Lynn University

Ellen Goosenberg Kent

Ellen Goosenberg Kent produced and directed “I Can’t Do This but I CAN Do That: A Film for Families about Learning Differences”. She has earned four Primetime Emmy® Awards, two Peabody Awards and numerous other honors for excellence in non-fiction television and documentary film. She has directed and produced a series of critically acclaimed documentaries for HBO, including Wartorn: 1861-2010, Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq,” “I Have Tourette’s but Tourette’s Doesn’t Have Me;” “Too Hot Not To Handle,” about America’s role in the global warming crisis, and a film on cognitive-behavior therapy for drug dependence for the HBO multi-part series Addiction. Her other credits include “Middle School Confessions,” hosted by Samuel L. Jackson, “Reading Your Heart Out,” which earned honors at film festivals in the U.S. And Canada; “No Dog Left Behind” about the relationship between soldiers and dogs in wartime, and the Emmy award-winning family specials “How Do You Spell God?”; “Happy to Be Nappy: Stories of Me,” and” Going, Going Almost Gone: Animals in Danger.”

Photo by Visko Hatfield

Rick Lavoie

Rick Lavoie served as an administrator of residential programs for children with special needs for 30 years. He holds three degrees in special education and holds two honorary doctorates in education, from the University of Massachusetts (2003) and Mitchell College (2007). He has served as a consultant on learning differences to several agencies and organizations and has delivered his message to over a half-million parents and professionals throughout North America, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. His intensive experiences at residential schools provided him with a “living laboratory” in which he developed and refined his methods and philosophies related to the education of children and adolescents with special needs.

Lavoie is the author of the book It’s So Much Work to Be Your Friend: Helping the Child with Learning Disabilities Find Social Success (Touchstone/ Simon and Schuster, 2005). Most parents and professionals know him through his videos How Difficult Can This Be? The F.A.T. City Workshop, Last One Picked, First One Picked On: The Social Implications of Learning Disabilities and When the Chips are Down: Learning Disabilities and Discipline. His recent videos, Beyond F.A.T. City: A Look Back, A Look Ahead and It’s So Much Work to Be Your Friend: Helping the Child with Learning Disabilities Find Social Success, are among the most widely distributed films in the educational media.

His newest book and DVD on student motivation is The Motivation Breakthrough: 6 Secrets to Turning on the Tuned-Out Child (2007).

Debbie Phelps

Debbie Phelps is widely recognized as an innovative, energetic and talented leader and master teacher with more than three decades of teaching and administrative experience. Ms. Phelps is the Principal of Windsor Middle School in the Baltimore County Public Schools system. A highly sought after motivational speaker and recent author, Ms. Phelps addresses a range of topics related to education, child development and life lessons.

Her dedication and commitment to excellence in the field of education has earned Ms. Phelps honors including Baltimore County Public School’s Teacher of the Year Finalist, two-time Maryland Family & Consumer Science Teacher of the Year, and Baltimore County’s “Baby Boomer of the Year” (2004).

Beyond the school halls, Ms. Phelps is also affectionately known as a “swim mom” to three accomplished swimmers; her daughters Hilary (University of Richmond) and Whitney (U.S. Olympic Trials), and son, Michael (14-time Olympic gold medalist). She recently added “author” to her resume with the release of her first book, A Mother for All Seasons, in which she reveals the universal themes of her life story that is rich with struggle, humor, hope, advice and passion and rallies readers to cheer for all of our children at every stage of their growth and in every endeavor.

Ms. Phelps serves on multiple business and community-advisory boards including the Board of Directors of the Maryland Character Education and American Students’ Fund. Ms. Phelps is also a member of the “Kids Helping Hopkins” Board of Directors, as well as a board member for Northwest Hospital. She has been actively involved with a variety of charity organizations, including the Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County, Make-A-Wish Foundation Mid-Atlantic region, Pathfinders for Autism, and John’s Hopkins Shock Trauma Medical Center among others.

Marsha Glines

Marsha Glines, dean of Lynn University’s Institute for Achievement and Learning, has a national reputation as an expert in teaching and learning theory, special education, nontraditional program design and higher education curriculum development.

