Faculty, Advisory Board, and Board of Directors 2008-2009

Faculty and Staff

Advisory Board

Directors

Faculty

The composition of the school's faculty mirrors its mission - teaching children to cope with dyslexia by improving their language skills while exposing them to success in a broad range of academic areas. Ours is a faculty of breadth, experience, and commitment. It consists of academic language therapists; math, science, language arts and social studies teachers; artists; a woodworker and a computer specialist.

Laura Steinbach

is our Head of School.

Cari Lasley Armand

is a Dyslexia Specialist and one of our fourth grade classroom teachers. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications and Sociology from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. After working for five years in Marketing Events and Meeting Planning, she returned to school to receive her Texas Teaching Certification for Science grades 4-8. Cari has completed the Basic Language Skills Introductory course and is a Student Academic Language Therapist. This is her third year at Rawson-Saunders.

Emily Kopecky Austin

is a fourth grade classroom teacher and a Dyslexia Specialist. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education from Texas A&M University. She holds Texas teaching certification in elementary grades pre-K to 6th, and has passed the English as a Second Language ExCet exam. She is currently working towards completing the requirments to become a Cerified Academic Language Therapist. Before coming to Rawson-Saunders, Emily spent two years teaching first grade in Spring Branch ISD in Houston. This is her fourth year at Rawson-Saunders School.

Alison Barnwell

is our first/second grade teacher. She received her Bachelor's degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with a specialization in Art from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas. Alison is fully certified by the State of Texas for classroom teaching grades 1-8, as well as Art grades 1-8. Previously, she taught first grade in Crockett, Texas, and is enjoying her fifth year at Rawson-Saunders.

Beth Berman

is our music teacher. She earned a Master's Degree in Elementary Education from Nazareth College and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Fredonia State University. She holds a Level III Orff certification, and is co-author of See Kids Listen: Ten Lessons to Activate Minds. Beth comes to Rawson-Saunders with over 20 years teaching experience.

Susan Bevier

is our librarian and Technology Coordinator. She facilitates teaching keyboarding and computer literacy skills, and leads the after-school Robotics program. She has a degree in computer science from Northern Illinois University. Susan has experience in the high tech field, and has developed educational software. Prior to coming to Rawson-Saunders, Susan worked at the City of Austin public library, and taught keyboarding and computer skills to both children and adults.

Tammy Black

is a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Austin College in Sherman, Texas. She taught special education for Austin Independent School District for eight years before coming to Rawson-Saunders. This is her fourth year at Rawson-Saunders.

Diane Broadway

is our Assistant to the Head of School.

Jane Buergner

is a Dyslexia Specialist and has completed national training to become a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Communication from the University of Texas. This is her second year at Rawson-Saunders.

Barbara Calaway

is an ALT back for her second year at Rawson-Saunders. She loves teaching here because she sees how much her students have progressed. Her B.A. in English/Journalism, Teaching Certificate, and M.Ed. are all from University of Texas at Austin. Besides children, books, and poetry, she loves to sing with a plunky guitar, camp, and swim.

Chere Chancey

is the Art and Piano teacher at Rawson-Saunders School, and co-oordinator of the Village Curriculum. She has earned Texas K-12 Certification and a B.F.A degree in Visual Arts Studies from The University of Texas at Austin. Artistic emphases include Ceramics (thrown vessels), and Sumi-e (Japanese/Chinese Ink Brush Painting). Chere is currently enjoying her fifth year at Rawson-Saunders.

Sadie Corrie

is a fifth grade teacher. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas at Arlington. Sadie has worked with students as a tutor and mentor both in the United States and in England. This is her third year at Rawson-Saunders.

Libbie Leach Dallas

is a Dyslexia Specialist. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Texas. This is her first year teaching at Rawson-Saunders, although she has been actively involved at the school as a parent for many years. Before coming to Rawson-Saunders, she tutored students privately.

Janine DeLong Luz

is a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of Texas, and is now working on her Masters of Reading at Stephen F. Austin University. This is her second year at Rawson-Saunders.

Michael Demerath

teaches Middle School math and social studies. In the summer of 2007, Mike moved to Austin from St. Louis, Missouri. For the previous three years, he taught students with learning disabilities. In May 2007, Mike received his Masters of Special Education from the University of Missouri. He enjoys traveling and has lived in Australia for a year and a half.

Kat DeWees

is a fifth grade teacher.

