RTI in the Classroom

Rachel Brown-Chidsey, PhD, NCSP, is Senior Academic Officer for FastBridge Learning and a faculty member in the Department of Educational and School Psychology at the University of Southern Maine. Prior to obtaining her doctorate in school psychology, she taught middle and high school history and special education for 10 years. Her research areas include curriculum-based measurement, response to intervention (RTI), multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), and scientifically based instruction methods. Dr. Brown is coeditor of Assessment for Intervention, Second Edition: A Problem-Solving Approach and coauthor of Response to Intervention, Second Edition: Principles and Strategies for Effective Practice; RTI in the Classroom: Guidelines and Recipes for Success; and Practical Handbook of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support. In addition, Dr. Brown has authored articles about reading assessment and instruction as well as implementation of tiered instruction. She has consulted with numerous school districts to support RTI and MTSS implementation.

• All titles by Rachel Brown-Chidsey

Louise Bronaugh, PhD, a school psychologist, is CEO of BEST Workshops for Educators, Eugene, Oregon. As a district-level literacy support specialist, she worked on the development and implementation of a schoolwide response-to-intervention model. Since 2004, Dr. Bronaugh has been conducting district-level trainings on Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) administration and scoring, customized districtwide DIBELS data interpretation, small-group literacy instruction, positive behavior support, and response to intervention. She has also taught in special education classes.

Kelly McGraw, PhD (now Kelly Broxterman), is Associate Professor at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Previously, she worked as a school psychologist and professional learning and leadership consultant at Heartland Area Education Agency in Johnston, Iowa, where she was responsible for using response to intervention to identify student needs and training teachers on district- and agencywide initiatives. She has presented nationally in the areas of data-based decision making, curriculum-based measurement, and effective instruction. Additional experiences include consulting with schools implementing response to intervention and working with teachers to improve the link between assessment and instruction. Her current efforts involve training students in educational foundations and systems change and consulting with school districts around the Midwest.