The founding president of Beacon College, in 1991, Glines joined Lynn University where she has created and supervised alternative, innovative programs including those at the Institute for Achievement and Learning.

A graduate of Emerson College and Lesley College, she was a special studies student at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education and received her Ph.D. in higher education administration from the Union Institute.

Glines has conducted teacher training workshops throughout South America and the U.S. and is a frequent presenter at national and international conferences pertaining to higher education. She is currently writing a book on the process of teaching and empowering our current generation of learners with ideas and thinking skills for appropriate problem solving.

Theodore Wasserman

Pediatric neuropsychologist Theodore Wasserman is associate dean for teaching and learning at the Lynn University Institute for Achievement and Learning, where he directs the IAL’s research and psychoeducational testing center. He is responsible for the Institute Fellows Program, faculty development and conducting empirical reviews and validation studies of the institute’s activities.

Wasserman completed his doctorate at Hofstra University in school and clinical psychology and served an internship in pediatric neuropsychology at North Shore University Medical Center on Long Island. He completed his doctoral training in cognitive behavior therapy at the Institute for Advanced Study of Rational Psychotherapy in New York City.

He sees children ages birth through 18 with a full range of medical and developmental anomalies. He is particularly interested in attention and learning disorders and their impact on school function, autism, Asperger’s Disorder, atypical developmental delays, seizures and traumatic brain injury.

A prolific author, Wasserman has served on the faculty at Hofstra University and lectures and consults domestically and abroad.

Michael McManmon

Michael McManmon, Ed.D. founded the College Internship Programs in 1984. He is licensed as a Psychologist by the State of Massachusetts. Prior to Founding CIP, he worked for state, private and non-profit organizations in several states and was certified as a family teacher through the Boys Town Center in Nebraska.

During his 39 years of experience with students with Learning Differences and Asperger’s Syndrome, Dr. McManmon has worked on Curriculum Development, Staff Training, Program Evaluation, and Administering Community Based Programming. He speaks and presents at professional conferences nationally and internationally.

He has a unique perspective as he himself was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome and grew up in a large family with several individuals on the spectrum. He has six children and 12 grandchildren, and is an avid artist, swimmer, gardener and traveler.

He is a blog author for Psychology Today and his book of advice for parents will be published in Fall 2011 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers. He is on the board of ASTEP and a member of ASA, AANE, NACAC and LDA.

Marci G. Fox

Marci G. Fox, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist, has been in private practice for almost fifteen years. She has worked closely with Dr. Sokol, Dr. Judith Beck, and Dr. Aaron T. Beck at the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy in Philadelphia for almost the same amount of time. As an Adjunct Faculty Member at the Beck Institute, she trains individuals in cognitive therapy both nationally and internationally, and helps mental health professionals to improve their clinical skills and pinpoint specific areas of remediation.

Dr. Fox has a founding fellow distinction as well as an invited placement on the board of examiners and credentials committee of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy. Dr. Fox has lectured for years on cognitive therapy and has coauthored the book Think Confident, Be Confident: A Four-Step Program to Eliminate Doubt and Achieve Lifelong Self-Esteem. Her next book Think Confident, Be Confident for Teens: A Cognitive Therapy Guide to Overcoming Self-Doubt and Creating Unshakable Self-Esteem will be released in October 2011. Dr. Fox has published in peer reviewed journals as well as written the explanation and description of cognitive therapy in The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science (3rd ed.) and The Concise Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science (3rd ed.). Dr. Fox was recently invited to coauthor an article on the topic of Reframing for inclusion in the fourth edition of The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science published by John Wiley and Sons. She has been interviewed for articles in multiple national magazines, such as Redbook, Cosmopolitan, Fitness, Shape Magazine, All You, Woman’s World, and USA Today. Dr. Fox also has been interviewed for television WPEC CBS12 & FOX29 “DAYBREAK” (PALM BEACH) and BETTER TV (National), and is often interviewed by many national and international radio stations including such shows as the “Montel Williams Show”, WLAC_AM “He Said She Said”, WBIX 1060 AM “Frankie Boyer Lifestyle Show,” and WKYE-FM/WNTJ-AM “Sunday Magazine/NTJ Morning Magazine”.

