Presenters 2017

Alison Gass

• Teacher | Hutto ISD | Farley Middle School

Alison Gass has worked in public education for 14 years. She is also a foster provider for 3 special needs adult men in her home.

Alyse Cordeli

• Teacher | Eanes ISD | Valley View Elementary

Alyse has a Master's in Special Education from Cambridge College in Boston, Mass. Teacher of the year for Valley View Elementary 2015-2016. Has taught life skills in Eanes since 2009.

Amanda Armstrong

• Teacher | Hutto ISD | Farley Middle School

Amanda Armstrong has worked in education field for 10 years. She worked at the Texas Lions Camp where she worked with physical disabilities.

Ann Jacobson

• Coordinator: Special Education | ESC Region 13

Ann Jacobson is a Coordinator for the Special Education Team at ESC Region 13. Her experience includes teaching students from PPCD through middle school and working as a district autism specialist. She is a Master Reading Teacher and has been an instructor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Texas State University.

Beverly Kit Bianchini

• Teacher | Lago Vista ISD | Lago Vista Middle School

Beverly Kit Bianchini is a life skills teacher at Lago Vista Middle School by day and an autism mom of two spectrum boys nights and weekends. She has a B.A. in Humanities from Dominican University of California, an M.A. in Liberal Studies from Valparaiso University, and teacher certification through the Texas Teachers Alternative Certification Program. She is tired, but happy to be here.

Christine Reeve, PhD, BCBA-D

• Consultant | Reeve Autism Consulting

Christine Reeve, PhD, BCBA-D, has almost 30 years of professional experience in a variety of settings, including community outreach, academic, education, and clinic settings serving individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities. Christine provides consultation and training on classroom design, educational programming, assessing and intervening with challenging behaviors, and applied behavior analysis teaching strategies, and she creates educational materials for special education classrooms. She serves as a reviewer for two professional journals. Christine has also authored several books for children and is the co-author of Setting up Classroom Spaces That Support Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Building Independence: Structured Work Systems for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders, and Taming the Data Monster: Collecting and Analyzing Classroom Data to Improve Student Progress. She maintains an active website for teachers serving students in special education, Autism Classroom News and Resources.

Cindy Miller, MS

Cindy R. Miller, M.S. has been a special educator for twenty-eight years, working with students with unique needs, their teachers, assistants, parents, and community providers. She graduated from Texas Tech University with a B.S. in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education and certification in Special Education, Deaf Hard of Hearing, Early Childhood Education, and Early Childhood Handicapped Education. Ms. Miller later received her M.S. in Visually Impaired Education and certification in Blind and Visually Impaired Education, also from Texas Tech University. She has worked with diverse populations and programs as a Classroom Teacher, Itinerant (consulting) Teacher, and Assistive Technology Specialist. She has also worked for many years as an Educational Specialist, Consultant and Trainer in the areas of Assistive Technology, Low Incidence Disabilities, Related Services, and Deaf Education. Ms. Miller has served on the statewide networks for special education in Texas including, Assistive Technology, Low Incidence Disabilities, and Deaf Hard of Hearing.

As the Director of Moth Educational Consulting, Ms. Miller currently provides support and training to school personnel, administration, and parents, as well as those in the community who provide support and services for people with special needs and their families through consultation, classroom support and training in school districts, living centers, group homes, and conferences.

Dan Habib

• Documentary Filmmaker | Institute on Disability | University of New Hampshire

Dan is a filmmaker on disability-related topics at the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability. He is the creator of award-winning documentaries such as Including Samuel, Who Cares about Kelsey?, and others. Both Including Samuel and Who Cares about Kelsey? were aired on public televisions stations and they were both nominated for Emmy awards.

Before going to the University of New Hampshire, he was a photography editor of the Concord Monitor. His freelance work has appeared in Time, Newsweek and the New York Times. He has received numerous awards for his work. In 2014, he was appointed by President Barak Obama to the President’s Committee for People with Disabilities.

Dan and his wife, Betsy, call Concord, New Hampshire home. They live their with their sons Isiah and Samuel.

