The following speakers have confirmed their attendance at the Whole Schooling Conference 2005. Click on the names for biographical details:
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS:
BREAKOUT SESSIONS:
Speaker bio-notes
Vicki Barnitt has devoted her 24 year education career to making the world a better place for children with disabilities and their families. After a decade of teaching and providing job placement services for students with disabilities, she earned a Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling at the University of South Florida. In 1994, Vicki became one of the founding members of the Florida Inclusion Network (FIN). Currently in its tenth year, the mission of FIN is to provide support and assistance to educators and families as they promote, develop, and implement inclusive opportunities for all children with disabilities in our schools and communities. Vicki currently serves FIN as the statewide Coordinator for Product Development, creating products and training programs to assist families and educators as they work together to expand and successfully implement inclusive programs. While working with FIN, her greatest reward has been witnessing the improved quality of life for children with disabilities and their families as they become valued and complete members of each classroom, school, and community. Vicki is inspired by all who work tirelessly to make a difference in the lives of children and adults with disabilities!
Denis Bell is the Board President of the Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network (PLAN) Edmonton. He has been involved in social and health services for over forty years in three Canadian provinces. His areas of involvement have included child welfare, young offenders, persons with disabilities, First Nations community development and palliative care. Management, counselling, training, teaching and consulting have been roles undertaken by Denis over the course of his career. He has a Masters Degree in Social Work from Carleton University and a Masters Degree in Public Administration for the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. PLAN Edmonton assists families to plan a safe and secure future for their relatives with a disability. It is one of nine Canadian affiliates of the Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network in British Columbia. Denis is the father of four children, the youngest of which has a developmental disability. He and his wife, Kathie, along with several other parents, are founding members of the PLAN Edmonton organization.
Billie Jo Clausen, Sandy, Oregon, is an early childhood specialist who teaches an integrated preschool classroom at Shaver Elementary School, Parkrose School District, Portland, Oregon each morning, and provides supports to babies and their families who qualify for special education service each afternoon for Multnomah Early Childhood Program. She believes in inclusive homes, schools and communities and the power of positive supports via teaming. Michael and Billie Jo are advocates for practical supports to benefit all members of each family, classroom or student body as they have 6 children of their own and know that if it's not practical, it's not useful!!
Michael J. Delaney, M.S., M.S., Sandy, Oregon, believes in and supports children with the most extreme behavior challenges and the entire spectrum of special education labels. Michael shares strategies, skills and resources daily as behavior consultant for Multnomah Education Service District, Portland, Oregon, serving 8 local school districts. Inclusive homes, schools and communities for all children through positive supports and team efforts has been his quest for many years, especially those children who express themselves through behavior challenges. Michael has spoken, provided technical assistance and support in many states to a wide variety of audiences (educators, parents, family members and interested others). He has long been part of the National Project for Positive Behavior Supports, along with his wife, Billie Jo.
Janice Fialka is a nationally recognized author, lecturer, and trainer. She has presented in 25 states and in Canada for school districts, health care and human service agencies, parent groups, and national and state conferences on the topic of parent-professional partnership, inclusive education, and postsecondary education. In her partnership training "The Dance of Partnership: Why do my feet hurt?" she explores the unique dimensions which complicate the working relationships between parents and professionals and offers insights on ways to strengthen this working alliance.
Janice speaks from her unique vantage point as a mother of a son with special needs and as an experienced social worker for over 30 years. She has published articles in Young Exceptional Children and has published two books, It Matters: Lessons from my son (which includes her much published "Advise to Professionals who must conference cases") and Do You Hear What I Hear? Parents and professionals working together for children with special needs (co-authored with Karen Mikus). Many of her poems and essays have been reprinted in numerous publications, newsletters, and text books. Ms. Fialka co-founded the Taylor Teen Health Center and has taught in the School of Social Work at Wayne State University. Currently she is a state-trainer with Michigan’s Early On Training and Technical Assistance, Part C of IDEA.
Janice has also presents with her son, Micah on the topic of "The Power of Peer Support: Making Inclusion work in high school." and “Opening New Doors: Post Secondary Education for Students with Cognitive Disabilities” and she facilitates sibshops with her 16 year old daughter, Emma. Janice believes that strengthening the parent-professional partnership is an essential aspect to helping children achieve their greatest potential. For more information, go to www.danceofpartnership.com.
