Co-Director of the Center on PBIS

Kent McIntosh, PhD, is the Philip H. Knight Chair of Special Education at the University of Oregon and Director of Educational and Community Supports, a research unit in the College of Education. He is co-director of the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports and co-facilitator of the Equitable Supports Workgroup.

Brandi Simonsen, Ph.D., is a Professor of Special Education in the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. Brandi Co-Directs the Center on PBIS and co-leads workgroups focused on classroom PBIS and supporting students with disabilities.

Participates in Disability workgroup

Brandi Simonsen, Ph.D., is a Professor of Special Education in the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. Brandi Co-Directs the Center on PBIS and co-leads workgroups focused on classroom PBIS and supporting students with disabilities.

Kristi Gomez serves as a Technical Assistance Specialist with Florida’s PBIS Project at the University of South Florida. In this role, she provides guidance and support to districts and schools implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to improve student outcomes and school climate. Prior to joining the project, Kristi spent 16 years in Clay County, Florida, where she held various roles, including classroom teacher, instructional coach, and PBIS District Coordinator. As District Coordinator, she supported 43 schools in implementing PBIS for five years. Kristi’s dedication to education has been recognized through multiple honors, including being named her school’s Teacher of the Year in 2013 and 2016, and receiving the Florida Council for the Social Studies Teacher of the Year award in 2017. She also contributed to district-level initiatives as a member of the Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) District Leadership Team, Professional Learning Advisory Council, and District Accreditation Team.

Betsy Lazega has served as a Technical Assistance Specialist with FLPBIS Project since 2017. Betsy holds a Specialist of Education degree in School Psychology from the University of South Florida, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of South Florida. Prior to joining the FLPBIS Project, Betsy worked in Hillsborough County Public Schools for 16 years. She served as a School Psychologist, district facilitator for MTSS, and a District Resource Teacher for Charter Schools. She also provided consultation and support to new School Psychologists in the district as an Instructional Mentor. She participates in the Center on PBIS Tier 1 and District/State Workgroups.

Participates in the Advanced Tier (Tier 2 and Tier 3) workgroup

Shanna E. Hirsch, Ph.D., BCBA-D, is an Associate Professor of Special Education at the University of Maryland. Dr. Hirsch is dedicated to bridging the research-to-practice gap by utilizing community engagement strategies, which build coalitions between community members and researchers. Her research focuses on identifying effective and practical instructional methods for supporting student behavior. She participates in the Tier 3 workgroup.

Dr. Alan Cook currently works within the Educational and Community Supports (ECS) research unit in the College of Education at the University of Oregon, which provides support to over 25,000 educational organizations around the world who are implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Additionally, ECS provides access to various web-based applications which allow schools to collect, monitor, and use fidelity and outcome data related to school-wide discipline and behavior support systems. In his current position, Alan leads the training team designing professional development and delivering training opportunities for educators across the world. After graduating from the University of Oregon in 2008, he began his career as an educator in an elementary classroom. Teaching grades K-6 in various classroom settings ranging from direct instruction to Montessori, he has built an extensive background using PBIS in the classroom for classroom behavior management. He is also highly skilled in leading professional development, designing curriculum and instruction, and student/educator engagement. In addition to being an elementary classroom teacher, Alan has worked to mentor teachers just starting out in the field and thoroughly enjoys helping educators find the spark that excites them about their craft. His favorite role is teaching and working with students of all ages and helping to improve the educational environment for educators and students alike. He recently completed his doctoral studies at the University of Oregon and his areas of interest are professional development, classroom management, special education, equity, inclusion, and online course creation.

Part of the PBISApps training team.

Dr. McDaniels participate in the Bullying Prevention workgroup, is the State Coordinator for Alabama, and formally worked with the Equity workgroup

I am a Center Partner and co-lead the Mental Health/Crisis Response and Recovery Workgroup.

Dr. Kira Mauseth is a Teaching Professor at Seattle University, a practicing clinical psychologist in Washington State, affiliate faculty at the SMART center at University of Washington, and a consulting partner with PBIS. She served as a co-lead for the Behavioral Health Strike Team for the WA State Department of Health throughout the COVID response, and owns Astrum Health, LLC, through which she consults with organizations, educational groups and state agencies about disaster preparedness and resilience building within local communities. She is part of the mental health work group for the Pediatric Pandemic Network. Dr. Mauseth has provided training to community groups and professionals both regionally and abroad as the co-developer of the Health Support Team© program. Her work and research focus on disaster behavioral health, resilience, and recovery from trauma as well as small and large-scale critical incident response and preparation for organizations. She has worked abroad extensively with disaster survivors and refugees and has trained first responders and health care workers throughout Puget Sound the United States, and currently serves in the adult mental health clinical seat on Washington State’s Disaster Medical Advisory Committee (DMAC). She is the author of the text “Why Therapy Works: The Psychology of Change”.

