About the Authors

Susan C. Bon, J.D., Ph.D. is the Higher Education Program Coordinator and an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policies at the University of South Carolina. Dr. Bon teaches the education law, higher education law, policy, and disability courses. She also holds an affiliate appointment in the University of South Carolina’s School of Law. Her scholarship focuses on the impact of law and ethics on leadership and special education leadership in K-12 schools and higher education programs. She has authored and co-authored nearly 40 articles and book chapters addressing the legal and ethical principles that inform administrative practice and impact leadership. Dr. Bon is an active leader in national law-related organizations focusing on education law and special education law. Prior to her university faculty service, she worked as the ombudsman in the State Superintendent’s Division of the Ohio Department of Education. She spent one year as a part-time Intern at the United States Education Department working on Title I, Part D (Neglected or Delinquent Youth), McKinney-Vento (EHCY), and Homeless Education Disaster Assistance (HEDA) Grant Programs. Dr. Bon received her J.D. law degree and Ph.D. from The Ohio State University.

Darius Bone is a Lieutenant with 30 years of professional experience that spans a wide range of disciplines. For the past 23 years, he has worked with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). Woven throughout his careers are homeland security, public safety and service, risk management, liability mitigation, human factors analysis, and aviation safety. His professional career in public service began as an electrical engineer for a prominent government contracted aerospace corporation, Hughes Aircraft (eight years). Lt. Bone holds a Master’s Degree in Negotiation and Conflict Management from California State University Dominguez Hills. Darius has published in Law Enforcement Today, and currently has an article “in press” with FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin titled “Human Factors: Leaders Improving Safety while Developing Meaningful Public Trust.”

Kevin P. Brady, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Arkansas. He has published more than 60 articles and book chapters involving educational law and policy issues. His primary advocacy, research, and scholarly interests include special education law, school disciplinary issues, school funding fairness, and increasing legal literacy for today’s school leaders. He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Education Law Association (ELA). His research and scholarship appears in a wide range of leading educational law, policy, and technology journals. Dr. Brady currently serves on a number of editorial boards for peer-reviewed journals, including Education and Urban Society, Education Law & Policy Review, Journal of Disability Policy Studies, and West’s Education Law Reporter. Along with coauthors, Gina Umpstead, Janet Decker, David Schimmel, and Matthew Militello, his most recent book, How to Prevent Special Education Litigation: Eight Legal Lesson Plans (2015) is to be published by Teachers College Press. He earned his Master’s Degree in educational policy from Teachers College, Columbia University and his Ph.D. in educational policy analysis from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Jeffrey Burke, Ed.D., holds a doctoral degree from Texas A&M, College Station. He currently serves as the Assistant Superintendent of Academics for Georgetown Independent School District in Georgetown, Texas. Dr. Burke has previously served in Alvin ISD as Executive Director of Professional Learning and Director of Human Resources. Prior to his service in Alvin, he was the High School Principal in Anderson-Shiro CISD near College Station and taught High School English and History for seven years in the classroom. In his 19 years in public education, Dr. Burke has worked at all school levels and has served in a variety of roles, but in each role his passion has been to ensure that students are treated equitably and fairly, and that each student realizes his or her potential. School law has always been an interest for Dr. Burke, and his work at the campus and district leadership level exposed him to numerous situations and scenarios in which equitable and appropriate application of legal principles, policies, and practices were in play. It is his belief that public education serves to further our democracy and that we have a responsibility to ensure that students are given every opportunity to succeed, that it is our calling as educators to allow them to flourish, and that we are charged with protecting their best interests.

