Effective Strategies for Working with Paraeducators

Candice Styer, Ph.D. and Suzanne Fitzgerald, M.Ed. Candice Styer has worked in special education for over 30 years. She received her teaching certification, M.Ed., and Ph.D. at the University of Oregon. Dr. Styer has developed the content in The Styer-Fitzgerald Program for Functional Academics throughout her career with an emphasis on the vital mix of research-supported best practices and classroom practitioner experience-based wisdom. She developed the life skills assessment and curriculum over the last 30 years while teaching middle school and high school students with moderate and severe disabilities. She currently trains school districts to administer the assessment and implement the curriculum. She has trained teachers and paraprofessionals in the areas of Transition Planning, Behavior Management, and Curriculum Development. She has been an adjunct faculty member in teacher training programs at the University of Oregon, Western Washington University, and Seattle Pacific University. In addition to her years in the classroom, she has worked as a consultant/trainer for the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities (CARD) at the University of South Florida. She was the Special Education Director for Lopez Island School District and has worked as a case manager for the Developmental Disabilities Department. Suzanne Fitzgerald has worked with children and adults with developmental, physical, emotional, and behavioral disabilities in classroom, vocational, residential, and recreational settings for the past 21 years. She received her BA in Human Services from Western Washington University and her Teaching Certification and M.Ed. from the University of Washington. She was a middle and high school special education teacher for the Snohomish School District. Suzanne began collaborating with Candice on the Styer-Fitzgerald Program for Functional Academics as she entered the special education program at the University of Washington. Recognizing the unique value of the material, she worked with Candice to standardize and refine the content and structure and has added complementary material from her own work in the field. Suzanne is co-owner of Specially Designed Education Services (SDES) where she specializes in providing training/consultation related to programming for students with multiple disabilities. She serves as a Project Partner with Washington Sensory Disability Services, assisting children with significant disabilities including deaf-blindness.