Pat Elias

is a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She taught elementary students in Austin public schools for fifteen years prior to joining the faculty at Rawson-Saunders. She holds a certificate in gifted and talented education and is trained in Capital City Writes. She received her B.A. and Texas teacher’s certificate from the University of Texas at Austin.

Nancy Donley

holds a B.A. from Quincy College and an M.S. in Special Education from SUNY, N.Y. She has been a special education teacher in the Round Rock schools since 1994. Nancy is a Certified Academic Language Therapist trained in several linguistic programs, including Basic Language Skills, Lindamood Bell and Project Read. She is also our Activities and Facilities Coordinator. Nancy is involved in Destination Imagination and Odyssey of the Mind programs in Texas, and leads D.I. teams at Rawson-Saunders.

Sarah Fulcher

teaches second grade. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Applied Learning and Development at the University of Texas at Austin and holds a Texas certification for Early Childhood through Fourth Grade. Before coming to Rawson-Saunders, she taught second grade at Kiev Christian Academy in Kiev, Ukraine.

Gloria Garrison

is a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She came to the U.S. from Mexico seven years ago. In Mexico, she earned two Bachelor's degrees, one in Psychology from the Universidad de Monterrey and another in Education from Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes. Gloria has seven years of experience in Mexico working with children with special needs in education and managing the psychological and educational activities for a clinic. This is her fourth year working at Rawson Saunders.

Margie Gordon

is a Dyslexia Specialist. Margie comes to Rawson-Saunders School after retiring from public education after 31 years of service. She graduated from the University of Utah, has completed 30+ hours of post-graduate work, and is certified as a Master Reading Teacher, ESL, Regular Education, and Special Education. In 2001, she held the distinct honor of being selected as the Teacher of the Year from her campus, Smith Elementary School; her district, Del Valle ISD; Region VIII, and as one of three finalists for Texas State Teacher of the Year. When Margie isn’t working on completing her certification as an Academic Language Therapist, she enjoys being with her husband of 35 years and her pets, visiting with friends, and participating in many outdoors activities.

Drenda Haddock, M.Ed., CALT-QI,

our Director of Admissions and Outreach. She has over 40 years in public school and private experience serving as a teacher, Academic Language Therapist and Qualified Instructor, and administrator. She graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor of Arts in Education and from the University of Texas at Austin with a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction. Drenda has had a special interest in reading and dyslexia for over 25 years and is a mother of a dyslexic son.

Lynn Hoover, M.Ed., CALT-QI,

is our Assistant Director and Director of Curriculum. She has over 30 years experience as a special educator. Lynn completed her M.Ed. in Learning Disabilities at the University of Texas. She completed Neuhaus Education Center’s Therapist Certification Program and is a Qualified Instructor. Lynn has worked as a reading consultant in special education for Austin ISD and has been involved in teacher training in the Austin Area for over 15 years.

Dane Johnson

is our shop teacher and co-Coordinator of the Village curriculum. Dane has been a stay-at-home father, and has been very active volunteering his time in service to children and the dyslexic community. His activities include work with elementary, middle, and high schools, serving as a room parent and PTA officer. He manned the Orton Dyslexia Society phone helpline and served on its board for four years. He has been active in Boy Scouting for eight years and is currently Committee Chair of Troop 2001.

Jolene Kokemoor

is the Middle School Language Arts teacher. She completed her bachelor’s degree in Spanish at Texas A&M University accompanied by a minor in sociology. She has also received her Masters in Education from Texas State University. Before being a part of the Rawson-Saunders team, she taught fourth grade for 7 years.

Sarah Mahoney

is one of our 3rd grade teachers. In the summer of 2008, Sarah moved to Austin from Honolulu, Hawaii. For the previous five years, she taught students with with a wide range of disabilities. She attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she received her BS in Special Education.

Meggan Markey

is a third grade classroom teacher. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies, with a minor in Sociology, from California State University of San Marcos. Meggan was an educator in California for several years specializing in teaching English Language Development along with Literacy Workshop classes. After moving to Austin, Meggan taught and coordinated the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) in the Austin Independent School District. Meggan came to Rawson-Saunders in the spring 2007, and was a fourth grade teacher last school year. Meggan has completed the Basic Langage Skills Introductory course and is a Student Academic Language Therapist.

Elizabeth Overholser

graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Education Curriculum and Instruction. She holds Texas Teacher Certification in Elementary grades. She has taught in the Snook, Del Valle, and Bastrop school districts. Elizabeth teaches Middle School science and math at Rawson-Saunders.

