Effective RTI Training and Practices

Dr Gary L. Cates earned his PhD from Mississippi State University and is an associate professor of psychology at Illinois State University, USA. He teaches and conducts clinical supervision of graduate students related to assessment and intervention of academic and social behavior problems. He also coordinates the Academic Intervention and Consultation Service at the Psychological Services Center at ISU. Dr. Cates has authored or co-authored numerous research studies and national presentations. His primary research interests include the prevention and remediation of academic skills deficits, differential effectiveness and efficiency of academic interventions and learning strategies, and applied behavior analysis in educational settings. Dr. Cates is certified as a school psychologist in Illinois and also holds national certification in school psychology. His current consultation work primarily focuses on the implementation and evaluation of Response to Intervention models, with strong emphasis on data-based decision making. He currently is working with numerous schools in training staff to implement and sustain Response to Intervention procedures.

Dr Craig Blum is an assistant professor at Illinois State University, USA in the Special Education Department. His research interests and expertise are in Response to Intervention for social behavior, Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports (PBIS), functional assessment in schools, and use of technology to teach emergent literacy skills to children with or at risk for disability. Dr. Blum publishes peer-reviewed research and presents to general and special educators locally and nationally. He has worked as a consultant with school districts on how to collect data on social behavior and integrate them into an RTI model.

Dr Mark E. Swerdlik is a professor of psychology, Coordinator of the Graduate Programs in School Psychology, and a clinical supervisor in the Psychological Services Center at Illinois State University, USA where he has been involved as a university educator of school psychologists for more than 30 years. He is a former school psychologist and currently maintains an independent practice of school psychology as a licensed clinical psychologist. Dr. Swerdlik is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association-Division of School Psychology. He has been awarded a Diplomate in School Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology and a Diplomate in Assessment Psychology from the American Board of Assessment Psychology. He has worked as a trainer, consultant, and program evaluator for schoolwide reform efforts such as the Flexible Student Services Model since its first implementation in Illinois in 1998. Currently, he serves as a regional evaluator for the statewide implementation of RTI in Illinois. Dr. Swerdlik has provided training in all components of RTI for a number of school districts in the Midwest and has widely presented and published his work related to this RTI initiative.