Speaker Bio:

My passion to become a teacher and make a difference for people who are “born
with differences” began in my early teens. I started by volunteering 5000+ hours at
community programs, which looked great on my resume. I then earned both
Master and Bachelor of Education degrees in Elementary and Exceptional Student
Education, from the University of Miami (1973-1977), becoming one of the first
Special Education teachers in FL and one of the first Early Intervention Specialists
in the nation.
For 50 years now, I have worked with non-profits, for-profits, government, and my
own businesses, serving children and families in most every capacity. From case
management at Big Brothers/Big Sisters, to assistant director of a Sheltered
Workshop for Adults, being a community trainer/mentor for the U.S. Department’s
Drug-Free Schools and Communities Program, and even as the first Resource
Development Specialist for a Children’s Services Council.
For the past two decades, I have loved being a Learning Specialist at my Make
Your Mark in Life Learning Center in Vero Beach, FL, where I supported
thousands of students, helping them to learn based on their unique strengths, interests, talents, and goals. This has led to my final passion project: Empowered
Parents Creating the Best Education Experience for their Learning Different Child.

Talk Title:

See it Differently…Change Your “Learning Different” Child’s Life!

Talk Summary:

This is about our children’s education, the decades-long process that determines
the quality of their lives and how capable and productive they will become.
According to the national Stand Together K-12 initiative, most Americans believe
it is time for a systematic change in how we educate our pre-K through 12th-grade
students in public and private schools. When 1 in 5 or 20-25% are identified as
Learning-Different, which does not even include our Differently Learning-Abled
students (think Gifted), we cannot continue to rely on a traditional one-size-fits-
most models. In truth, every one of us learns in our own unique way. Today, we
must revolutionize our education systems and create new, innovative, specialized
learning environments to reach every student, including our bright, talented, and
gifted differently learning-abled.
Parents of “special needs” and learning-disabled students, led monumental change
in the law 50 years ago to ensure a public education for every child. I see parents
being able to today, individually and collectively, make small and big changes, and
being the lead once again.