Micah Fialka-Feldman. I am 20 years old. I am attending Oakland University in Michigan as a public school student (I have an IEP). I have some learning needs but I can do lots of thinks like sit-in on college classes and be a Board member of a national youth advocacy group called Kids as Self Advocates (KASA) (www.fvkasa.org) I am a good advocate for friends of mine. I was selected to attend the National Youth Leadership Forum (2002) and the Michigan Youth Leadership Forum (2001). I helped organize the first annual Disability Pride Parade in 2004 in Chicago. I graduated in June of 2004 from Michigan Partners in Policymaking. In high school, I received my Varsity Letter in Cross Country and was on the Homecoming Court. At Oakland University I am taking classes in sociology, political science, group communication, and computers as well as attending a reading lab. I will have an article in a new book published by AHEAD (www.ahead.org) about students with disabilities’ first year in college. I have had two articles published in Inclusion News (www.inclusion.com). I was selected to receive the Michigan CEC (Council on Exceptional Children) “Yes I Can” award for my self advocacy. I speak at many conferences, including, TASH, Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), International Parent to Parent, and at university classes. I have a great smile and I like speaking to groups!
Rich Gibson of San Diego State now studies three related questions of pedagogy and social practice: (1) in societies increasingly regimented by demands for low cost productivity and perpetual war, how can we as teachers keep our ideals and still teach? (2) When oppression in schools and out is so abundantly obvious, and when it is clear that out of school oppression is related to in school oppression, why is it that servitude remains mainly voluntary? (3) Since a century of revolutionary change, much of it focused on changing minds following mass sacrifices during upheavals, clearly failed, what is it that we all need to know, and how do we need to come to know it, in order to lead reasonably free, creative, caring, connected lives?
Chris Horrocks is a Learning Support Teacher at Halls Prairie Elementary in Surrey British Columbia. He is also a half time faculty at Douglas College in the faculty of Child, Family and Community Studies in New Westminster , British Columbia as well as a sessional lecturer in inclusive education practice at the University of British Columbia in the Faculty of Educational Psychology and Special Education.
Anne Hughson, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in Community Rehabilitation and Disability Studies, Faculty of Education, University of Calgary and a Chartered Psychologist. Anne has an extensive background in working directly with families and individuals with development disabilities, in particular in addressing issues of abuse and sexual assault. She is a recipient of the Faculty of Education Excellence in Teaching Award and the author and co-author of a number of texts and many chapters and articles on a wide range of disability-related subjects. She has lectured and taught in many countries. As a researcher in disability studies and a teacher in program evaluation her work is grounded in the lived experiences of people with developmental disabilities and their families.
Anne was instrumental in developing the Inclusive Education Summer Institute in cooperation with the Universities of Calgary and Alberta. She has taught courses in inclusive education at the Institute for more than 10 years, has been a consultant to school and school districts and the judicial system on inclusive education and an advocate for families and quality education for all. Anne also played a key role in developing inclusive post-secondary education in Alberta and in particular at the University of Calgary where she currently serves as Vice-President of the Varsity Education initiative.
Dr. Hughson has a long history of voluntary work with the Alberta Association for Community Living most recently as the co-developer and facilitator of the Association’s internationally recognized family leadership series and community inclusion projects in the areas of child welfare and children with disabilities, inclusive education and individualized funding.
When the parents of a friend passed away a few years, Anne assumed responsibility for her friend’s well-being, ensuring that he continues to have the personal advocacy and love he requires to have a good life in community.
Andrew Johnson is professor and chair of the Department of Educational Studies: Special Populations at Minnesota State University, Mankato in Mankato, Minnesota. He specializes in holistic education, spiritual intelligence, literacy instruction, strategies for the inclusive classroom, and gifted education. He is also Co-Director of the Center for Talent Development where he teaches courses related to gifted education. He worked for 9 years in the public schools as a second grade teacher and as a gifted education coordinator before moving into higher education. Currently, his areas of interest include spirituality in education, spiritual intelligence, action research, thinking skills, and academic and creative writing.
