What’s your job title?
Parent Support Coordinator
What was your first job?
Cashier at Burger King
Who inspires you?
My daughter
What kind of music do you like?
All music, depends on my mood
What’s the best concert you’ve been to?
Prince
Do you like traveling?
I love to travel!!
What’s the best place you’ve traveled to?
South Africa
Do you like reading? If so, what genre of books do you like?
Yes, Fiction
What’s the most exciting part of your job?
Supporting and encouraging parents
What is your favorite animal?
Elephant
Are you a sports fan? Who are your favorite teams?
Yes, Minnesota Wild
What’s something you find challenging about your work?
Not bringing it “home” with me, I think about the families we help after work and on days off
What motivates you at work?
The families we help
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A lawyer
What’s your favorite thing to do on the weekends?
Anything with my family
What’s your favorite holiday?
Christmas
What’s your favorite season?
Fall
Jennifer Bolander has been serving as a Special Education Specialist for PWSA (USA) since October of 2015. She is a graduate of John Carroll University and lives in Ohio with her husband Brad and daughters Kate (17), and Sophia (13) who was born with PWS.
Perry A. Zirkel has written more than 1,500 publications on various aspects of school law, with an emphasis on legal issues in special education. He writes a regular column for NAESP’s Principal magazine and NASP’s Communiqué newsletter, and he did so previously for Phi Delta Kappan and Teaching Exceptional Children.
Evan has worked with the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) since 2007 primarily as a Crisis Intervention and Family Support Counselor. Evans works with parents and schools to foster strong collaborative relationships and appropriate educational environments for students with PWS.
Dr. Amy McTighe is the PWS Program Manager and Inpatient Teacher at the Center for Prader-Willi Syndrome at the Children’s Institute of Pittsburgh. She graduated from Duquesne University receiving her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Education with a focus on elementary education, special education, and language arts.
Staci Zimmerman works for Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Colorado as an Individualized Education Program (IEP) consultant. Staci collaborates with the PWS multi-disciplinary clinic at the Children’s Hospital in Denver supporting families and school districts around the United States with their child’s Individual Educational Plan.
Founded in 2001, SDLC is a non-profit legal services organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the legal rights of people with disabilities throughout the South. It partners with the Southern Poverty Law Center, Protection and Advocacy (P&A) programs, Legal Services Corporations (LSC) and disability organizations on major, systemic disability rights issues involving the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the federal Medicaid Act. Recently in November 2014, Jim retired.