Grades K–8 and co-authored (along with Janet Caldwell) Developing Essential Understanding of Addition and Subtraction for Teaching Mathematics in Pre-K thru Grade 2. She is a former member of the board of directors of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and a former president of the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (AMTE). She continues to work in classrooms with elementary and middle school teachers and with teachers at all levels who work with students with disabilities.

Timothy J. Landrum, PhD

Timothy J. Landrum, PhD, is a faculty member and Chair of the Department of Special Education at the University of Louisville. Prior to more than 20 years in higher education, he taught students with autism in a residential facility and students with emotional and behavioral disorders in public schools. He has published more than 70 articles, chapters, and books, including co-authoring (with James M. Kauffman) the leading textbook "Characteristics of emotional and behavioral disorders of children and youth," now in its tenth edition. Most of his work focuses on emotional and behavioral disorders, classroom and behavior management, or the translation of research into practice.

Kathleen Lynne Lane, Ph.D.

Kathleen Lynne Lane is a Professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Kansas. Prior to entering academia, Dr. Lane served as a classroom teacher of general and special education students for five years and a Program Specialists for two years. Dr. Lane’s research interests focus on school-based interventions (academic and behavioral) with students at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), with an emphasis on systematic screenings to detect students with behavioral challenges at the earliest possible juncture. She has designed, implemented, and evaluated comprehensive, integrated, three-tiered (CI3T) models of prevention in elementary, middle, and high school settings to (a) prevent the development of learning and behavior challenges and (b) responding to existing instances. Dr. Lane served as the primary investigator of state-funded and federally-funded projects. She is the co-editor of Remedial and Special Education. Dr. Lane has co-authored five books and published over 120 refereed journal articles and 23 book chapters.

Amy Lingo, Ed.D.

Dr. Lingo is an associate professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning at the University of Louisville and holds an Ed.D. from the University of Kentucky (2003). Prior to earning her doctorate, Dr. Lingo spent 4 years as a teacher in Fayette County public schools teaching students with learning disabilities and emotional and behavioral disorders in general education and special education settings. Her primary areas of interest involve Response to Intervention, Reading and Math interventions, and teacher preparation. Dr. Lingo has multiple published articles on a variety of issues in the areas reading and math intervention. She is currently the Co-Principal Investigator of Project ABRI at the University of Louisville.

Debra Myers

Debra has over 20 years’ experience in special education, positive behavioral supports, and psychological assessment. Ms. Myers has worked with students and adults with various developmental disabilities in educational and residential settings, especially those with autism. She has served as a behavior specialist and developed behavior support plans and monitored implementation. Ms. Myers is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst.

Robert Pennington PhD, BCBA-D

Robert Pennington PhD, BCBA-D is an assistant professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Louisville and a board certified behavior analyst. He received his Doctoral degree at the University of Kentucky where he studied behavior analytic teaching procedures for establishing communicative repertoires in persons with intellectual disabilities and autism. Additionally, he has over 20 years of clinical experience in home, school, and vocational settings. Recently, he has served as the executive director of the Kentucky Autism Training Center and managed several projects in collaboration with the Kentucky Department of Education. Robert has published several peer-reviewed journal articles and often serves as a reviewer for research outlets (i.e., journals, conferences). He has published book chapters related to autism treatment and presents frequently at national and regional conferences. Robert’s current interests are in the behavioral application of technology to increase communicative competence in persons with ASD/ID and the assessment of school programs for students with ASD.

Terrance M. Scott, Ph.D.

Terrance M. Scott, Ph.D. is a Professor and Distinguished University Scholar at the University of Louisville. He received his Ph.D. at the University of Oregon and has done research and training related to PBIS and management of challenging behavior across the US, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. His interests focus on effective systems to provide preventative instruction and management for students in school settings.

Julie Stewart, M.Ed.

Julie Stewart graduated from Berea College with a Bachelor’s degree in Child and Family Studies with an emphasis in Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education. Following graduation she was the lead preschool teacher at Paris Elementary, a program supporting students with and without disabilities, for two years. The next step in her professional career Julie attended graduate school full time at the University of Washington—Seattle, graduating with her M.Ed. in Early Childhood Special Education. While a graduate student, Julie, worked in a variety of early childhood classrooms, although most of her time was spent working in the Project DATA (Developmentally Appropriate Treatment for Autism) program. This program was a behaviorally based extended school-day program for preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Also while in Seattle, Julie worked as an in-home behavior therapist for a family of atoddler with autism. Currently Julie is pursuing a teaching certification in moderate to severe disabilities at the University of Kentucky. In her role at the KATC, Julie provides direct training and technical assistance to education staff, social and community personnel, counselors, job coaches and families.

Chris A. Sweigart

Chris A. Sweigart is a doctoral student in the Department of Special Education at the University of Louisville. Prior to doctoral studies, he taught middle school students with emotional and behavioral disabilities and also worked as a program manager for homeless young adults and teenagers with disabilities.