Phyllis Patrick

heads the Academic Language Therapy Program. She trained in Alphabetic Phonics at the Neuhaus Education Center, completing advanced training in 1996. A Certified Language Therapist, she received her M.F.A. in photography from Ohio University and her B.A. in English from the University of Texas at Austin. This is her twelfth year at Rawson-Saunders.

Lolita Reyes

is our Office Manager.

Melissa Rodriguez

is a Dyslexia Specialist. She earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences from Texas State University, and is currently working a Masters of Education degree. Before coming to Rawson-Saunders, she tutored students at Scottish Rite Learning Center.

JC Sanders

is a third grade teacher. She has been teaching Special Education for eight years. She graduated from Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, TX with her degree in Elementary Education. She has taught in Del Valle ISD, Eanes ISD, and for the UT Elementary School. JC is very excited to be here at Rawson-Saunders School. JC herself was diagnosed with Dyslexia at age eight and has worked very hard to overcome her own personal hurdles. Being dyslexic, JC feels she can relate to the students and understand the struggles they face each day. She feels every student can be successful and each student is gifted in their own unique way. Her family enjoys camping and the outdoors, and is active in Girl Scouts.

Tina Shaheen

is in her second year as a Dyslexia Specialist at Rawson-Saunders. Prior to Rawson-Saunders, she tutored privately. Tina loves to read and believes that it is important to help her students learn the joy of reading. Even though she loves to read, she has just finished reading the last Harry Potter book this summer. Tina has a Bachelor of Science degree from The Ohio State University.

Perry Stokes

is a Certified Academic Language Therapist and is a Qualified Instructor in Training. Perry presents workshops in Syllabication, Grammar, Morphology, and Etymology for our Professional Development Training Center. Perry holds a Texas Teacher Certification in Generic Special Education. He has taught in the Round Rock, Austin, and Del Valle school districts. Perry has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas, and will be completing a Master's degree at Texas State University Spring 2009.

Nancy Traccarella

is our Director of Development. She has over 17 years of experience as an education administrator, with expertise in the areas of development and program management. Nancy has a B.A. in Elementary Education from Virginia Tech and a M.A. in Higher Education Administration from Boston College. She is a member of the Board of Directors at Capitol School of Austin. Before coming to Rawson-Saunders, she was Director of Development at Good Shepherd Episcopal School.

Chris Zarbock

is our Physical Education teacher. Chris comes to Rawson-Saunders with experience working for the Austin Independent School District and the YMCA.

Advisory Council

The Rawson-Saunders Advisory Council is a volunteer board composed of local and national authorities in the areas of education, business, and community leadership. The Council provides expertise, guidance, and support for our program.

We are proud to have have these distinguished professionals serve on our Advisory Board:

Marilyn J. Adams, Ph.D.

is author of Beginning to read: Thinking and learning about print, Phonemic Awareness in Young Children, and Literacy Advisor formerly for PBS's Sesame Street and now for Between the Lions. Her current research is focused on uses of automatic speech recognition as an instructional resource for providing one-on-one reading and comprehension support and also as a research tool for understanding reading patterns as a function of reading ability and text characteristics. Dr. Adams is currently a Visiting Professor in the Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences Department at Brown University and Chief Scientist for Soliloquy Learning. She holds a Ph.D. from Brown University in cognitive and developmental psychology.

Joyce Bilgrave

Co-founded Jemicy School, a nationally recognized school for dyslexics in Baltimore, and led the effort to found Rawson-Saunders School. She now runs Durango Mountain Camp, a summer camp for dyslexics, which she began in Durango, Colorado.

Suzanne Carreker, CALT

Director of Program Development at the Neuhaus Education Center and staff member of Neuhaus Education Center since 1987, Certified Academic Language Therapist, Qualified Instructor, Special Educator. Author, Basic Language Skills, Language Enrichment, Scientific Spelling, Multisensory Grammar and Writing Composition, Reading Readiness and Word Detective, textbook chapters, and journal articles. Past President of the Houston Branch of The International Dyslexia Association, Board member of Academic Language Therapy Association Center Council, current Board member of Academic Language Therapy Association.

