About us

Professor Ron Dumont, Ed.D., NCSP 

 

Dr. Dumont is currently Professor of Psychology at Fairleigh-Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey, and Director of the School of Psychology. Prior to this position, he was Director of the School Psychology program at the State University of New York (SUNY)-Plattsburgh. He was a practicing school psychologist for 20 years, and the Director of Psychological Services for the Hudson-Litchfield, New Hampshire school districts. He is a published author or co-author of several books and numerous chapters and journal articles, has co-authored, with John Willis, a Guide to the Identification of Learning Disabilities, and was senior author and computer programmer for the Differential Ability Scales Scoring Assistant published by the Psychological Corporation. He is a contributing editor on assessment for the National Association of School Psychologists’ (NASP) newspaper (Communiqué) and has served on the editorial board of Psychology in the Schools and the Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment. His research interests include cognitive assessment, learning disabilities, emotional disorders, and test reviews..

 

 

Melissa Farrall, Ph.D., SAIF

 

Dr. Farrall is the author of Reading Assessment: Linking Language, Literacy, and Cognition, and the co-author of All About Tests & Assessments published by Wrightslaw. She presently works as educational consultant for St. Joseph Hospital in Nashua, NH. She teaches the structure of language at Simmons College in Boston, MA. Dr. Farrall received her doctorate from Brown University in 1981 in the area of Slavic Linguistics. She received her Master’s Degree from Rivier College in Learning Disabilities in 1994, and her certification as a Specialist in the Assessment of Intellectual Functioning in 1999. Dr. Farrall worked as a learning disability specialist in the public schools for several years. She has worked with the International Dyslexia Association at both the national and branch levels. Dr. Farrall lives in Merrimack, New Hampshire with her husband, her dog, and her cat.  Dr. Farrall offers workshops on many topics, including:  

            CELF-5                

            CELF-5 Metalinguistics        

            Leiter-3                    

            KTEA-3

            Testing Reading and Writing                          

            WISC-V

            and other topics related to assessment, reading, and written language.

 

 

Jill A. Hartmann, M.Ed., SAIF

 

 

 

 

Ms. Hartmann is a Specialist in Assessment of Intellectual Functioning in SAU 24 and Director of the Hartmann Learning Center (www.hartmannlearning.com) in Nashua, NH. She is an experienced teacher, tutor, and educational evaluator and has been directly involved in the field of education for 15 years. She has taught most grade levels from 1st grade through 8th grade and holds multiple certifications. With experience teaching Math, Language Arts, Social Studies, Special Education, and Gifted programs, she has a wealth of knowledge to bring to her students. As an educational evaluator, Jill has worked with children of all ages to help recognize their academic strengths and weaknesses. By recognizing academic strengths and weaknesses, educational experiences can be tailored to promote individual learning. Making the connection between evaluation results and appropriate educational interventions is a priority for Jill. She has worked with some leading test publication companies as a field researcher and participated in the norming process of several evaluation tools including the KTEA-II, KABC-II, and KeyMath 3. She is currently working as a field researcher on projects scheduled to be published in 2014. Jill's certifications include Elementary Education (K-8), Specialist in the Assessment of Intellectual Functioning, General Special Education, and Specific Learning Disabilities in New Hampshire, and Elementary Education (1-6), Mathematics (5-8), and Moderate Disabilities (PreK-8) in Massachusetts. Jill is a doctoral candidate in the Leadership and Learning program at Rivier University.   Jill offers workshops on many topics, including:

            Insights in Using the Q-Global                       

            Insights in Using the Q-Interactive

            KTEA-3 for KTEA II Users                          

            Leiter-3

            WISC-V for WISC-IV Users                           

            WJ-IV (Woodcock-Johnson IV)

 

Elaine Holden, Fellow, AOGPE

 

Elaine is the author of RTI Classroom Testing K-6, has presented nationally for many organizations including the Bureau of Education and Research, International Dyslexia Association; Council of Parents, Attorneys and Advocates; and the Council for Exceptional Children.  In New England Elaine has presented for such groups as the League of New England Middle Schools, Suffolk Law School; Special Education Advocacy Network; and many more in the field of reading and dyslexia. Elaine is the Director of The Reading Foundation, the first female appointed by Governor Lynch to serve on his Commission on the Status of Men, the vice-chair of the New Hampshire Supreme Court Professional Conduct Committee, a Justice of the Peace, loyal Rotarian, and published poet.  She currently serves on the Board of Governors of the Children’s Dyslexia Center of Nashua, NH, the Monadnock Summer Lyceum, and represents New Hampshire on the New England Fathering Committee.  She is a former board member of the Pastel Society of New Hampshire and has won awards for her pastel paintings.  Elaine is also clinically certified in hypnotherapy, including her specialty with Tourette Syndrome patients, and has received professional recognition for her monthly column published in the Monadnock Ledger-Transcript newspaper. Elaine offers workshops on many topics related to dyslexia, Orton-Gillingham instruction, language, and reading instruction, including:

            Assessment of Reading                       

            The Power of Fathers in Learning to Read

            Multi-Sensory Reading Programs        

            Stage Zero Reading: What You Need to Know

            Assessing Vocabulary: What Does it Mean?          