Darcy Schiller

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 13

Darcy Schiller is an Autism Education Specialist at the Education Service Center, Region 13. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Special Education and Elementary Education (dual-certification) and her M.S. in Psychology. Darcy has 18 years of experience working in Hawaii, Guam, Indiana, and Texas. She has worked with students ages 2 to adult as a Special Education teacher, Family Literacy teacher, Adjunct Professor, and Autism Specialist.

David Wiley

• Transition Specialist | Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired

David Wiley has been working with students with deafblindness since 1985. For over 20 years he has been the Transition Specialist for the Texas Deafblind Project. In this role, he provides information and training about deafblindness to schools, agencies, and families of children who are deafblind. In addition, he has been co-editor of the Project’s publication, TX SenseAbilities. The Project offices are at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Austin.

Deborrah Gauntlett

• Teacher of the Visually Impaired | San Marcos CISD

Deborrah S. Gauntlett- BA, Texas State University; MS, Texas Woman’s University; Special Education Teacher Certification (EC-12) and General Education Teacher Certification (EC-4), Educator Certification Program ESC 13; Teacher of Students with Visual Impairment (TVI) Certification, Texas Tech University. PPCD teacher for eight years with Bastrop ISD. Third year as a TVI for San Marcos CISD. Married, mother of 5, grandmother of 19. Developed “Roll into Reading” program while working with Diana Hiebeler & Forrest Hancock.

Debra Leff

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 13

Debra is a long- term TVI who has worked with many types of students over her career. She prides herself in being able to find a spark in every child.

Diana Hiebeler

• Occupational Therapist, Registered | Leander ISD

Diana is an Occupational Therapist (OT) currently working at Leander ISD where she uses literacy-based motor groups with three PPCD/ELE/ESLE classes. She also works part time at Capital Therapy Group. Her caseload includes children with a variety of disabilities whose ages range from 3 to 14 years. Diana has worked with infants, toddlers, and families in Early Childhood Intervention (ECI); preschool-age children in Preschool Programs for Children with Disabilities (PPCD); and school-age children. She has an undergraduate degree in OT from Ohio State and a masters degree in OT from New York University.

Diane Sheline, TVI

Diane Sheline, TVI and author of Strategies to See, has worked in the field of education for over 30 years, however, her focus for the past 14 years has been on identification, evaluation and program planning for students with Cerebral/Cortical Visual Impairment. Determining child specific strategies which encourage more efficient and consistent use of vision is an area that she is especially passionate about and this is reflected at her website www.strategytosee.com. She currently provides independent consultation for local school districts and private evaluations for students of all ages with CVI, in addition to conducting teacher trainings and parent seminars on CVI throughout the US. She has especially enjoyed working closely with TSBVI on projects such as a yearly CVI Clinic and creating videos of CVI-friendly strategies and interventions (as part of their CVI Web Exercise). She is a regular contributor the the Paths to Literacy Blog sponsored by Perkins School for the Blind. She currently resides in the greater Houston area.

Forrest Hancock

• Early Childhood Consultant

Forrest brings a wealth of experience to her work as an early childhood consultant. She has been a classroom teacher, resource teacher, mental health consultant, and university lecturer. She was an education specialist: PPCD at ESC Region 13 from 1993-2001. She has consulted for Head Start, local education agencies, PPCD, and ECI. She was a contributing author for Transdisciplinary Play-based Intervention I (2nd Ed). She has collaborated with Deborah Gauntlett and Diana Hiebeler to write a manual that includes literacy-based motor activities and that explains their techniques and view about integrating literacy and motor skills.

Hollie Descheneaux

• Speech Language Pathologist | Eanes ISD

A speech language pathologist for 15 years. I have worked mainly with children in a private practice, ECI and schools. I am passionate about communication!

Joanna Ryan, MS, BCBA

• Doctoral Candidate | University of Utah

Joanna is working on her PhD in Special Education through a USDOE, Office of Special Education Programs Leadership Education Program Grant at the University of Utah. She worked as an Education Specialist at ESC Region 13 providing professional development workshops and program support for Central Texas educators serving students with moderate to severe cognitive disabilities. She has worked in local public schools as a paraeducator, teacher, and district low incidence disability specialist. She is a BCBA, and loves to develop and share tools that help educators use evidence-based practices and data-driven decision making in their daily practice.

