Meet our leaders, innovators, and world-class educators

Fred Edora is an established leader in data reporting, accessibility, and project management with over 15 years of experience developing data-driven solutions. His expertise spans statistical programming, data management, and data visualization, with a proven ability to convey key insights to government decision-makers. As the director of an OSEP-funded national technical assistance center, Fred oversees efforts to help state education agencies and early childhood providers deliver data in accessible formats. Living with a disability himself, he is deeply committed to inclusive data practices, driving initiatives like a new accessible data framework and leading the creation of an open-source reporting tool. Fred frequently shares his expertise at national conferences and contributes to global accessibility standards as part of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

Johan is employed as a User Experience and Information and Communications Technology Quality Assurance Manager at the Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation (CIDI) at Georgia Tech. Johan oversees digital accessibility and user experience initiatives for local, state and national organizations throughout the country, and has worked in disability awareness and accessibility for over 20 years.

Bill has over 30 years’ experience managing complex organizations and information technology projects. He is the portfolio director of work on the Office of Special Education Programs’ Data Centers and a nationally recognized leader on Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) data systems. As the director overseeing the Center for the Integration of IDEA Data and the Generate application, Bill’s expertise includes the intersection and integration of special education data systems with general education data systems.

Jim has over 40 years of experience in early education, early intervention (EI), early childhood special education (ECSE), and system/organizational management. He is a leader at both a national and state levels and has experience as a national Technical Assistance (TA) center director, IDEA Part B/Section 619 state coordinator, State Improvement Grant EI/ECSE outcomes data project manager, school administration, and researcher.

Mark has 25 years of service in the fields of special education, rehabilitation medicine, and assistive technology. His work focuses on the development of educational and informational materials for people with disabilities and their families or caregivers. Mark also focuses on the accessibility of products and materials used by people with disabilities, including the role of assistive technology.

Valerie manages the E-Text Department at CIDI at Georgia Institute of Technology, making accessible materials for individuals with print-related disabilities. Valerie and her team collaborate with university staff, publishers, corporations, and state agencies to ensure the documents they create and distribute will be accessible to those who rely on screen readers, text to speech software, or other assistive technology to access documents.

Nichole has 30 years of experience leading the development of business and information technology solutions in nonprofit, federal, and private sectors. She is passionate about using technology to solve business problems and making an impact to end users. Nichole guides teams to achieve strategic client objectives, from planning to implementation, leveraging Agile principles and practices.

Levette brings over 30 years of experience as a leader in K-12 data governance and management. Her work with states as a subject matter expert includes the effective development, privacy, and accessible use of education data. Currently managing the development of the Weiss Center's Accessibility Maturity Roadmap, Levette's background gives her a unique perspective and appreciation of identifying and assessing the needs of states to improve outcomes for individuals with disabilities.

With over 30 years of dedicated service in special education, Charlie has amassed a wealth of experience across multiple pivotal roles, including school psychologist, local education agency administrator, and state director of special education. Throughout her career, Charlie has been driven by a singular focus - to improve educational outcomes for students with disabilities by removing barriers and creating equitable educational opportunities for all. She deeply values the importance of collaboration and hard work in achieving growth and success.

Darren has experience serving individuals with disabilities as an Individualized Education Plan Manager and TA Provider supporting state education agencies (SEAs) in their special education data integration efforts. He currently manages the development and distribution of accessible communications, products, and media, ensuring their usability and navigability by diverse users and assistive technologies. Darren also oversees the facilitation and execution of virtual events surrounding data accessibility and disability awareness.

Sara brings 15 years’ experience in IDEA data management and analysis, including collecting, reporting, analyzing, and creating reports used in presentations and policy making. Most recently, she has led technical assistance for several SEAs working to implement Generate for the Center for the Integration of IDEA Data.

Tony has over 27 years’ experience in the public, non-profit, and private sectors. His expertise focuses on data management, data collection, reporting, accessibility, and analysis in health and education. Tony supports state Part C Early Intervention programs with developing accessible data representation (visualization) and artifact accessibility for people with disabilities. Tony is a subject matter expert providing technical assistance for The Rhonda Weiss Center for Accessible IDEA Data, The Center for IDEA Early Childhood Data Systems (DaSy), IDEA Data Center (IDC), Common Education Data Standards (CEDS), and National Center for Education Outcomes (NCEO).

Emily has a wealth of experience as a Support Center Analyst, Escalation Lead, and Project Coordinator supporting SEAs and Local Education Agencies (LEAs) in the execution of various efforts. As the Quality Assurance (QA) Lead, she ensures the quality and consistency of project messaging, tools, and outputs, including comprehensive technical testing.

Judy is the founder and president of True North Evaluation, a small woman-owned business that provides program evaluation and project planning services to federally funded TA centers, state agencies, foundations, philanthropies, and nonprofits. She collaborates with project teams to collect, analyze, and report findings that promote data use so project services may reach their True North—improved outcomes for children, youth, and families.