            Spelling: One of the Critical Building Blocks of Reading 

 

 

Virginia Mentel, M.Ed., CAGS

 

Ms. Mentel is in educational leadership and school psychology, began her career in regular education in Forest Hills and Jamaica, Queens. Since 2008, she has been an Educational Consultant, Coach, and Diagnostician working in both public and private schools in New Hampshire and New York. She is an experienced teacher, tutor, and educational evaluator and has been directly involved in the field of education for 25 years. She has taught most grade levels from 1st grade through 8th grade and holds multiple certifications.  She was a special educator and evaluator in New Hampshire from 1999 to 2007. With experience teaching Orton-Gillingham and Lindamood-Bell to students with Language Arts disabilities, as well as Math. Social Studies, Special Education, and specialized programs for students on the spectrum, and who have difficulty with ADD, ADHD, SLD, and EDH, she has a wealth of knowledge to bring to her students. As an educational evaluator and school psychologist, Ginger has worked with children of all ages to help recognize their academic strengths and weaknesses, which in turn will lead those students to receive the appropriate educational intervention. She received her New Hampshire state certifications in K-12 Learning Disability and K-12 Serious Emotional Disability, Masters of Education/Field Based Training in Special Education and her General Special Education certification K-12 from the Plymouth State University Certification Program. Ginger presently works as a school psychologist, counsels students at her home office, and works with ED, LD, Autistic, and ELL/ESOL (culturally/linguistically diverse) students both at home and in their classrooms. Ginger offers Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Classes for parents of children with and without special needs. Her professional interests include Suicide Prevention, Conflict Resolution, the Responsive Classroom, PBIS, LD, Behavioral Interventions, and culturally and linguistically diverse students. Ginger sits on the governing board for the Association of Specialists in Assessment of Intellectual Functioning (ASAIF), as secretary and on the State of New Hampshire’s Youth Suicide Prevention Association (YSPA), both as a member and one of the people involved in the yearly presentation of the State of NH’s Suicide Prevention Conference. Ginger was trained by the Mindfulness Matters eight-week training course and is a qualified teacher for children and adults and trainer for professionals.  She was also trained by NAMI NH’s Connect Suicide Prevention and Intervention Program as a trainer in the prevention training disciplines of Gatekeeper, Schools, and Mental Health and Substance Abuse Providers.  She has presented workshops for NH State Suicide Prevention Conference, ASAIF, private agencies and school districts around the state of New Hampshire and New York.  Ginger offers workshops on topics including:

        ASD vs NVLD                       

        Assessment, Screening and Progress Monitoring of ELLS

        Assessment Involving Cultural and Linguistic Diversity and RTI                   

        BASC-3

        English Language Learners and RTI – Common Core Changes in NH

        English Language Learners and Response to Intervention      

        ESL Proficiency Testing 

        Mindfulness – How to Use Mindfulness in a Classroom Setting

        Suicide Prevention Training               

        What is Nonverbal Learning Disability (NVLD)

        What is Cultural Competence?

 

Karis Post, M.Ed., CAGS 

 

Ms. Post has been a school psychologist in Worcester, MA for over 15 years.  She has experience working with multicultural and multi-challenged populations in various contexts for over twenty-five years.  Her professional interests include assessment of bilingual students, Universal Design for Learning, and Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Karis offers workshops on various topics, including:

         Assessment, Screening and Progress Monitoring of ELLS

         Assessment Involving Cultural and Linguistic Diversity and RTI

         Trauma Sensitive Schools

 

 

John O. Willis, Ed.D., SAIF

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Willis has been, since 1980, part-time Senior Lecturer in Assessment and coordinator of the Specialist in Assessment of Intellectual Functioning (SAIF) program, Rivier University, Nashua, New Hampshire, where he also teaches Cognitive Assessment II, and, since 1974, Assessment Specialist (former Director of Psychoeducational Services), Regional Services and Education Center, Amherst, NH. He has worked in special education as a volunteer, tutor, teacher, evaluator, administrator, author, presenter, and consultant for 51 years. Evaluator is the one job he may have gotten right. He is the co-author, with Ron Dumont, Ed.D, NCSP, of the Guide to Identification of Learning Disabilities (3rd ed.) and is author or co-author of several books and many several chapters and articles.  Dr. Willis has taught courses for the University System of New Hampshire and Antioch/New England Graduate School and presented numerous workshops for teachers and psychologists in the United States and Canada since 1976.  Dr. Willis offers workshops on various assessment topics, including:

            KTEA-3                      KTEA-3 for KTEA II Users               CTOPP-2

            Leiter-3                     Writing Evaluation Reports              WPPSI-IV                              

            WISC-V                     WISC-V for WISC-IV Users               Assessment of SLD

            WAIS-IV                    WJ-IV (Woodcock-Johnson IV)         Assessment of ID

            DAS-II                       Assessment of Processing Speed     Assessment of Memory

 

 

Lisa Zack-Swasey. M.Ed., CAGS, SAIF

 

Ms. Swasey has been a special educator for over 30 years and a SAIF for 17 years. She has worked at the elementary and high school level in special schools, alternative school settings, and inclusion model programs. She has studied math instruction and assessment under Mahesh C. Sharma and has incorporated hands-on math lessons into the EveryDay Math program for the past 10 years. She has presented math workshops for the NH Association of Special Education Administrators, (NHASEA), for the NH Phonological & Imagery Network (NHPIN), as well as for ASAIF and school districts around the state of New Hampshire.  Lisa offers workshops on topics including:

        Essential Word Skills. (EWKS)

        Assessment of Mathematics: What Most Evaluators Don't Know