Pam Craig, CALT

received her Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from Texas Christian University. She taught in the public school setting for five years before she began her family. She was involved in a host of volunteer organizations until 1987 when she developed the after-school care and enrichment program at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, which she has directed for nineteen years. In 1991, she became a Certified Academic Language Therapist, working privately with students for twelve years. Beginning in 2003, she left her private practice to become the part-time Learning Specialist at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, moving to full time in the fall of 2006. Also in 2003, a group of CALTs gathered and decided to form a support organization for therapists in and around Austin, and she was asked to be the first president of the Austin Area Chapter of the Academic Language Therapy Association. Pam was on the Founding Committee of Rawson-Saunders School and served two terms on the school’s first Board of Directors.

Charles Haynes, Ph.D.,

is an Associate Professor and Clinical Supervisor in the Graduate Program in Communication Sciences and Disorders at the MGH Institute of Health Professions in Boston. He served as a teacher, Research Coordinator and Director of Speech-Language Services at the Landmark School from 1979-1992, where he and colleagues pioneered a language-based curriculum for children with expressive language impairments and dyslexia. At the Institute of Health Professions, Dr. Haynes and colleague Dr. Pamela Hook formulated the first graduate program in the U.S. to offer dual teacher certification in both Speech-Language and in Reading with a unitary curriculum. He lectures nationally and internationally, and has given keynote or invited lectures in Japan, Israel, Kuwait, Cyprus, Brazil, Czech Republic, and Canada. He has served on the Board of Directors of the International Dyslexia Association (IDA) since 1997, and is on the Advisory Boards of the Japan Dyslexia Research Association and the Center for Applied Special Technology. His practical and research interests include: early detection and intervention for dyslexia, cross-linguistic comparisons of children with reading disabilities, and methods for teaching oral and written expression.

R. Malatesha (Malt) Joshi, Ph.D.,

is a professor of literacy education at Texas A&M University, where he teaches and conducts research relating to language and literacy, assessment and intervention in reading and spelling problems. He is the editor of ‘Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal’ which is ranked as one of the top ten journals in education and educational research. He also serves on the editorial boards of five other journals. He has received funding from NATO to conduct institutes on literacy and cognition during the last twenty years, the most recent one in Italy in 2001. He is the co-author/co-editor of over a dozen volumes; the most recent one is the ‘Handbook of Orthography and Literacy’ published by Lawrence Erlbaum. His papers have appeared in Journal of Learning Disabilities, Journal of Attention Disorders, Neuropsychologia, School Psychology Review, and Psychological Reports. He has presented or lectured in different countries including Russia, UK, Sweden, Norway, France, Portugal, Italy, China, Singapore, Spain, and Qatar. He has been on the board of directors of The International Dyslexia Association since 2001 and the secretary of the same since 2003.

Louisa Moats, Ed.D.,

is the Director of Professional Development and Research Institute with Sopris West Educational Services. Dr. Moats specializes in the implementation of schoolwide interventions for improving literacy. She directed the NICHD Early Reading Initiative. She is the author of many books, chapters, and articles including Speech to Print: Language Essentials for Teachers, Parenting a Struggling Reader, and LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling). Currently she holds a position on The International Dyslexia Association board and chairs the Publication Committee.

Susan Patteson, M.Ed., CALT,

is the Region 13 Education Service Center Dyslexia Specialist providing support in all areas of dyslexia services to public and charter schools. She is a Certified Academic Language Therapist and a Certified Wilson Reading System Lead Trainer. She has taught in public schools and is certified the areas of Early Childhood, English as a Second Language, Elementary Education, Secondary Reading, Special Education, and as a Master Reading Teacher.

Kathy Synatschk, Ph.D., LPC,

received her Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of Texas at Austin. She has been the Director of Counseling for the Austin Independent School District, a high school counselor, a school social worker, a special education teacher, and a counselor educator. She trains and consults on counseling issues at the local, state, national, and international levels. She is currently adjunct professor at Texas State University and the Executive Editor at PRO-ED, Inc.