Kent McIntosh, PhD, is the Philip H. Knight Chair of Special Education at the University of Oregon and Director of Educational and Community Supports, a research unit in the College of Education. He is co-director of the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports and co-facilitator of the Equitable Supports Workgroup.

Therese is a member of the Center on PBIS' Equity & Belonging workgroup. She currently works as a Senior Research Scholar in the Department of Special Education at Vanderbilt University, and previously as a technical assistance specialist with Florida’s Positive Behavioral Supports Project. Therese’s areas of expertise include system-level data-based decision making, implementation of multi-tiered positive behavioral interventions and supports, addressing disproportionate discipline and facilitating collaborative systems-level decision-making with families and students.

Brooke is a Technical Assistance Specialist with FLPBIS out of the University of South Florida. She has practiced as a school psychologist and behavior analyst in schools before joining the FLPBIS team. There she leads work focused around Tiers 2 and 3 across the student, school, and district level. She also currently participates with the Center on PBIS Tier 2 and Tier 3 workgroup and has had the pleasure of facilitating sessions at the Forum for both Tier 2 and 3.

Dr. Kathleen Strickland-Cohen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Utah. Dr. Strickland-Cohen has extensive experience conducting research with and training both preservice teachers and in-service district and school personnel in the implementation of multi-tiered systems of behavior support. Her research and scholarship focus on designing inclusive educational environments to ensure the success of students with Tier 2 and Tier 3 behavior support needs and identifying factors associated with the sustained implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) in districts and schools. She is also an active member of the Center on PBIS Tier 2/3 and Supporting All Students in Classrooms workgroups.

Karen Elfner has been a facilitator and member of the State Evaluators Workgroup, which began as a subgroup of the Center on PBIS's State Leaders group. In my previous role with FLPBIS, I supported the development of fidelity measures (Benchmarks of Quality and Benchmarks for Advanced Tiers) used by the Center and other PBIS publications.

Nichole Fintel is the Evaluation Coordinator for Florida's PBIS Project, where she oversees data collection, management, and reporting to support nearly 2,000 schools. She serves on the Center for PBIS Evaluation Workgroup and helps to organize these meetings. Her areas of interest include school-based mental health integration and the implementation of PBIS, with an emphasis on translational research and implementation science.

Kimberly co-leads the Classroom Workgroup and is a member of the Crisis Response/Mental Health and Equity and Belonging workgroups. She provides technical assistance primarily to the mid-atlantic states.

Lyndsey Aiono-Conradi is an assistant professor at the University of Utah. She holds a Ph.D. in Special Education and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). Her research centers on creating meaningful inclusive environments for students with extensive support needs, with a focus on their participation in Schoolwide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Dr. Aiono-Conradi explores the effects of behavior interventions on teacher and student behaviors and has authored research reports with the TIES and PBIS Centers on the inclusion of students with ESN in PBIS.

Virginia L. Walker, PhD, BCBA-D, is Professor in the Department of Special Education and Child Development at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Walker began her career as a special education teacher of students with extensive support needs in Atlanta, Georgia before attending the University of Virginia where she worked on several federally funded grants involving research in the area of multi-tiered models of positive behavioral interventions and support and teacher preparation in the area of students with extensive support needs. Building upon this work, Dr. Walker’s line of research has focused on three general themes: positive behavioral interventions and supports for students with extensive support needs, supports planning to enhance the inclusion of students with extensive support needs, and effective training practices for school staff supporting students with extensive support needs. Dr. Walker currently serves on the editorial boards of Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, Inclusive Practices, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and Research and Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities.

I am dedicated to helping educators in classrooms, schools and districts develop efficient, effective, multi-tiered systems of behavioral and academic supports to improve outcomes for students. My work is connected to the Northeast PBIS Network, supporting the Training of Trainers program, and research on Integrated Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (I-MTSS) with a strong focus on classroom coaching.

Karen Robbie is a research associate at the University of Connecticut. Her work focuses on supporting PBIS implementation within national, regional, state, and district contexts through training and technical assistance. She is a member of multiple Center workgroups, including classroom/students with disabilities, state/district, and Tier 1.

Dr. Sara Estrapala is a member of the Center on PBIS Tier 2/3 Workgroup, is affiliated with the MU Center for PBS and the MO-SWPBS. She specializes in high school Tier 2 interventions and leveraging student voice to improve outcomes.

With over a decade of experience, Katie specializes in providing technical assistance to support the implementation of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Her work primarily focuses on advanced tiers implementation, integrating school mental health within the PBIS framework, and supporting schools to establish the efficient systems necessary to install and sustain effective advanced tier practices. As an active member of the Tier 2/Tier 3 workgroup, Katie notably led the development of the Tier 2 School-Level Systems Guide, a key resource for practitioners in the field.

Erin is a Center Implementation Partner working with Guam and Oregon. She also participates in the State and District Workgroup.