Kathleen Conn, Ph.D., J.D., LL.M, is a scientist, educator, consultant, and attorney. Dr. Conn is currently Of Counsel with the Education Law Group of King, Spry, Herman, Freund & Faul, LLC in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. She earned her B.S. in Physics from St. John’s University, New York, an M.S. in Medical Physics/Radiation Biology at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), and a dual Ph.D. in Physics/Biology at Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in Pennsylvania. Dr. Conn’s educational experience includes college/university teaching and 18 years of service in public school districts in Pennsylvania, as a teacher, K-12 curriculum supervisor, and elementary school principal. She has also been a consultant to schools and school districts on issues of school safety, bullying, cyberbullying, and sexual harassment. Kathleen also teaches as an Adjunct Professor at her alma mater, Widener University School Law in Wilmington, Delaware, where she earned her J.D. and LL.M. degrees. She is a member of the Pennsylvania bar and is admitted to the bar of the United States Supreme Court. Dr. Conn has published numerous commentaries in peer-reviewed law journals and authored three books and numerous book chapters. She is an annual presenter at the national Education Law Association (ELA) Conference, and has served on the Executive Board of ELA. She has presented internationally in Europe, China, New Zealand, and Australia.

Janet R. Decker, J.D., Ph.D., began her career as a special education teacher teaching students with autism. With a desire to affect policy change for students with disabilities, she received both her law degree and Ph.D. in Education Policy Studies from Indiana University. In 2011, the Education Law Association awarded her the Joseph C. Beckham Dissertation of the Year Award. Currently, Dr. Decker is an Assistant Professor at Indiana University’s School of Education where she teaches school law courses to undergraduate and graduate students. Her research focuses on legal issues related to special education and charter schools.

Cynthia A. Dieterich, Ph.D., recently completed a position as a Visiting Faculty member in the Department of Teacher Education at Cleveland State University (CSU), Cleveland, Ohio. Previously, she held a position as a tenured, Associate Professor in special education for 14 years; also at CSU. Following her tenured position, she worked as a Research Consultant in the Washington, DC, area. She completed her Doctoral Degree at Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, in special education and psychometrics. Her experience as a researcher and practitioner is in both regular and special education within both private and public settings. Her publications appear in medical, legal, and educational journals, and include topics such as bullying, functional behavioral assessment, response to intervention, young children with hearing impairments, young children with hemangiomas, and health related services in special education. She has been actively involved in the Education Law Association (ELA) for 27 years and currently a member of the Board of Directors.

Suzanne E. Eckes, Ph.D., J.D., is a Professor in the Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Department at Indiana University. Dr. Eckes has published over 100 school-law articles and book chapters, is a co-editor of the Principal’s Legal Handbook and School Discipline and Safety, and is a co-author of the leading school law books Legal Rights of Teachers and Students and Legal Rights of Teachers and Students and Principals Teaching the Law. Much of her research focuses on issues of equity for marginalized groups in public schools. She served on the board of directors for the Education Law Association and is currently the co-chair of the publications committee. She is the recipient of the Jack A. Culbertson Award for outstanding achievements in education from the University Council of Educational Administration. Prior to joining the faculty at Indiana University, Dr. Eckes was a high school French teacher in the Mississippi Delta region and an attorney at a Chicago law firm. She earned her Master’s in Education from Harvard University and both her law degree and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Patricia A. L. Ehrensal, Ed.D., is a Faculty Member at The College of New Jersey in the Educational Administration program. Her research focuses on discourses in and around school organizations. Particularly it examines how social construction of these organizations and the actors therein shape and are shaped by these discourses. The research is conducted from a critical theory perspective, drawing from the works of Foucault, Habermas, Bourdieu, and Berstien. Multi-disciplinary, this research draws from critical legal, policy, organizational and cultural studies, politics and governance, as well as critical children and youth studies. The research examines policy and legal documents, as well as the depiction of schools in the popular media. In addition to her numerous presentations at national and international conferences, Ehrensal has authored articles and book chapters examining ethics, law, the social construction of children in, and organizational arrangements of schools, and was the guest editor of the special edition of The Journal of School Leadership on law and ethics. Dr. Ehrensal earned her doctoral degree from Temple University in Philadelphia.

