BlazerWorks, the leading K-12 managed service provider, today announced the formation of its new strategic Special Education Clinical Advisory Team. Members of the advisory team will help guide the company’s vision and mission-critical work to support school districts in driving success, improving outcomes, and transforming the future of special education.
With the Clinical Special Education Advisory Team, BlazerWorks supports districts and school-based professionals by providing special education advisory services to fully integrate clinical expertise into learning environments, enrich therapists and teachers, enhance school staff and staffing programs, and elevate the educational experience. The clinical advisory services, as well as BlazerWorks’ other services, are provided at no additional cost to school districts. The Special Education Clinical Advisory Team consists of Special Education Teachers, School Psychologists, Speech-Language Pathologists, Occupational Therapists, and other special education disciplines.
"At BlazerWorks, our mission is to elevate special education in the United States," said Mark Esguerra, Managing Director of BlazerWorks. "Our vision is evolving to meet this mission by adding a clinical advisory team to support and mentor educators and school districts. Our goal with this new team is to provide unparalleled support to school districts and staff.”
The Clinical Special Education Advisory Team consists of 17 clinical advisors with decades of experience in the industry, including:
- Jaime Sowers, Ed.D., Clinical Advisory Team Director: Sowers earned his doctorate in innovation and leadership from Wilmington University in Delaware. He has nearly 20 years of experience in education. Before joining the BlazerWorks team, he spent three years as the special education director for Santa Fe Public Schools in New Mexico. He is an active member of the Council of Administrators of Special Education and the Council of Exceptional Children.
- Tawnya Redding, M.S.Ed., Special Education Advisor: Redding earned her master's degree in special education from Portland State University in Oregon and is a CPI Certified Instructor for verbal intervention. Before joining the team, she spent over a decade working with youth in therapeutic settings as both an educator and a mental health professional.
- Erin Hoganson, M.A., LEP, School Psychology Advisor: Hoganson earned her master's degree in educational psychology from Azusa Pacific University. Before joining the team, she worked in K-12 education for the last 22 years as a paraprofessional, special education teacher, school psychologist and program specialist. Additionally, Hoganson is a Licensed Educational Psychologist in California and works in private practice doing assessments, supervision and staff development training.
- Alyson Maldonado, M.A., CCC-SLP, Speech Therapy Advisor: Maldonado earned her master's degree in communication sciences and disorders from the University of Central Florida. Before joining the BlazerWorks team, she worked for 11 years at a private practice as the Clinical Director and Speech-Language Pathologist.
- Randal McCormack M.S., CCC-SLP, Speech Therapy Advisor: McCormack earned her master's degree in speech-language pathology from Seton Hall University. Before joining the BlazerWorks team, she spent four years working in specialized schools and early intervention programs and has extensive knowledge about Augmentative Alternative Communication.
- Amy Fehr M.S., OTR/L, Occupational Therapy Advisor: Fehr earned her master’s degree in occupational therapy from Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine with a research emphasis on studying executive functioning and academic success in students with unilateral hearing loss.
"Working in special education is an act of love and service unlike any other," said Jaime Sowers, Ed. D., BlazerWorks Clinical Special Education Advisory Team Director. "Special educators play an important role in creating an inclusive classroom and learning environment. While the work is rewarding, it is also an extremely demanding role, and special educators are especially prone to burnout. The formation of this team is mission-critical to support and empower special education services at a time when it is needed most."
Historically, K-12 workers have been among the more burned-out workers in the nation, an issue only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Research shows that more than four in 10 K-12 workers in the U.S. (44%) say they "always" or "very often" feel burned out at work, outpacing all other industries nationally. In addition, social, academic, and mental health challenges students faced only furthered K-12 burnout.
BlazerWorks Clinical Special Education Advisory Team offers clinical expertise and insights and perspectives for schools and education professionals. The Clinical Advisory Team can support districts and staff with:
- Assessment & Instruction
- Learning & Enrichment
- Resources & Tools
- Advising & Mentorship
- IEP Process Support
- Providing Solutions
To learn more about the Clinical Special Education Advisory Team, visit https://blazerworks.com/about/clinical-advisors/.
To learn more about BlazerWorks services including Clinical Expertise and Support, Managed Services for Education and Staff Augmentation Solutions, visit https://blazerworks.com/.
About BlazerWorks
BlazerWorks is a Special Education Advisory Service Provider with over three decades of experience in the education industry. BlazerWorks’ mission is to elevate special education in the United States by providing advisory services and support to districts and school-based professionals. BlazerWorks works hand-in-hand with school districts to fully integrate clinical expertise into learning environments, enrich therapists and teachers, streamline school staffing programs, and elevate the educational experience. To learn more, visit https://blazerworks.com/.