Leslie Sokol

Leslie Sokol, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist, is Senior Faculty, past Director of Education and one of the principal instructors with the internationally acclaimed Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy in Philadelphia. She has taught cognitive therapy to professional and para-professional groups, nationally and internationally, on such topics as: depression, anxiety, personality disorders, stress management, psychosis, substance abuse, and couples’ problems. In addition to her roles at the Beck Institute, she maintains a private practice in a primary care setting in the Philadelphia area. In her role as Chairman of Behavioral Science in the Family Practice Department at Mercy Suburban Hospital, she taught psychiatry to family medicine residents for twenty-two years. She continues to serve as the staff psychologist in the cardiac and physical rehabilitation departments.

Dr. Sokol coauthored the book Think Confident, Be Confident: A Four-Step Program to Eliminate Doubt and Achieve Lifelong Self-Esteem. Her next book Think Confident, Be Confident for Teens: A Cognitive Therapy Guide to Overcoming Self-Doubt and Creating Unshakable Self-Esteem will be released in October 2011. Dr. Sokol has published in peer reviewed journals, has been interviewed for articles in multiple national magazines, and has been interviewed for nationally syndicated television shows as well as national and international radio stations.

Stephen Shore

Diagnosed with "Atypical Development and strong autistic tendencies" and "too sick" for outpatient treatment Dr. Shore was recommended for institutionalization. Nonverbal until four, and with much support from his parents, teachers, wife, and others, Stephen is now a professor at Adelphi University where his research focuses on matching best practice to the needs of people with autism.

In addition to working with children and talking about life on the autism spectrum, Stephen presents and consults internationally on adult issues pertinent to education, relationships, employment, advocacy, and disclosure as discussed in his books Beyond the Wall: Personal Experiences with Autism and Asperger Syndrome, Ask and Tell: Self-advocacy and Disclosure for People on the Autism Spectrum, the critically acclaimed Understanding Autism for Dummies, and the newly released DVD Living along the Autism Spectrum: What it means to have Autism or Asperger Syndrome.

Herm Fishbein

Nationally renowned as an expert in the field of Transitional Services and Asperger/ Autism education, Dr. Fishbein’s experiences have included: Consultant for the Unicorn Children’s Foundation, Founding Executive Director of Renaissance Learning Academy in West Palm Beach, President of the Asperger Strategy Center (Boca Raton, FL) Special Needs Project Manager for the Broward County Children’s Services Council, Executive Director of League School of Boston and the Vermont Achievement Center, Transition and Adult Services Coordinator for UM CARD. Dr Fishbein has also presented at many National and International Conferences on Asperger’s, Autism, and related disabilities.

Peter Lake

Peter F. Lake is professor of law, Charles A. Dana chair and director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at Stetson University College of Law. He teaches and writes in the areas of torts, higher education law and policy, insurance and jurisprudence, and has won several awards for his teaching and scholarship.

He co-authored The Rights and Responsibilities of the Modern University (Carolina Academic Press 1999), and has also authored numerous law review articles and other publications. He is an internationally recognized expert on higher education law and policy and has been quoted or referred to in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Chicago Sun Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, the supreme courts of Virginia and Florida and the most recent Restatement of the Law of Torts. He has appeared on major television networks including ABC and CNN.

His latest book, Beyond Discipline – Managing the Modern Higher Education Environment, was published in 2009 by Hierophant Enterprises, Inc. Lake is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School.

Elizabeth Hamblet

Elizabeth C. Hamblet is a learning disabilities specialist at Columbia University who has also worked the high school end of the college transition as a special education teacher and case manager. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, she speaks, writes, and consults on transition to college for students with disabilities. Ms. Hamblet is the author of 7 Steps for Success: High School to College Transition Strategies for Students with Disabilities, published by the Council for Exceptional Children, and Transitioning to College: A Guide for Students with Disabilities, published by National Professional Resources. She is a regular contributor to Disability Compliance for Higher Education, and her work has appeared in the Journal of College Admissions and Career Development for Exceptional Individuals. Ms. Hamblet’s website, www.ldadvisory.com, offers information and helpful links for families and professionals.