Chinasa A. Elue, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in Education Administration at Kent State University. Her lines of inquiry focus on issues of educational access and equity for underserved student populations across the P-20 continuum. The first strand of her research agenda explores the college choice decisions of marginalized students, specifically, rural student populations, and the different factors that impact their college choice decisions. Her second line of inquiry explores issues of educational access for immigrant student populations. Lastly, her third line of inquiry examines how law and policy, research, and practice connect to explore issues that impact the educational opportunities for marginalized student populations. Dr. Elue earned her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Clemson University, her M.Ed. from Valdosta State University in Educational Leadership, and her Bachelor’s of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Georgia. Dr. Elue also serves as a Research Associate with the UCEA Center for Leadership in Law and Education for Law in Leadership and Education at Clemson University.

Patricia F. First, J.D., Ed.D., is Eugene T. Moore Distinguished Professor of Educational Leadership at Clemson University and Founding Director of the UCEA Center for Leadership in Law and Education. Dr. First’s research and teaching are focused on the legal and policy issues of the education system, particularly those issues intersecting with ethical leadership furthering justice for children, the role of school boards and the financing of education. She is the author of Education Policy for School Administrators, and editor of School Boards: Changing Local Control. She has written numerous legal monographs, book chapters, and articles in scholarly and practitioner journals and presented education law topics nationally and internationally. Dr. First has served as Dean of the School of Education of the University of Dayton and Chairperson of the Faculties of Educational Leadership at the University of Arizona, Western Michigan University, and Northern Illinois University. She has been a teacher and administrator in K-12 education, a policy analyst with both state and federal government and a National Education Policy Fellow. Dr. First earned the Ed.D. and M.S. degrees at Illinois State University, the B.S. at the University of Massachusetts, and the J.D. at the University of Dayton School of Law. Among her national service roles, Dr. First has served on the Board of Directors of the Education Law Association and the Leadership Advisory Council of the American Association of School Administrators. Her current roles include service on the Board of the National Education Finance Conference, as Legislation Editor of The Journal of Law and Education, and participation in Educators Without Borders. Her current research focuses upon the legal and ethical rights of immigrant children, the interpretation of free and public in education policy dialog and the use of policy studies methodologies in legal research.

Delaney Jones is a police sergeant with 32 years of total Law Enforcement experience, which includes the U.S. Air Force Special Weapons and Tactics Team. For the past 29 years, he has worked for the Los Angeles Police Department. Some of his assignments include Patrol, Vice, Undercover Major Narcotics, Special Enforcement Unit, Bike Unit, OMBUDSMAN, Adjutant to the Commanding Officer, various Detective assignments and he is currently assigned to the Department’s Employee Relations Group, where he is the Department’s primary instructor for teaching Leadership Values, Conflict Resolution and Encouraging Effective Performance. Delaney completed his graduate education in Negotiation & Conflict Management, and his Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration at California State University of Dominguez Hills. Delaney continues to strive to obtain his life goal as he is currently attending Concord University Law School.

Hollie J. Mackey, Ph.D. (Northern Cheyenne), is an Assistant Professor of Education at the University of Oklahoma. Her research includes K-12 educational leadership for equitable schools, American Indian education, education law and ethics, indigenous research paradigms, and leadership for social justice. She currently serves on the advisory board for the South Central Comprehensive Center (SC3) that focuses on American Indian education in the southwestern U.S. in partnership with the multiple state education agencies and the White House Initiative for Indian Education, and is a current nominee for the National Advisory Council for Indian Education (NACIE). Awards include the 2009 Harold F. Martin Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award, the 2013 International Willower Award for Excellence, and the 2014 Jack A. Culbertson Award for outstanding accomplishments as a junior professor of educational leadership. Dr. Mackey’s publications can be found in Information Age, Emerald, Rowman and Littlefield, and Routledge Publishers and in the International Journal for Qualitative Studies in Education, Mentoring and Tutoring, the Journal of Educational Administration, and the Journal for Critical Thought and Praxis. Dr. Mackey works closely with school administrators, policy-makers, and fellow scholars both in the United States and abroad as an advocate and activist for systemic educational improvement and reform.