David King has been Executive Director of the Public School Boards’ Association of Alberta for more than 15 years. Prior to that (1971 – 1986) he was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Minister of Education (1979 – 1986), and Minister of Technology, Research, and Telecommunications. During his time as Minister of Education, Mr. King introduced the Designated Community School Program, program funding for Native Education, the Provincial Diploma Exams and Provincial Achievement Tests, the Council on Alberta Teaching Standards, and elected trustees for the Northland School Division, as well as other initiatives. Mr. King is married to one of the five best grade one teachers in North America: they have three sons and six grandchildren.
In the late 1980s, Chris Kliewer taught young children labeled with autism in a segregated school in Illinois before moving to Syracuse, NY, where he discovered inclusive education in the form of the Jowonio School, an early childhood center where all children learn together. After teaching at Jowonio for three years, Chris entered the doctoral program in Teaching & Leadership at Syracuse University. He worked closely with Professor Doug Biklen, his advisor, and began his ethnographic studies of early literacy. On graduating in 1995, Chris took his current position at the University of Northern Iowa where he has continued to research literacy development in inclusive early childhood programs. He is currently project director for a Federal Department of Education Research Grant on the development of early literacy skills in young children with significant disabilities in inclusive classrooms. His work has appeared in numerous of the most prestigious education journals including Harvard Educational Review, Exceptional Children, and The Teachers College Record. In addition to his research, Chris teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on school inclusion and literacy & disability.
Paul Kohl brings with him 25 years of work experience with children and adults with disabilities and 15 years as a volunteer community advocate supporting families who want to secure inclusive school placements for their children.
Paul’s volunteer activities in the area of inclusive education includes: being on the board of Community Options, an organization well known for its work in promoting inclusive early childhood education; adult advisor with Gateway Association for Community Living Youth Group; is on the Steering Committee of the Edmonton Regional Coalition for Inclusive Education; and sits on the Inclusion Working Group which Edmonton Public Schools created this year.
Paul presently works for the Office of the Public Guardian in the role of Public Guardian Representative.
My name is Richard Laszlo and I am a PhD student in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University. I have worked for several years with children and youth with various disabilities in and out of school as caregiver, special education assistant and volunteer.
My research and professional interests revolve around the issues and dilemmas of the inclusion of students who have special needs in regular education classrooms; and the roles, skills and agency of teachers and special education assistants need to have in order to create authentic and effective inclusive learning communities.
Carl Leggo is a poet and associate professor in the Department of Language and Literacy Education at the University of British Columbia where he teaches courses in writing and narrative research. His poetry and fiction and scholarly essays have been published in many journals in North America and around the world. He is the author of two collections of poems, titled Growing Up Perpendicular on the Side of a Hill and View from My Mother’s House (both published by Killick Press, St. John’s), as well as a book about reading and teaching poetry, titled Teaching to Wonder: Responding to Poetry in the Secondary Classroom (Pacific Educational Press, Vancouver). When not teaching or writing, he likes biking, running, and walking on the dike in Steveston, British Columbia where he lives joyfully with his wife Lana.
Tim Loreman trained as an elementary teacher at Monash University in Australia prior to receiving a Graduate Diploma of Education and a Masters of Education degree in the areas of special education and integration from Deakin University in Melbourne. His PhD (Monash) dissertation focused on regular classroom inclusion of students with moderate to severe disabilities, with a wider application to teaching diverse learners in general. He has taught in a variety of special and regular classroom settings in both Australia and Canada, and held a tenured position in the Faculty of Education at Monash University until returning to Canada in 2003. Tim is currently Assistant Professor of Education at Concordia University College of Alberta in Canada. Tim's professional interests include educational psychology and elementary education, and his research and publications have been focused largely on the subject of inclusion. Tim's first co-authored book 'Inclusive Education: A practical guide to supporting diversity in the classroom' was published internationally in October 2004.
