Hotel Accommodations
Blocks of rooms have been reserved for Academy and Institute participants at the Lowell Center (only Academy) and at the DoubleTree by Hilton (both Academy and Institute). When calling the Lowell Center to make reservations, refer to the group code "EDLEAD."
Refund Policy
If you have registered for the academy/institute and cancel 30 days or more before the event starts you will receive a full refund of the registration amount minus a $50 administrative fee. If you cancel less than 30 days in advance of the academy/institute there will be no refund. Please contact Lisa Hebgen for more information.
Presentations by:
Elise M. Frattura
Dr. Elise Frattura is an associate professor and department chairperson in the Department of Exceptional Education and Administrative Leadership in the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Dr. Frattura researches and publishes in the area of nondiscrimination law, integrated comprehensive services for all learners, and the theoretical underpinnings of educational marginalization through segregation. Dr. Frattura works with school districts across the nation to assist administrators and teachers in developing comprehensive organizational structures to better meet the individual needs of all learners. Dr. Frattura has been a K–12 public school district administrator of student services and special education for 12 years. During that time, she functioned as an adjunct professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison, teaching courses related to diversity in elementary and secondary administration of services for students with disabilities. Dr. Frattura has written a range of educational articles in the area of administration and leadership in support of proactive service delivery for all learners and is the coauthor of two books, Leaders for Social Justice: Transforming Schools for All Learners (2007) and a second edition of Meeting the Needs of Students of All Abilities: How Leaders Go Beyond Inclusion (2009).
Colleen A. Capper
Dr. Colleen A. Capper is a professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has published extensively on leadership for social justice and equity, including three books: Leading for Social Justice: Transforming Schools for All Learners; Meeting the Needs of Students of All Abilities: Leading beyond Inclusion (2nd edition) (both with Elise Frattura), and Educational Administration in a Pluralistic Society. After completing her undergraduate work in special education at Indiana University, Bloomington, Dr. Capper spent five years as a United Methodist missionary in the Appalachian Mountain region of Southeastern, Kentucky where she served as a special education teacher, administrator of special programs, and founding director of a nonprofit agency for preschool children and adults with disabilities. She then completed her masters and doctorate at Vanderbilt University. She works with schools and districts across the country on redesigning service delivery for all students and raising achievement for typically marginalized students in inclusive ways.
Kurt A. Schneider
Dr. Schneider is currently a co-administrator of the Department of Teaching and Learning for the Stoughton Area School District, Wisconsin, and is a part-time adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison teaching social justice courses within the Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis Department. In 2009, he was nationally recognized as an ASCD Emerging Leader. In 2011 he was newly elected to ASCD'S Leadership Council. Dr. Schneider presently serves as a board member and is co-program committee chairperson for Wisconsin's ASDC chapter (WASCD) while being a member of the Wisconsin's State Superintendent's Educational Data Advisory Committee. His work to raise achievement for all students, close gaps, and create an integrated and socially-just school district has been recognized at the local, state and national levels. In 2012 the National Center for Educational Outcomes recognized the Stoughton Area School District as one of six districts nationally who have successfully worked over time to improve student achievement for all students, including those with disabilities, through inclusive practices. In addition to his formal academic training at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Educational Leadership and Special Education, he has received multiple certificates from Harvard Graduate School of Education for studying the Achievement Gap and Critical Issues in Urban Special Education.
Alice Udvari-Solner
Dr. Udvari-Solner is a national consultant in education and holds an appointment at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. The graduate and undergraduate courses she teaches on the topic of accommodating diverse learners in general education settings are integral to the elementary, secondary, and special education teacher certification programs. Differentiation, the design of effective curricular adaptations, collaborative team work among educators and paraprofessionals, and systems change toward inclusive education are areas that are central to her research and teaching. Dr. Udvari-Solner's research has focused on the development of the Universal Design Process for Differentiation- a method used to promote co-planning among educators to design responsive strategies for diverse learners. She has written numerous journal articles and her work has been featured in multiple texts which include: Creating the Inclusive School, Inclusive Urban High Schools, Restructuring for a Caring and Effective Education, and Creativity & Collaborative Learning. The use of active and collaborative learning strategies as methods of differentiation are the focus of her book from Corwin Press Inc., Joyful Learning: Active and Collaborative Learning for Inclusive Classrooms, coauthored with Dr. Paula Kluth.