Caron Mellblom-Nishioka, Ed.D., is a Professor of Special Education in the Department of Teacher Education at California State University, Dominguez Hills. She is also a Speech Language Pathologist. Her research interests include alternative language development, assistive technology and communication development among individuals with disabilities, inclusive supported bilingual language development. Dr. Mellblom-Nishioka has authored numerous grant projects designed to provide supported learning to students and to improve the transition of students from one educational setting to the next. She has a strong background in program and school assessment, having served on more than 20 evaluation teams for Western Association of Schools and Colleges, (WASC), National Association of Colleges of Teacher Education, NCATE – now called the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, (CAEP), and The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, (CCTC). She has over 20 published articles, books chapters, reports and book reviews. Dr. Mellblom-Nishioka has worked in the greater Los Angeles basin for 20 years and has developed awareness of the unresolved issues facing second language learners today. She brings this experience to her University seminars and graduate students.

Anthony H. Normore (Tony), Ph.D., earned his Doctorate Degree from University of Toronto. He is Department Chair of Graduate Education, and Professor of Educational Leadership at California State University Dominguez Hills. Tony has served in various university administrative roles including Department Chair of Special Needs, Department Chair of Educational Leadership, Co-Chair of Teacher Education, and Director of Doctoral Programs. Tony has been a visiting professor of ethics and leadership at Seoul National University, a visiting professor in the Department of Criminal Justice Studies at University of Guelph/Humber and a regular graduate professor of law, ethics, and leadership for the Summer Leadership Academy at Teachers College-Columbia University. His 33 years of professional education experiences has taken him throughout North America, South Central Asia, Eastern Asia, United Kingdom, Continental Europe, and South Pacific. Tony’s research focusses on urban leadership growth and development in the context of ethics and social justice. He is the author of several edited books including What the Social Sciences Tell us about Leadership for Social Justice and Ethics (2014, Information Age Publishing), Moral Compass for Law Enforcement Professional (2014, International Academy of Public Safety), and Collective Efficacy: An Interdisciplinary Approach to International Leadership Development (2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited), and a contributor of numerous scholarly book chapters and peer-reviewed journal articles. He is the Chief Leadership and Ethics Officer, and the Chairman of the Criminal Justice Commission for Credible Leadership Development with the International Academy of Public Safety (IAPS).

Mark Paige, J.D., Ph.D., is a Professor of public policy at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. At UMASS, he researches legal issues in education and their educational policy dimensions. In particular, he focuses on the law relates to teacher evaluation, collective bargaining, public school finance, as well as special education law. He has an extensive background in the field of education law. He has been invited to present his research before academic and professional audiences. Before entering academia, he represented school districts before a variety of courts and tribunals. In this capacity, he also counseled school districts on employment and collective bargaining matters and authored the winning brief in a leading case regarding management rights before the New Hampshire Supreme Court. He received both his J.D., with honors, and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Delia E. Racines, Ph.D., earned her Doctorate in Teacher Education and Educational Leadership from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. Delia most recently worked as a Faculty member teaching English Learners at the University of Southern California’s (USC) Language Academy (now International Academy) and also taught American Legal English with the Gould School of Law in the yearly Law & English program. Delia is currently an Educational Consultant for Teacher Created Materials in Huntington Beach, California, and also supports teachers in Orange County as a Title I Instructional Coach. Her dissertation was nominated for the Joseph C. Beckham Dissertation of the Year Award with the Education Law Association. Delia recently authored introductory chapters in Teaching to Complexity and TIME For Kids: Practicing for Today’s Tests, and proudly serves as an Advisory Board member representing Southern California for English Language Development with Teacher Created Materials.

Nicole D. Snyder, J.D., is a Shareholder at Latsha Davis & McKenna, P.C. She represents numerous schools in special education law, education law and charter school law matters. She routinely advises and defends charter schools in cases arising under IDEA and Section 504, regularly conducts trainings for school personnel and school boards, and annually presents papers at various seminars on special education law, education law and ethics. Nicole is a member of PBI’s Legal Services for Exceptional Children’s Committee, the Education Law Association, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, American Educational Research Association, and the Pennsylvania Bar Association. She has been admitted to practice before the Supreme Courts of Pennsylvania, Ohio and New Jersey, as well as numerous district courts. She received her J.D. from Villanova University School of Law and her B.A. in English magna cum laude from Villanova University. Prior to joining private practice, she served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Bonnie Brigance Leadbetter of the Commonwealth Court and served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Juan R. Sánchez when he presided over matters for the Chester County Court of Common Pleas.

