Presented by Dr. Kari Stubbs, Vice President, Brand Strategy & Industry Alliances, STAGES® Learning; Dr. Michelle Nutini, District & Educator Advocate, STAGES® Learning; Michael Caliguiri, Educational Ambassador, STAGES® Learning; and Lisa Schleer, Vice President of Educational Strategic Partnerships, STAGES® Learning

Sponsored by STAGES® Learning

Watch the Recording Listen to the PodcastRead the Article

Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.

District Leaders, Special Educators, Teachers, and Related Service Providers who work with students with autism know that transitions can be challenging. Autistic students rely heavily on routines and predictable structures when navigating social situations and daily activities, especially within the school environment. The panel of experts provides viewers with tips and tricks on how to help alleviate anxiety and potential challenging behaviors for students who struggle with transitions. Viewers learn practical strategies to help their students practice dealing with anticipated changes that will lead to successfully coping with transitions.

This recorded edLeader Panel is of interest to K-12 teachers, especially those who teach students with autism and disabilities, librarians, school and district leaders, and education technology leaders.

About the Presenters

Dr. Kari Stubbs is an internationally recognized ambassador for the use of technology to enhance teaching and learning. Leveraging her professional roots in the classroom and collaboration in the boardroom, Kari has a proven track record of harnessing the voice of the customer to improve organizational systems. Most recently, Kari joined the team at Stages Learning, the authority in Autism education, as the Vice President of Brand Strategy and Industry Alliances. Previously, she spent thirteen years working at one of the world’s most recognizable digital content providers for children – BrainPOP. Her dedication to education extends to service on multiple boards including SXSWedu, Digital Promise’s EdCamp, Kipp Academy in Kansas City, and previously ISTE and the Horizon K12 Report. Kari has presented extensively on education topics across the United States and around the globe from Shanghai and Abu Dhabi to Sydney, Prague, and beyond. She’s received the Making it Happen Award, was recognized as 20 to Watch, and Microsoft’s Education VP twice named her a Global Hero in Education. Kari earned her PhD in Curriculum with a minor in Administration from the University of Kansas. Her dissertation focused on the use of technology in preservice program design. She’s most proud of her own two children who graduated from The University Of Pennsylvania and Stanford University.

Dr. Michelle Nutini taught diverse high-needs students with autism for over a decade in the School District of Philadelphia before serving as the district’s Autism Support Coordinator. In that role, she served as a subject matter expert, providing professional development and training, technical assistance, and consultative services to support the planning and implementation of autistic support services in and outside more than 400 specialized programs throughout the district’s 200+ schools. An award-winning educator, Michelle has presented at annual conferences for the Council for Exceptional Children, Pennsylvania Department of Education, Philadelphia Autism Project, and International Society for Autism Research. Invested in applying research to practice, she has also served on several advisory boards as part of community-academic partnerships in implementation research studies. Michelle earned her Doctorate of Education in Special Education Leadership & Management at Drexel University as a USELT (Urban Special Education Leader of Tomorrow) Scholar, which has been integral to her work in building systems and capacity.

With over 15 years of experience in education, Michael Caliguiri is a dedicated Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst with extensive experience in early childhood, primary, and secondary levels of education as well as in-home programming. For the past 5 years Michael has been providing consulting services for multiple school districts in Northern New Jersey and has experience in program management, conducting functional behavior assessments, along with creating and implementing behavior intervention programs within various settings in order to support behavior change and academic growth. Michael joined the Stages Learning team in June of 2022 as an Educational Ambassador helping educators and service providers provide specialized instruction for students with developmental disabilities.

With over 25 years in education, Lisa Schleer began her career as an elementary special education teacher in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She later became an administrator in Connecticut. She served as a Director of Special Services for Hartford Schools. Lisa then became the Director of Special Services for Mount Olive School District in NJ. She later served as the Executive Director of Personalized Learning and then as the Assistant Superintendent before joining Stages Learning in April 2022. At Stages Learning, she brings her industry leadership, special education expertise, and fiscal management skills to her relationship-building strengths when working with school districts. Lisa has dedicated her career to ensuring that all students with disabilities have access to high-quality instruction, curriculum, resources, and staffing. She also serves as the Board President for the Biondo Memorial Foundation, which sends over 400 children with disabilities to camp in Pike County, PA, and Sussex County, NJ.

Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.

Join the Teaching Students with Autism community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.

For 25 years, STAGES® Learning has been dedicated to creating quality teaching tools to help educators provide the best learning opportunities for students on the autism spectrum. Since our first product, Language Builder: Picture Cards, was introduced in 1997, millions of children around the world have benefited from our products. Today, STAGES’ offerings include award-winning, photo-based teaching tools, manipulatives, games, puzzles, posters and sensory items, culminating in our recently launched complete curriculum for children with autism or other cognitive delays. STAGES’ online learning platform, releasing in time for fall 2022, will provide a digital option to ensure educators can support learners with autism and language delays in even more ways.