Julie Atchley

• Director of Federal Programs & Special Services | NYOS Charter School

Julie Atchley joined NYOS in 2005 and served as the middle school/high school principal for seven years. She has more than 25 years of experience in education -- 19 years in administrative leadership. She holds a Master’s degree in Educational Administration from Texas State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Oklahoma State University.

Katie Adams, SLP-CCC

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 13

Katie Adams, SLP-CCC, is one of the PPCD Educational Specialist at Region 13 ESC. She obtained her Masters in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Texas at Dallas and served as a Speech-Language Pathologist in the public schools system for 10 years at the Clerc Center at Gallaudet University and Round Rock ISD.

Kathy Palomo

• Special Education Social Services Specialist | Austin ISD

Kathy Palomo is an expert in special education, a life coach for parents and professionals who support individuals with disabilities, and a believer in self-care of mind, body, and soul. She coordinates special education focused parent and family engagement events for Austin ISD, serves as the President of the Board for the Autism Society of Texas and continues to have a successful private practice.

Katlyn Rateau

• Teacher | Bastrop ISD | Emile Elementary School

I am Katlyn Rateau originally from Plano, TX. In 2014, I graduated from Texas State University, with my Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies. I am currently completing my 3rd year teaching. This will be ending my second year teaching within PPCD. I also am still continuing my education as an ASL interpreter. I am very passionate about Special education and love finding ways to grow with in.

Kelcey Williams

• Teacher | Del Valle ISD | Del Valle High School

Kelcey Williams is a Life Skills Teacher of six years in Del Valle ISD. Ms. Williams lives and breaths inclusion. She coordinated a peer assistance program at her school. Ms. Williams serves as the Sponsor of the Sparkle Cheer Squad at Del Valle High School.

Lisa Rukovena

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 13

Lisa Rukovena, CCC/SLP is the Education Specialist for Speech-Language Pathology and Bilingual Special Education at the Education Service Center, Region 13. After receiving her M.A. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from UT Austin, Lisa entered the public schools as a campus-based SLP and later took on an administrative role. Her primary professional goal is to afford students of all origins and abilities the power that accompanies self-expression.

Lynn Hilferty

• Teacher | Manor ISD | Manor Middle School

I have a life-long connection to special education. I have taught Life Skills, Functional Academics, founded an arts program for adults with significant disabilities and raised an Autistic son. My philosophy is that all children can learn, just not all the same way. With over 25 years experience in education, learning how to build comprehensive and thoughtful programs for our significantly disabled students continues to excite me. I welcome the opportunity to share what I have learned so far.

Madeleine Williams

• Teacher | Round Rock ISD | McNeil High School

Madeleine Williams has been the Functional Learning Class teacher at McNeil High School for 5 years. She received a B.A. in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, an M.A. in Rhetoric from the University of California—Berkeley, and teacher certification training at the Region 13 Educator Certification Program.

Mariah Lossing

• Program Director | ACC STEPS

Mariah is a graduate of Antioch College in Ohio and is originally from St. Paul, Minnesota. She relocated with her family to Austin, TX in 2004. Mariah Lossing has been with the STEPS Program for the past 10 years and took over as Program Director in 2009, starting with a small class of four students. Seeing the need to provide more options to students with ID/DD she moved to change the program to provide more comprehensive services which is now aptly named, STEPS; Skills, Training and Education for Personal Success.

Marla Williams, SLP-CCC

• Speech Language Pathologist | Eanes ISD | Valley View Elementary

Graduate from Stephen F Austin State University with a M.S. of Speech Language Pathology. Speech Pathologist for Eanes ISD(Valley View Elementary) for since 2014.

Noelia Perez

• General Specialist | ESC Region 1

Noelia C. Perez has worked in education for the past 20 years. All of her years teaching were in the secondary level as a co-teacher, resource teacher, behavior unit teacher and VAC coordinator. In addition to those years she was a Special Education department chair and currently holds a master’s degree in educational leadership. Over the years she has had many roles and responsibilities which have led her to the Region 1 Education Service Center.