Stacy Spell is a Lieutenant with 25 years of leadership experience, beginning with his service in the United States Army Infantry. Lieutenant Spell has been with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) for 21 years, where he worked a variety of assignments in operations, investigations, and training. He completed his Master’s Degree in Emergency Services Administration through California State University Long Beach. Stacy is a volunteer and staunch advocate for people with Autism and developmental disabilities.

Jacqueline A. Stefkovich, Ed.D., J.D., is Professor of Educational Leadership at The Pennsylvania State University. Previously, she served as Associate Dean for Graduate Programs, Research, and Faculty Development and also as Head of the Department of Education Policy Studies. Before Penn State, Dr. Stefkovich was a professor and coordinator of the Educational Administration program at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dr. Stefkovich holds a doctoral degree in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education and a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. She is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia. Earlier in her career, she worked as a teacher, school counselor, state-level administrator, and educational consultant. Dr. Stefkovich’s research interests focus on school law, primarily students’ constitutional rights, and on issues of ethics related to school leadership. She has authored or co-authored one monograph and four books as well as some 80 book chapters and articles in law reviews and refereed journals. She has presented workshops and papers at conferences in the United States, Canada, Colombia, S.A., South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. She has taught summer courses at Columbia University and at Temple University’s campus in Tokyo, Japan.

Lori L. Taylor, Ph.D., is Associate Professor and Director of the Mosbacher Institute for Trade, Economics and Public Policy at Texas A&M University. She holds the Verlin and Howard Kruse ‘52 Founders Professorship in the Bush School of Government and Public Service and is an adjunct associate professor in Texas A&M’s Department of Economics. She is a member of the Policy Advisory Board for the Texas Institute for Education Reform (TIER) and a member of the Children At Risk Institute. Dr. Taylor holds a BA in economics and a BS in business administration from the University of Kansas, and a Master’s and Ph.D. in economics from the University of Rochester. Prior to joining the Bush School, Dr. Taylor spent 14 years in the Research Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. Dr. Taylor has written extensively on variations in the cost of education and has served as a consultant on school finance issues for a variety of legislative committees and state and federal agencies. She recently served as an expert consultant for the Texas Comptroller’s Financial Allocation Study for Texas (FAST), and developed the Comparable Wage Index for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).

Mario S. Torres, Jr., Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Educational Administration program at Texas A&M University, College Station. Dr. Torres earned his Ph.D. in Educational Administration from Penn State University, University Park in 2003. His research interests include school law, policy, ethics, and organizational inclusion. Dr. Torres has published in the field’s premier journals including the Educational Administration Quarterly, Journal of Educational Administration, the Journal of School Leadership, and Education and Urban Society and recently co-authored a book with John Hoyle entitled Six Steps to Preparing Exemplary Principals and Superintendents: Leadership at its Best through Rowman and Littlefield Education Press. He recently co-edited a book entitled The Principal’s Legal Handbook through the Education Law Association. He served on summer faculty at Teachers College, Columbia University and is a research fellow with the Mexican American and U.S. Latino Research Center.

James Vines recently earned his Ph.D. in Educational Leadership, with a focus on Higher Education, from Clemson University. As part of his Ph.D. studies he earned a Policy Studies Certificate from the Strom Thurmond Institute of Government and Public Affairs. His dissertation titled “An Explanatory Embedded Case Study of the Proposed Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention & Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Statutes” examined policymaking, agenda setting, and the role of advocacy coalitions in the policy process. His ongoing research agenda covers cyberbullying and the creation of federal and state statutes. James is a Frederick Douglass Teaching Scholar at Bloomsburg University. At Bloomsburg he serves as an Academic Advisor for first-year students, and teaches graduate courses in college student affairs and undergraduate courses college readiness. Dr. Vines has served as a Guest Lecturer for several doctoral seminars regarding school policies and bullying. He has represented his colleagues as a former member of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Graduate Student Council.