Judy L. Lupart is a Professor and a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Special Education, beginning January 2003, in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta. She has served as the founding Director of the University of Calgary Centre for Gifted Education, and the founding Editor of the journal Exceptionality Education Canada. Her research, publication and teaching interests include inclusive education and school transformation; cognition, transfer and educational applications; learning disabilities, giftedness and at-risk learners; and girls, women and achievement. She is currently involved in four major research projects on (1) inclusion across the lifespan, (2) mentoring young girls in science and (3) gifted and G/LD and literacy (4) At-risk students in transition from grade 6 to 7.
Pat Maas has been involved with the DDRC Inclusive Schools Initiative for 6 years now, working at all levels of the school system. Her background includes training in environmental design, 12 years as a teacher in the Halton Board of Education in Ontario and 3 years as a curriculum coordinator for the same Board. Pat is skilled in the use of a broad range of instructional strategies including cooperative group learning. She understands differentiated teaching practice and has strong curriculum writing and facilitation skills. Pat also has years of experience working to reach unique learners in inclusive settings in the school system, including youth at risk of drop out or exclusion and youth with a variety of physical and/or developmental disabilities.
Roger Manuel is presently the Student Support Services Co-ordinator at Barrhead Composite High School. Roger has taught for many years in both Elementary and High School as a regular classroom teacher. Roger has his Masters in Education from Lethbridge University.
Roger is a strong advocate for inclusion and both has his feet planted firmly within the regular classroom.
Sigamoney Naicker is currently Director Inclusive Education in South Africa. He also served on the National Commission for Special Education Needs and Education Support Services in South Africa that shaped the development of Education White Paper 6 On Special Education Needs: Building an Inclusive Education and Training System. Prior to this he worked as a teacher, academic at university, and headed up learning support at a provincial level.
Thomas Neuville is an Associate Professor of Education at Millersville University in Millersville, PA. He has more than twenty-five years experience in community and organizational development. As a consultant he is engaged in strategizing, organizing, and creating values-based organizational systems that thrive in rapidly changing business cultures. Dr. Neuville is the former CEO & President of the Resource Exchange in Colorado Springs, the Denver Independent Living Center, the CASSP Institute in Harrisburg, PA., and the Commonwealth Institute in Harrisburg PA. All organizations are non-profit groups dedicated to excellence in the building of strong communities. Dr. Neuville has worked extensively in the area of organizational and community opportunities for sustainable systems. He also owned and operated socially responsible businesses. Dr. Neuville holds a Bachelors degree in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin, a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix and has a Ph.D. in Human Resource and Education from Colorado State University.
Janine Odishaw is currently a PhD student in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta. Prior to commencing her graduate work, Janine taught adolescents with special needs and worked in the community in the area of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). She has presented to various schools and university classes on topics including adolescent development, behaviour management, and FASD. Most recently, Janine has been involved in the development of a FASD prevention curriculum.
Michael Peterson has been Professor in the College of Education, Teacher Education at Wayne State University since 1994 where he teaches courses related to inclusive teaching and transition from school to adult life. From 1988 to 1994 he directed the Developmental Disabilities Institute and co-directed the Michigan Inclusive Education Project, a statewide program to provide training and technical assistance to schools to facilitate movement towards inclusive education. He has more than 30 years experience in wide range of settings and programs working with children and adults with disabilities. He has worked in urban and rural programs and direct teaching experience with both elementary and secondary age students with disabilities.
Michael co-founded and coordinate the Whole Schooling Consortium, an international network of educators, university faculty, parents, and schools devoted to using the Six Principles of Whole Schooling to improve schools. This approach to school improvement sees inclusive education as a central component of effective schooling and teaching. He has published some 80 articles and monographs including, in 2003, Inclusive teaching: Creating effective schools for all learners, published by Allyn and Bacon. He wrote this text collaboratively with his daughter, Mishael Hittie, a 4th grade teacher in Southfield Public Schools from whom he has learned many lessons about inclusive teaching.
He has been married 35 years, has two children ages 30 and 27, and one grandchild 18 months old, Rachel Ellen.
Heather Raymond completed her doctorate at the University of Alberta in 2002. Her topic was inclusive education and the narrative of parents when they seek inclusion for their children with developmental disabilities. Dr. Raymond has presented papers, workshops and taught university courses on the topic of inclusive education in Canada, the U.S.A., Mexico, U.K. and Australia.
