Sophia D'Agostino Ph.D.

Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling

Assistant Professor


Sophia  D’Agostino

Contact Information

Office Location: EDUC 326
Phone: 435-797-3240
Email: sophia.dagostino@usu.edu
Additional Information:

Educational Background

Other, Special Education, (ABA), Michigan State University, 2020
PhD, Human Development and Family Studies, (Child Development), Michigan State University, 2019
Med, Special Education, Grand Valley State University, 2010
Board Certified Behavior Analyst, Behavior Analyst Certification Board, 2020
Michigan Teaching License, State of Michigan

Biography

Dr. Sophia D’Agostino is an Assistant Professor of Special Education. She earned her PhD in Human Development and Family Studies from Michigan State University in 2019. Prior to entering graduate school, she was an early childhood special education teacher, coach, and consultant. Her research interests focus around naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention implementation within inclusive preschool settings. She is passionate about early childhood pre-service and in-service teacher training and coaching to enhance meaningful inclusion of children with disabilities.

Teaching Interests

Dr. Sophia D'Agostino primarily teaches courses within the early childhood special education (birth to five) undergraduate course sequence.

Research Interests

Dr. Sophia D'Agostino's scholarship aims to improve meaningful inclusion for young children (birth to five years) with disabilities through socially valid practices. Early childhood inclusive education is the inclusion of children with disabilities into high-quality early childhood education programs (e.g., public or private preschool, community-based childcare, Head Start). Two primary strands of Dr. D'Agostino's research are (a) understanding and improving teacher preparation and training to increase the quality of services that children with disabilities receive within inclusive settings and (b) dissemination and use of naturalistic developmental and behavioral interventions (NDBI). NDBIs are evidence-based interventions informed by both developmental psychology and applied behavior analysis guided by an understanding of child development and implemented in the child’s natural environment. Dr. D'Agostino's intervention research focuses on the use of telehealth or training and coaching at a distance using technology. Further, social validity is central to Dr. D'Agostino's research. The use of NDBIs and telehealth for training and coaching emphasize social validity which is integral to implementation fidelity, generalization, and maintenance of practices within early childhood inclusive education programs.

Publications | Journal Articles

Academic Journal

  • Horton, E., Brigham, , D'Agostino, S., Finn, J., (2022). Closing the reading achievement gap for ELs with disabilities at the high school level..
  • Duenas, , D'Agostino, S., (2022). Experiences of service providers in the expedited delivery of ABA therapy via telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic: Reflections and considerations for the future..
  • Frantz, , Douglas, , Meadan, , Sanda, , Bhana, , D'Agostino, S., (2022). Exploring the professional development needs of early childhood paraeducators and supervising teachers..
  • D'Agostino, S., Duenas, A., Bravo, A., Tyson, K., Straiton, D., Salvatore, G., Pacia, C., Pellecchia, M., (2022). Toward deeper understanding and wide-scale implementation of naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions. Autism, doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613221121427
  • Duenas, A., D'Agostino, S., Experiences of Service Providers in the Expedited Delivery of ABA Therapy via Telehealth During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Reflections and Considerations for the Future. Behavior Analysis: Research and Practice, doi: https://doi.org/10.1037/bar0000251
  • Knowles, C., D'Agostino, S., Kunze, M., Uittio, D., Douglas, S., Asynchronous Online Learning Opportunities for Paraeducators: A Systematic Review. Journal of Special Education, doi: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00224669221085306
  • Duenas, A., D'Agostino, S., Plavnick, , (2021). A bid to play: Peer mediated instruction utilizing video models in inclusive preschool classrooms..
  • D'Agostino, S., Douglas, S.N, (2021). Early childhood educators’ perceptions of inclusion for children with autism spectrum disorder. Early Childhood Education Journal, 49:4, 725--737.
  • D'Agostino, S., Douglas, S.N, Horton, E., (2021). Inclusive Preschool Practitioners' Implementation of Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Intervention Using Telehealth Training (vol 50, pg 864, 2020). JOURNAL OF AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS
  • D'Agostino, S., Douglas, , (2021). Preparation experiences of pre- service inclusive preschool teachers: A qualitative metasynthesis..
  • D'Agostino, S., Douglas, S.N, (2021). Preparation experiences of pre-service inclusive preschool teachers: a qualitative metasynthesis. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 1--20.
  • Due\~nas, Ana D, , D'Agostino, S., Plavnick, J.B, (2021). Teaching Young Children to Make Bids to Play to Peers With Autism Spectrum Disorder. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 10883576211023326.
  • Douglas, S.N, Uitto, D.J, D'Agostino, S., (2021). Where Is the Paraeducator Content in Introductory Special Education Textbooks?.. Journal of the American Academy of Special Education Professionals, 30, 47.
  • Frantz, R., Douglas, S., Meadan, H., Sands, M., Bhana, N., D'Agostino, S., (2020). Exploring the professional development needs of early childhood paraeducators and supervising teachers. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 0271121420921237.
  • D'Agostino, S., Douglas, S.N, Horton, E., (2020). Inclusive preschool practitioners’ implementation of naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention using telehealth training. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 50:3, 864--880.
  • D'Agostino, S., Due\~nas, Ana D, , Plavnick, J.B, (2020). Increasing social initiations during shared book reading: An intervention for preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 39:4, 213--225.
  • Walker, V.L, Douglas, S.N, Douglas, K.H, D'Agostino, S., (2020). Paraprofessional-implemented systematic instruction for students with disabilities: A systematic literature review. Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities, 55:3, 303--317.
  • Douglas, S.N, Uitto, D.J, Reinfelds, C.L, D'Agostino, S., (2019). A systematic review of paraprofessional training materials. The Journal of Special Education, 52:4, 195--207.
  • D'Agostino, S., Douglas, S.N, Duenas, A.D, (2019). Practitioner-implemented naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions: Systematic review of social validity practices. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 39:3, 170--182.
  • Douglas, S.N, Kammes, R., Nordquist, E., D'Agostino, S., (2018). A pilot study to teach siblings to support children with complex communication needs. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 39:2, 346--355.

Professional Journal

    An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.

    Publications | Other

    Other

      An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.

      Teaching

      SPED 5710 - Young Children with Disabilities: Characteristics and Services, Fall 2023
      SPED 5730 - Intervention Strategies for Young Children with Disabilities, Spring 2023
      SPED 6300 - Effective Practices with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Populations, Fall 2022
      SPED 5710 - Young Children with Disabilities: Characteristics and Services, Fall 2022
      SPED 7400 - Cultural and Linguistic Diversity and Disability, Spring 2022
      SPED 5730 - Intervention Strategies for Young Children with Disabilities, Spring 2022
      SPED 5710 - Young Children with Disabilities: Characteristics and Services, Fall 2021

      Graduate Students Mentored

      Alyssa Roylance, Special Education & Rehab, August 2023
      Avery Biggs, Special Education & Rehab
      Caili Johnson, Special Education & Rehab
      Sasha Lockhart, Special Education & Rehab
      Tasha Jenkins, Special Education & Rehab
      Heather Thompson, Special Education & Rehab 2023