Laura Kern, JD, PhD is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Child & Family Studies at the University South Florida within the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities (FCIC; www.flcic.org), a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD). She works closely with the national Technical Assistance Center on Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS; www.pbis.org) and is involved with the Tier 1, State and District, Under Resourced Settings, Students with Disabilities, and Classroom workgroups. A parent of a child with disabilities, Laura served in the family seat for the Association for Positive Behavior Support (www.apbs.org). Prior to entering the field of special education, Laura was a practicing attorney for over a decade.

Nicole Peterson is on the leadership team of Northeast PBIS (NEPBIS), a regional training and technical assistance network and a member of the Tier 1 Workgroup.

Dr. Nikole Hollins-Sims is a highly regarded educational leader, consultant, and speaker, known for her expertise in equitable practices, systems transformation, and leadership coaching. Dr. Hollins-Sims currently serves as a research associate for the University of Oregon and co-leads the Center on PBIS equitable practices and belonging workgroup. Dr. Hollins-Sims enjoys supporting schools and organizations in building sustainable, student-centered practices.

Kent McIntosh, PhD, is the Philip H. Knight Chair of Special Education at the University of Oregon and Director of Educational and Community Supports, a research unit in the College of Education. He is co-director of the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports and co-facilitator of the Equitable Supports Workgroup.

Kimberly co-leads the Classroom Workgroup and is a member of the Crisis Response/Mental Health and Equity and Belonging workgroups. She provides technical assistance primarily to the mid-atlantic states.

Dr. Erik Maki is a licensed psychologist, behavior analyst, nationally certified school psychologist, and endorsed NEPBIS trainer who serves as a clinical consultant on the May Institute’s PBIS and School-Based Services Team. The May Institute, headquartered in Randolph, Massachusetts, is the Northeast regional partner to the National Technical Assistance Center on PBIS. Dr. Maki contributes to the Center’s workgroups focused on supporting students with disabilities through PBIS and enhancing classroom-level PBIS implementation. In his role, he provides training, consultation, and technical assistance to schools and districts, conducts behavioral assessments for students at risk of out-of-district placement, and supervises interns. With more than 20 years of experience across educational and mental and behavioral health settings—including residential and community-based acute treatment, outpatient care, higher education, and K–12 schools—he brings a comprehensive systems-level perspective to his work. His primary professional focus is on the systematic implementation of evidence-based school mental and behavioral health practices, particularly as they impact minoritized student populations.

Member of the state leaders' network aligned with the project coordinator leadership role at USF. Assist project team members with Center workgroup requests when needed for Tier 1/district/advanced tiers' current workgroups. Supported the previous leadership forums in getting started, mental health integration, and advanced tiers sessions as needed. Most recently supported the Getting-Started Pre-Leadership Forum Workshop during the October 2025 Forum.

Member of Tier 2 workgroup

Katherine Meyer is a research associate with the Center for Behavioral Education and Research (CBER) at the University of Connecticut. Katherine has over a decade of experience supporting schools with developing and implementing PBIS. She conducts research and publishes in the areas of improving outcomes for students with disabilities through PBIS and advanced-tier implementation and is a member of the PBIS Center's Tier 2/Tier 3 workgroup.

Brian serves as the Co-Executive Director of the Midwest PBIS Network and is a Partner at the USDOE Center on PBIS. Through his work with the Center, he provides technical assistance to State Education Agencies (SEAs) and leads the workgroup on Juvenile Justice and Alternative School Settings. He also co-coordinates the National Leadership Forum, oversees the Center’s internal evaluation activities, and contributes to the workgroups focused on classroom practices and students with disabilities.

Dr. Santiago-Rosario is a Research Associate at the University of Oregon and serves as an implementation partner for the Center on PBIS. She is an active member of the Equitable Supports, Classroom Supports, and Students with Disabilities workgroups.

Rebecca is a PhD student at Arizona State University. She earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood and special education from Arizona State University and her master’s degree in special education – high incidence disabilities from University of Kansas while working on the Ci3T research team. Her interests include comprehensive, integrated, three-tiered (Ci3T) models of prevention, positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), and systematic screening.

Kathleen Lynne Lane is a Roy A. Roberts Distinguished Professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Kansas and Director of Human Subjects Research. Dr. Lane’s research interests focus on designing, implementing, and evaluating Comprehensive, Integrated, Three-tiered (Ci3T) models of prevention to (a) prevent the development of learning, behavior, and social and emotional well-being challenges and (b) respond to existing instances, with an emphasis on systematic screening. She is the co-editor of Remedial and Special Education and principal investigator on the following grants funded by the Institute of Education Sciences: Project Enhance (Network) and Project Engage (Pandemic Impact). Dr. Lane has co-authored or edited 16 books and published 261 refereed journal articles and 59 book chapters. Dr. Lane serves as partner for the OSEP Center on PBIS, bringing expertise in systematic screening and serving on the Mental Health and Crisis Prevention work group.