Our Team

Sherlunda is a special education teacher at North Middle School in the Everett School District.

Jennifer has 6 years experience in emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) and 8 years as a Resource Teacher at Juanita High School in the Lake Washington School District – currently, the Special Education Department Leader at her school, a member of the district’s Special Education Advisory Board, and the high school education representative for the ELA adoption committee. Her areas of specialty/expertise are related to Behavior and Autism.

Amanda is a School Psychologist at Southridge High School in Kennewick, WA. 

Mona is an educational ASL interpreter, working with deaf students in the mainstream and special education setting; interpreting for and tutoring in the Moses Lake School District

Shari has served as a member of the Washington State Special Education Advisory Council.

Brenda starting out studying cardiology, but kept getting “bumped into other programs and somehow just could not get out of the education classes that were being offered.”  She has held a number of positions with the Spokane Public Schools, since 1998: Resource Math – High School, Multi-handicapped, Orthopedically Handicapped – Elementary Level, and Special Education, Self-contained – Middle School. 

Chris is a Special Education Director through ESD 113 where he supports special education programming within the Lewis County Special Education Cooperative and other districts in the region. He has previously worked in the Central Kitsap and Edmonds School Districts. Chris has both elementary and high school special education experience.  His focus: students with Autism and Emotional/Behavioral Disability. He holds a Masters in Teaching Special Education and Functional Behavioral Analysis from Gonzaga University. 

Brandi is a parent of two daughters, one of whom was diagnosed with Autism at age 2. She has learned much about supporting students with disabilities through her service on the board of the SW Washington Special Education PTSA – helping provide IEP training, Special Education forums, and advocacy for families. In 2016-2017, she was a member of the Clark County Parent Coalition Leadership Academy addressing areas of Special Education, Washington State Disability Services, and Advocacy. Brandi is a tirelessly advocate for her daughters and other parents in similar situations.

Antionette retired from Seattle Schools District after 18 years; currently a trainer for OSPI and WEA. She was introduced autism by her grandson and has continued learn through his experiences.

Anna is a school psychologist in the Spokane Public Schools and an adjunct professor in the School Psychology program at Gonzaga University. She earned a Ph.D. from Syracuse University, and has been in practice since 1998, serving students from pre-K through high school; in Resource, Designed Instruction, MHOH, Behavior Intervention, ADAPT (for higher functioning students on the Autism Spectrum), MAP and Tamarack (for students with severe mental health needs), the Skills Center, and Images (post-high school transition).

Suzanne has a Masters Degree in Speech Language and Pathology from Nova Southeastern University, and Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education from Eastern Washington University. She has 23 years experience in K-12 education: 9 years as a General Ed Teacher in a variety of grade levels, and 14 years as a Speech-Language Pathologist.

Bio coming, soon. 

Bio coming, soon. 

Mindy teaches Special Education in the Kennewick School District. Throughout her career, she has held several teaching positions including: middle school resource teacher and inclusion teacher, elementary life skills teacher, and elementary resource room teacher. Mindy is currently a full-time mentor teacher, facilitating the development of new-career special education teachers. With her Master’s in Elementary Math Education, Mindy also has taught Math and Science, in the Early Education department at Columbia Basin College.

Bio coming, soon. 

Jonathan is a Middle School Assistant Principal in the Monroe School District. His Master’s degree was focused on Emotional and/or Behavioral Disabilities. Jonathan previously spent 4 years developing and facilitating programming for under-served students with a pattern of internalizing behaviors in the Lake Washington School District. His primary interest is in increase access and lowering barriers to achievement for students with disabilities, drawing from restorative justice, positive behavior intervention, and multi-tiered support.

Bio coming, soon. 

As Special Services Compliance & Safety Net Facilitator for the Everett School District, Marisol is responsible for supporting, training, and monitoring special education teachers and related staff providers in the writing of IEPs – monitoring IEP compliance for all high need students. She is a National Board Certified Teacher in ECYA/ENS Mild/Moderate for ages 5-21, with a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s Degree in Special Education. Marisol has taught students with various disabilities in multiple classroom settings: K-8 Resource, 6-8 Extended Resource, and 3-5 Behavior Support.

Bio coming, soon. 

Terressa has two adult children, one of whom was identified as autistic. Thus, she was active in her childrens’ education and collaborated with the school teachers and staff. Working with private specialists, Terressa established an in-home therapy program for her sons that helped her provide strong leadership to her son’s respective IEP teams. Terressa has a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Eastern Washington University and a JD from Gonzaga University School of Law. Terressa is currently employed as a Business Coach and trainer with a national insurance company.

Leslie is an Employment and Transition Liaison Teacher for the Gateway to Adult Transition Education Program with Vancouver Public Schools; workint with students 18 to 21. She is trained in Person Centered Planning and facilitates and mentors in the PCP process. Leslie has worked with special needs students from elementary age children to adult. Before joining the staff of the Vancouver Public Schools, Leslie worked as the Director of Public Relations for Creative Educational Co. She was also an adjunct faculty for Lewis and Clark College and Portland State University.

Danae is a National Board Certified Exceptional Needs Specialist P-12 for Severe and Profound students. She holds a BA focusing in Deaf and Bilingual Education and has a Master’s Degree in Special Education. Danae started her career in Deaf Education and has taught at every level from early childhood through adults. Some of that time was spent training teachers of the Deaf in Kenya. She is currently working as a K-2nd grade teacher for students with moderate to severe disabilities at Evergreen Elementary School in Shelton, WA, specializing in students with language delays. Danae is also the parent of three typically developing children and one child with severe disabilities.

Gordon is a native San Diegan, where he spent 13 years as a Laboratory Technician. He has lived in Washington for the past 20 years; first attending The Evergreen State College and graduating with a Master in Teaching degree, in 2004. Gordon intended to be a Kindergarten teacher but discovered that he enjoyed Special Education. He teaches students with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emotional Behavioral Disability, and other similar disabilities that present with challenging behavior.

Bio coming soon.

Heidi has several degrees from Washington State University – endorsed in both Early Childhood General Education and Early Childhood Special Education. Over her 30+ year career she has taught K-5 Resource Room, A K-5 Life Skills class, General Education Kindergarten, General Education 1st grade and Special Education Preschool. She currently, teaches an alternative classroom for preschool students on the Autism Spectrum as well as coaches in an inclusive preschool classroom. Heidi has recently opened her own Consulting Business focusing on assisting new Special Education Teachers with classroom organization and some teaching strategies.

Kari lives in Vancouver, WA with her husband Tim and son (now 20 years old) who was diagnosed with autism at age 2. Kari has been a strong parent advocate and classroom volunteer: a PTA member, on the board of the local Special Education PTSA, coach & board member for Miracle League baseball, and volunteer for local disability organizations. Kari’s main goal is to help create an inclusive and accepting school and community environment – advocating for inclusion in general education classes and helping support differentiated instruction – recently organizing a parent advisory group to work with staff to improve the Evergreen Transition Program.

Bio coming, soon. 

Bio coming, soon. 

Bio coming, soon. 

Mark is a life long special educator who previously served as Coordinator of Special Programs for the WEA. Since retirement, Mark has continued his interest in special education by serving as a Special Education trainer, advisor, and critical friend, for the WEA Special Education Support Center.

Gary has served in various roles in support of WEA projects and programs, beginning in the mid-80s with the Restructuring Schools initiative and later with the NEA Keys to Excellence program. For more than a decade, he has been a consultant to the Special Education Support Center in the design, maintenance, and promotion of the SESC website, and in the facilitation of online support for the WEA Special Ed Cadre.