Dr. Raymond has been a public school educator for 24 years. Her 24 year teaching career began in the field of special education and has included teaching in many diverse settings which include teaching special education grades 1 to 9, kindergarten, grades 1 to 3, Junior High and in the Caraway program. She has worked for 7 years in the inner city first as assistant principal at McCauley Elementary Junior High School and presently as the principal of Norwood School. Her work at Norwood School reflects her desire to create communities that meet the needs of all children ensuring they have the resources to grow up to be healthy contributing citizens.
Shannon Rentz is a program assistant with many years of in-class experience with a wide variety of student needs in both Junior and Senior High. Shannon has her Teacher Assistant Certificate from Grant McEwan. Shannon is presently the Assistant Student Support Services Co-ordinator at Barrhead Composite High School.
Shannon is a strong advocate for inclusion and both has her feet planted firmly within the regular classroom.
E. Wayne Ross is Professor in the Department of Curriculum Studies at the University of British Columbia. A former secondary social studies teacher and day care worker, he has also taught at the State University of New York and the University of Louisville. He is interested in the influence of social and institutional contexts on teachers’ practice as well as the role of curriculum and teaching in building a democratic society in the face of antidemocratic impulses of greed, individualism, and intolerance. Wayne is a co-founder of The Rouge Forum and author/editor of ten books including: Defending Public Schools, Image and Education, and Democratic Social Education.
Diane Ryndak joined the Department of Special Education at the University of Florida in 1995. As part of the teacher education program Dr. Ryndak teaches courses related to curriculum and instruction for students with moderate to profound disabilities; as part of a state funded project she works with school districts as they develop services for students with moderate to profound disabilities in general education settings in their own neighborhood schools; and she directs a state funded project that supports a multi-university consortium to develop and deliver statewide courses leading to the severe endorsement. Her current research interests include: (a) teacher education; (b) effective services for students with moderate to profound disabilities; (c) the effect of inclusive education on students, families, team members, and schools; (d) collaboration among special and general educators, students, families, related services personnel, and school administrators, for the effective instruction of ALL students in general education settings; and (f) facilitating and evaluating systemic change. In 1999 she was nominated for the research award for the Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps (now Research and Practices for Persons with Severe Disabilities) for a longitudinal case study that investigated the effects of inclusion on a young woman with disabilities over a seven year period.
In addition to teaching, working with schools, and conducting research, Dr. Ryndak is active with professional organizations in various ways. For TASH, Dr. Ryndak co-edited a teacher education special issue of the Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, she is an Associate Editor for Research and Practices for Persons with Severe Disabilities, she has served as chair of the Personnel Preparation Committee and as a member of the Education Committee, Publications Committee, and Conference Planning Committee. For the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, Dr. Ryndak was President of the Florida chapter. Dr. Ryndak also has been an expert witness in due process hearings and class action court cases related to least restrictive environment and educational services for students with moderate to profound disabilities. She recently completed a Fulbright Research Award in Poland, where she studied, and assisted with, the beginning of the transformation of Poland’s educational services for students with severe disabilities from segregated to inclusive settings. This work continues in Poland, where Dr. Ryndak participates in activities periodically through the year.
Keith Samuelson is the Global Educator Co-ordinator at Prince of Wales Collegiate in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Keith has been a teacher, administrator and program co-ordinator for twenty-five years. His deep interest in human rights, international development and global citizenship has been the subject of many articles and presentations at national and international conferences. He has studied at Harvard and McGill Universities and participated in professional development activities in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. This past summer Keith represented Canada as a participant in the Keizai Koho Fellowship Tour of Japan. He is currently the co-ordinator of "The Newfoundland and Labrador Global Education Centre", a Global Classroom Initiative sponsored by the Canadian International Development Agency. His presentation will focus on fostering international understanding by developing partnerships within the community, across the country and around the world.
Leyton Schellert is a Teacher Consultant in Richmond, BC and works with entire schools staffs and study groups exploring assessment and instruction methods that create meaningful and engaging learning experiences for all students. He also works part-time for Simon Fraser University where he supports teachers completing Graduate Diplomas in the areas of Special Education, Diversity and Literacy.