Board of Directors

Sam Buford, Chair,

is the proud father of two, a five-year-old and a seven-year-old who is a student at Rawson-Saunders School. Both were born in China and adopted by Sam and his beautiful wife, Adriana, a native of Columbia. Sam is a lawyer and has practiced in Austin for some thirty years. He is currently the Chairman of the Liberal Arts Development Counsel at Texas A&M University. He has also served on the Board of Directors for the Texas Easter Seal Society, the Central Texas Eye Bank and the Austin Downtown Lions Club where he also had the honor of serving as President. Sam has a Bachelors Degree form Texas A&M University (Accounting), a Masters of Science Degree from Texas Tech University (Accounting), a law degree from St. Mary's University and an a Master in Laws (in Taxation) from New York University. Sam is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Scott Yore, Treasurer,

is President and CEO of Yore Real Estate Firm, 565 Development, Benchmark Mortgage, and Acquistate Realty group bringing 19 years of management experience to the group of companies. Yore Real Estate firm is the holding company for 565 Development which is a residential developer and contractor, Benchmark which is a residential mortgage lending firm, and Acquistate which is a residential real estate brokerage. Prior to founding the companies, Scott held chief financial officer positions with high-growth, venture-backed companies, held senior financial positions, and consulted with many companies in Austin helping work out strategic financial and capital raising plans. Prior to his industry experience, Scott was a CPA with Ernst & Young for 10 years in Austin and the Silicon Valley.

In addition to Rawson-Saunders School, he is on the board of the Texas Wine and Food Foundation. He is a graduate of the University of Idaho with a BS degree in Finance and Accounting.

Sam Zabenah, Legal Counsel,

practices corporate and securities law, primarily in the context of entrepreneurial and emerging growth companies at DLA Piper. In his practice, he advises clients regarding general corporate matters and handles various capital raising and liquidity event transactions, including private and public equity financing and mergers and acquisitions. In addition, he advises clients with respect to corporate governance and periodic reporting requirements of publicly held companies.

Jill George

is currently a teacher in the Talented and Gifted program for the Round Rock Independent Schools. An educator for 29 years, she has a Masters in Learning Disabilities with a concentration in Reading from Nazareth College in Rochester, New York. She has taught various grade levels K-8 in regular education classes, resource classes for the learning disabled, reading classes, and GT classes. She and her husband are currently looking at colleges with soccer programs for their youngest son, Mark. The older two children have graduated college and are employed in Austin and Grand Island, New York.

Jeff Korn

has been a corporate attorney since 1982. He serves as general counsel and corporate secretary of iMergent, INC (IIG, AMEX) a leading eServices Provider helping small businesses and entrepreneurs meet Internet challenges. Jeff also maintains a private legal and corporate consulting practice. Previously Jeff was a board member and general counsel of ProsoftTraining (POSO, NASDAQ). Prior to that Jeff was an attorney in private practice in Jacksonville Florida. Jeff currently serves on the board of directors of Flanders Corp. (FLDR, NASDAQ) as well as several charitable and private boards.

Lucy Mockford

received a Bachelor's of Science degree in Education with an emphasis in early childhood from Stephen F. Austin State University. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Masters of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction. Lucy has 14 years experience teaching in AISD, and completed numerous certification training programs and served/chaired on many educational committees. Currently, she is involved in our home church, a Moms in Touch prayer group, and Girl Scouts.

Tim Moore

is President and CEO of Drake Industries, Inc., a manufacturing company specializing in durable, highly-customized, labels, nameplates, and overlays for industry and government. Prior to that, he held management positions at MaxServ, Novell, MediaNet, and Texas Instruments. He is a Vietnam-era veteran having served as an artillery officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. During that time, he received the Humanitarian Service Medal for personal actions related to the safe resettlement of refugees. In recent years, his community service activities have been as a Boy Scout leader and as Chairman of the Austin Call Center Alliance. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from The Citadel, a Masters in Business Administration from St. Edward’s University, and a post-graduate degree in Computer Science from the University of Glasgow, Scotland.

Amanda Nitschke, M.S. CCC-SLP,

is a certified speech-language pathologist. The majority of her experience has consisted of providing services to preschool and school age children with language and learning differences in both the clinical an academic setting. Currently Amanda works for Manor ISD and does some private practice independently. Prior to working in Manor ISD, she spent over a year at KidVentures, a pediatric clinic that provides speech-language and occupational therapy. Amanda spent several summers and two school years teaching at Capitol School of Austin where she enjoyed integrating academics and speech-language pathology. Before that, she worked at a various elementary schools in Round Rock ISD and was involved in the Play Based Assessment Team. Amanda has a bachelor’s degree in Spanish Language from the University of Texas at Austin and a master’s degree in Communication Disorders from Southwest Texas State University. She has received training in the Lindamood-Bell techniques and has also attended a variety of workshops on best practices in speech and language pathology. Amanda was also a volunteer coach for the TOPS soccer program and enjoys being active in and around Austin.