Haley Moss

Haley Moss is a 17-year old South Florida native who was diagnosed with High Functioning Autism at age three. She is the author of “Middle School: The Stuff Nobody Tells You About”, is a renowned visual pop artist and advocates on behalf of children with disabilities. Haley tirelessly fundraises for local and national charities that benefit children with special needs, including Unicorn Children’s Foundation, Dan Marino Foundation and the Florida Council for Exceptional Children.

Haley was recently presented with the Council for Exceptional Children’s “Yes I Can!” International Award in April 2011. She is also the recipient of Samsung’s Hope for Children Teen Hero Award, which was presented to her in New York City in June 2011. Her artwork has been showcased in Boca Raton’s Art in Public Places, as well as on magazine covers and solo exhibits.

Haley’s inspirational story has been featured on many television programs such as CNN, PBS and NBC as well as numerous magazines and national newspapers.

To find out more information about Haley, please visit haleymossart.com

Donna Zanolla

Donna Zanolla, M.A., Psy.D., is Director of Clinical Review for the College Board’s Services for Students with Disabilities. Prior to joining the College Board, Dr. Zanolla worked at Blythedale Children’s Hospital. She maintains a private practice in New York.

Amanda Evans

Amanda received her M.A. in clinical psychology from Murray State University and provided university students and community members with a variety of psychological assessments and counseling services, with the focus of the practicum work directed toward the assessment of learning differences and executive functioning deficits in college students. She joined Lynn University in 2004 and provides academic coaching services to students. Amanda has presented research-based learning strategies for students to faculty, advisors, tutors, high school teachers and ADHD support groups at the regional and national level. She is a Senior Certified ADHD Coach through the Institute for the Advancement of ADHD Coaching.

Catherine Wharton

Catherine Wharton began working in the Institute for Achievement and Learning in 2006. She attended the Kellogg Institute at Appalachian State University in June 2007, where she was certified as a Developmental Education Specialist. Developmental education is defined as a weakness in student achievement as compared with other students at the same institution. She studied educational design, multiculturalism, assessment, and program and staff development. Upon returning to her position at Lynn's Institute for Achievement and Learning, Catherine modified components of the diagnostic center using the information she gained. Catherine is among fewer than 1,000 professionals to have attained this certification, which is regarded as one of the most prestigious credentials in the field of developmental education. In 2010, the diagnostic center began offering assessments to the local community.

Melissa Knight

Melissa has her M.A. in Psychology and has experience working in the mental health field, addictions and higher education. She has been professionally coaching others since 2006. Additionally, she has completed specialized training in both life and ADHD coaching. She has co-presented the following presentations; Using Coaching Creativity to Engage Students with ADHD, Coaching the College Brain: A Focused, yet Flexible, Educational Model, and Neuroscience Applied! Creating a Brain Compatible Learning Environment. In May 2011, Melissa presented The Importance of Supporting Students with Executive Functioning Deficits: The Creation of New Habits through Academic Coaching at the Independent Educational Consultants Association’s annual conference. Her coaching philosophy is about creating balance and success through coaching the whole person.

Stacey Bauberger

Stacey has a M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration along with first-hand experience working in the fields of higher education and addictions. Having professionally coached since 2007, Stacey has completed specialized training in both Personal/Life coaching and coaching those with AD/HD. Stacey has presented Changing Behaviors, Challenging the Norm: Using a Coaching Model for At-Risk College Students at Noel Levitz, Changing Behaviors, Challenging the Norm: How to Utilize a Coaching Model in your Educational Consultant Practice at the Independent Educational Consultants Association, and interviewed with Dr. George Glade of WebTalkradio.net regarding. As a co-presenter, Stacey has presented Using Coaching Creativity to Engage Students with ADHD, Coaching the College Brain: A Focused yet Flexible Educational Model in an Expert Speaker Series with the ADHD Coaches Organization, and Neuroscience Applied: Creating a Brain Compatible Learning Environment during a technology conference at Broward Community College. Stacey believes that integrating all aspects of a person’s life is essential in order to build success and accomplishment.