Peggy Wolf

• Education Manager | Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas

I am currently the Education Manager for the Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas. I provide support and training to parents and to teachers. I was a special education teacher and district support person for all grade levels in Round Rock ISD for 20 years. I supported students with a variety of eligibilities and placements. I also served on the district Transition team. Before that I taught 4 years as a general education teacher in high school.

Rachel Skov

• Teacher | Round Rock ISD | Stoney Point High School

I went to art school originally, but found myself substitute teaching in a special education classroom and loving it. I worked for a year as a substitute, a year as a paraprofessional working with life skills high school students, and a year as a Science Inclusion teacher. This year was my first year teaching High School Life Skills (Functional Academic Class), so I am by no means an expert. I am learning right along with everyone else, but I can definitely share what has been working in my classroom when it comes to our teenage special education students and fostering independence to meet their transitional needs.

Randy Foederer, CAPE

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 10

Randy is a certified Adapted Physical Educator (CAPE) and is the Adapted Physical Education Consultant at Region 10 Education Service Center. Has has been working in this capacity for over 25 years. Randy has been the Area 10 Competition Director, as well as, a trainer for Special Olympics.

Rebecca Bilyeu

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 18

Rebecca Bilyeu, B.S., M.Ed., is an educational consultant for Region 18 Education Service Center. She is the Region 18 autism and low-incidence disabilities specialist. She provides training and consultation to school personnel, parents and community members on autism spectrum disorder as well as low incidence disabilities. She is a member of the Legal Framework team, providing training to educators on the use of the Legal Framework tool. Rebecca’s background includes special education teacher, district autism specialist, and district autism in-home/parent trainer.

Rosemary Alexander

• Pathways to Adulthood | Texas Parent to Parent

Rosemary Alexander, PhD, has worked with families of children with disabilities for nearly 30 years, most recently at Austin ISD as a Family Liaison. She now works for Texas Parent to Parent's Pathways to Adulthood program, with a focus on helping families develop high quality lives for their children after graduation. Her experience as the parent of a 33-year old son with significant disabilities inspires all her work with families and professionals.

Shana Green

• Coach | Del Valle ISD | Del Valle High School

Shana Green is the Del Valle High School cheer coach. Her ambitious ideas led to the development of the Sparkle Cheer Squad. She also coaches Varsity and Junior Varsity squads. Coach Green is the heart and soul of the squad and school.

Shannon Paige, MA, CCC-SLP

• Education Specialist | ESC Region 4

Shannon has worked in the area of AAC for over 15 years. She is currently employed by Region 4 ESC as education consultant.

Vicki Mason-Foederer, CAPE

Vicki Foederer is a Certified Adapted Physical Educator (C.A.P.E.) who has worked as an APE lead in several Texas school districts for over 15 years. Vicki is a trainer for Special Olympics and presents for TWU’s APE program. Additionally, Vicki is a frequent presenter at statewide conferences and Education Service Centers on best-practices in adapted physical education.

Vickie Mitchell, PhD

Dr. Mitchell has been in education over 38 years, ten years as a secondary general education teacher and over 28 years as a special educator in both elementary and secondary schools. She has been a special education administrator, transition specialist, taught at two Texas universities, and served as the Transition Specialist at Region IV Education Service Center in Houston, Texas. Although Dr. Mitchell has been intricately involved in inclusion and training research-based inclusive practices, her love is transition services. Her partner of many years is her daughter, Beth Mitchell Panter They are the authors of the student and teacher editions of “The Student-Led IEP Meeting” and the companion teacher training guide to help district and campus-level educators learn how to organize and implement student, parent, and teacher training on Student-Led IEP Meetings. Dr. Mitchell is the President of the Texas Division of Career Development and Transition (DCDT) and was appointed by past-governor George W. Bush and Governor Rick Perry to the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities. Vickie and Beth’s lasted publication, “Student-to-Student”, is a trainer of trainers model for students who have led their IEP Meeting to become trainers of other students, served by special education, on the Student-Led IEP model.