Helping Schools, Educators, and Families Who Are Ready to Stop Navigating Special Education Alone
AND START BUILDING SOMETHING THAT WORKS
I don't show up with a podium and a predetermined plan, I pull up a chair.
The people closest to your students know things no outside consultant ever will. My job is to bring the expertise, ask the right questions, and build something together that your team can actually own and sustain.
I believe compliance is the floor, not the ceiling. And I believe every school, regardless of size, budget, or how far behind things feel right now, deserves access to experienced, genuine special education support that actually moves the needle. That's why I do this work, and that's what every engagement is built around.
Hi, I'm Katie.
A LICENSED SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTOR AND K-12 PRINCIPAL, HOT YOGA ENTHUSIAST, WIFE AND MOM.
When I’m not in schools building systems and supporting teams, you’ll find me on a yoga mat, lost in a good book, or planning the next adventure with my husband, Doug.
My path to this work started early.
In my parents' basement, where a seven-year-old version of me was already setting up a classroom and teaching her five-year-old brother to read. I grew up working at camps for children with disabilities, tutoring in college, and finding my way into every role that put me closer to students who needed real support.
Over the years I've worked across settings. Traditional districts, residential programs, juvenile diversion, and a teacher-led charter school I helped open from the ground up. That breadth of experience isn't just a résumé line. It's the reason I can sit across from almost any school leader or family and say with confidence: I understand what you're navigating. I've seen it from the inside. And I know how to help you move forward, not with a generic plan, but with something built specifically for your school, your team, and the students you serve.
Paraprofessional. Teacher. Administrator. Each step built on the last.
I help schools, educators, and families untangle the complexity of special education so they can move forward with clarity, confidence, and a real plan.
I HAVE BEEN IN EVERY ROLE:
I hold licenses in special education, general education, K–12 administration, and special education administration, but honestly, the credentials aren't what make me good at this. What makes me good at this is that I've done every part of the job.
- Started as a paraprofessional
- Classroom teacher across multiple disability categories
- Special education coordinator
- Director of Special Education
- K–12 principal
I HAVE WORKED ACROSS EVERY SETTING:
I've sat in hundreds of IEP meetings, navigated more due process proceedings than I can count, built special education compliance systems from scratch, coached educators through their hardest moments, and sat across from families who just needed someone to finally speak plainly about what their child was entitled to.
Traditional public schools, charter schools, residential programs, and juvenile diversion settings. I've supported students with Autism Spectrum Disorders, Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, Physical Impairments, and Developmental Cognitive Disabilities — and I understand not just the legal and procedural side of that work, but the deeply human side of it too.
All of that means when you work with me, you're not getting someone who studied this from a distance or built a consulting practice around a single specialty. You're getting someone who has lived the full complexity of this work, at every level, across every setting and who knows exactly how to translate that experience into something real and useful for your school, your team, and the students you serve.
ElevatEd partners with schools and educational organizations to strengthen systems, build educator capacity, and create environments where every learner can thrive. Through genuine collaboration and strategic, practical guidance, we help schools develop the sustainable practices and confident leadership that make a real difference, for educators and students alike.
My mission
Beyond being a Director of Special Education, you should probably also know that I’m…
- Obsessed with nature
- a regular at hot yoga
- a wife and mom above all us
- a total coffee fanatic
- happiest when hiking
