Special Education Specialization

Research Opportunities

The department's many research and development projects provide outstanding opportunities for doctoral students to gain experience in developing products and conducting research.  Students collaborate with faculty and are also encouraged to pursue their own research interests.  Faculty research and development projects address the following: 

• Willa van Dijk - Individual differences in Reading Development, Reading Instruction & Interventions, Effective Teacher Preparation, Quantitative Methodologies, Open Science
• Kaitlin Bundock - Mathematics instruction and intervention for students with or at-risk for high-incidence disabilities, targeted (i.e., Tier 2) interventions within a School-Wide Positive Behavior Support system, specifically the Check-in, Check-out (CICO), pre-service teacher preparation, single-case research design
• Sarah Pinkelman - Evidence-based practice in Mathematics instruction and intervention for students with or at-risk for high-incidence disabilities schools, school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports, prevention, classroom management, social and ecological validity, implementation science in schools, and inclusive excellence in schools.
• Tim Slocum - Evidence-based practice, Explicit instruction, Single-case research methods, Implementation
• Sophia D'Agostino - Coaching preschool teachers to implement evidence-based practices, naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions, enhancing meaningful inclusion for young children with disabilities, single case research methodology, and mixed methods research.
• Tom Higbee - Early intensive Behavioral Intervention (EIBI) for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), verbal behavior, parent and staff training, functional assessment and intervention, play and social skills interventions, behavioral variability