Staff & Contributors
Executive Director
Jane B. Ross, MS, is the founder and Executive Director of Smart Kids with Learning Disabilities, a former publishing executive, and the parent of a young adult with learning disabilities.
Editorial Director
Louise Ackerman, MPH, CHES. In addition to her work as a publishing executive here at Smart Kids, she is also an adjunct professor of public health, and the parent of a young adult with LD.
Parent Support Manager
Bonnie Rotelli is a former Fairfield Board of Education and RTM member, has served on the Fairfield SEPTA Executive Board for 8 years, has a background in administration, and is the parent of a child with LD.
Program & Event Manager
Christine Kurpiel, MA, is a former college professor who served on the Westport PTA as President & Executive Board Member for 14 years and was the Westport Troop 36 Committee Chair and member for 7 years. She is the proud parent of an Eagle Scout with LD.
Contributing Editors
Eve Kessler, Esq, is president and co-founder of SPED*NET Wilton (CT) and a former Chair of the Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities. She has recently retired as a criminal appellate attorney, representing many clients with LD and special needs.
Sheryl Knapp, M.Ed., CIT/ASAP, is the founder and President of Literacy Learning & Assessment Center of CT, providing literacy-related consulting services for students with learning disabilities. She has Associate Level certification with the Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practitioners and Educators.
Board of Directors
Kathleen Brady, President
Christopher Bogart, Ph.D.
Kyrsten Bravo
Sari B. Canell
Judy Grossman
Sharon Miles
Lisa Pannone
Gregg Pauletti
Kate Pearce
Laura Sullivan, Esq.
Jane B. Ross, M.S. Ex officio
Kathleen O’Hare, Sustaining Board Member
Mory Gould, Associate Board Member
Honorary Board Members
Henry Winkler, Honorary Chairman
Anne Ford, Chairman Emeritus, NCLD
Dannel Malloy, former Governor of Connecticut
Ben Powers, Executive Director, The Southport School
Professional Advisory Board
Christopher Bogart, Ph.D., President
Psychologist, Executive Director Sasco River Center
Marcia Eckerd, Ph.D.
Evaluator and Therapist
Margie Gillis, Ed.D.
President, Literacy How, training teachers in research-based reading
Judy Grossman, DrPH, OTR
Associate Director of the Center for the Developing Child and Family, Ackerman Institute for the Family
Ellen Littman, Ph.D.
Clinical psychologist, author and lecturer on ADHD
Lisa N. Rappaport, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Clinical psychologist in private practice
Lydia Soifer, Ph.D.
Director, The Soifer Center for Learning and Child Development
Alan Wachtel, M.D.
Psychiatrist, FamilyHealth Associates