From 2005 to 2007, Edward J. Kame’enui, Ph.D., served as the first commissioner of the National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) in the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), which serves as the research and statistical arm of the U. S. Department of Education.

Edward Kame'enui has spoken at the White House on beginning reading, participated in round tables and panel discussions with Mrs. Bush, and more recently represented the U.S. Department of Education at conferences in Paris and Qatar. He has served on the advisory boards for the PBS television show “Between the Lions" and WETA’s “Reading Rockets.”

Kame’enui has co-authored more than a dozen college textbooks on topics related to teaching reading, curriculum design, and managing classroom behavior. He has published more than 130 research journal articles and book chapters. His areas of research and teaching include early literacy and language development, school-wide reading improvement, the design of high quality educational materials, learning disabilities, vocabulary development, and the architecture of instruction.

Prior to joining the faculty at UConn, Dr. Simonsen was the director of the Solano Campus of Spectrum Center--a school in the San Francisco Bay Area dedicated to serving students with disabilities who present with challenging educational and behavioral needs. She has also conducted research on AD/HD, consulted with schools and school districts, taught at the University level, and directed Therapeutic Recreation Centers.

Keith Lenz is the executive director for the Strategic Learning Center and is also a senior research scientist at the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning. Keith is an expert in the field of developing educational programs that can help all youth. He has directed over 10 million research and development dollars to develop programs and training and has written over 100 books, chapters, and research articles for teachers and program developers. Keith earned his undergraduate degree and Master’s degree at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. He received his Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of Kansas in 1983.

Dr. Carol Sadler has been a school psychologist and district administrator in Tigard-Tualatin School District, near Portland, Oregon, for 23 years.  She led and sustained the district’s implementation of Effective Behavior Support (aka Positive Behavior Support) for 10 years, and developed and directed the implementation of Effective Behavior and Instructional Support, a process that has brought state, regional and national attention to Tigard-Tualatin for its combined approach to behavior-literacy-and-special education evaluation using RTI.  Dr. Sadler retired from Tigard-Tualatin in 2006 and has since been working as an independent consultant and trainer.