Dick Sobsey is Director of the JP Das Developmental Disabilities Centre at the University of Alberta. He is a Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology and in the John Dossetor Health Ethics Centre. He has worked with children and adults with developmental disabilities since 1968 He has published more than 200 books, chapters and articles related to people with disabilities and has given well over 500 presentations on disability-related topics. He lives in Edmonton with his family, including a 14-year-old son with severe developmental disabilities who is fully included in his community school.
Lynne Tamor holds a doctorate in Reading and Language Development from the University of California at Berkeley, and began her professional career with research interests in the development of literacy, with particular attention to individual differences in both the overall learning process and moment-to-moment cognitive processes. Her two children broadened and changed her focus a great deal: her daughter is “severely gifted” and challenged conventional educational practices throughout her entire K-12 career, while her son has “severe multiple disabilities” and has presented a very different (in some ways) set of challenges to the same educational system. A breakthrough moment came when her son was in grade 3 and the fourth year of “full inclusion”. As children worked on a standardized math worksheet, she watched a classmate seated next to her son notice that her son had dropped his marker. When the classmate picked it up and briefly offered assistance, he was immediately reprimanded by his teacher and admonished to “do your own work!” This moment crystallized a growing conviction that inclusive education has little to do with disability or special education and everything to do with building communities of learners in every classroom.
At that time, Lynne became an organizing member of the fledgling Whole Schooling Consortium, and has since devoted most of her professional time, as well as much personal time, to building and articulating the framework for school renewal called Whole Schooling. At present, she is a part-time faculty member at Wayne State University, a private educational consultant, and a member of advocacy groups including the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council, the Oakland Special Education Parent Advisory Committee, the Oakland Positive Behavior Support Council, the Arc of Oakland County Board of Trustees, and the Michigan Network for Inclusive Schooling.
Bruce Uditsky, M.Ed., is currently the Executive Director of the Alberta Association for Community Living (AACL). Bruce has been invited to speak and consult on a wide variety of disability practice and research issues in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Australia and Europe. Bruce is also the author of numerous writings on community inclusion and social justice.
As a result of Bruce’s leadership, AACL is recognized internationally as one of the most successful and powerful grassroots family advocacy organizations. AACL has spearheaded the development and implementation of significant provincial legislation that promotes inclusion and ensures families and children and adults with developmental disabilities have access to funding and supports. Other accomplishments to which Bruce has been instrumental include the development of a leadership series for families and the address of children with disabilities in the child welfare system. Bruce is a member of many government and community organizations and committees, including the Special Education Advisory Committee to Alberta Learning. Bruce was instrumental in developing Alberta’s policy on the placement of students with disabilities which mandates the inclusive classroom as the primary placement option. Bruce has conducted numerous workshops on inclusive education, consulted to schools and school districts and has extensive advocacy experience in securing inclusive education for students with developmental disabilities.
Bruce is a former Board member of the Roeher Institute, Canada’s research and social policy institute on developmental disabilities and continues to serve on a wide variety of government task forces and committees. He was a founding member and first Co-Chair of the Alberta Disabilities Forum, a federation of provincial organizations representing persons with disabilities. Bruce has also been instrumental in the development of a number of unique and innovative community programs for children and adults with developmental disabilities including a region-wide inclusive early childhood service system and inclusive post-secondary options at universities, colleges and technical institutes.
Bruce is an Adjunct Professor, Community Rehabilitation and Disability Studies, Faculty of Education, University of Calgary. He has been recognized for his public advocacy on behalf of people with disabilities as the recipient of the Capital Communicator of the Year Award, International Association of Business Communicators.
Bruce has a Master's Degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Alberta and is completing his Doctorate in Educational Psychology. He is the parent of two adult children, one of whom is adopted and has developmental disabilities.
Jessica Whitley is a doctoral student in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta. Her background includes teaching students with special needs, particularly those with ADHD. She is studying with Dr. Judy Lupart in the area of Inclusive Education and is currently creating a model of achievement for students with learning disabilities for her dissertation. Her research interests include school reform, effective inclusive practices and students at-risk.