2024 Board of Director Candidates

Dr. Teresa Hardee is the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for Administration and Finance. She specializes in strategic planning, business process reengineering, financial sustainability,performance indicators, risk assessment, and many other components in public administration, higher education, and non-profit management. Teresa has been in higher education, the public sector and business for over 25 years. She has been an auditor, budget director, Associate VC for Budget and Finance, CFO and VP for Finance and Administration, and Chief Operating Office and Senior Vice President at three universities. She has also worked in the private sector in several accounting/finance related capacities. She received her undergraduate degree majoring in accounting from Fayetteville State University, a masters (MPA) from NC Central University and her doctorate in Higher Education Administration from the University of Pennsylvania. She is a CPA, and Six Sigma Black Belt.

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Dr. Bridgitt Mitchell serves as the Director of Professional Development for NAEYC. She brings more than 20 years of experience in Early Childhood Education. Her areas of passion and expertise include teacher training and preparation; social emotional development; strategy and innovation; and multicultural education.

She has served in diverse roles that include tenured faculty, Department Chair for Early Childhood Education, Assistant to the Secretary/Minority Health Liaison for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Director of Early Education Department with Denver Public Schools, and Sr. Director of Training and Technical Assistance with Zero to Three.

Dr. Mitchell has authored several book chapters to include topics on bullying and the business of early childhood education.

She is also an advocate for underserved populations and committed to strengthening and building capacity within the early childhood system which is indicative of her service on the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Council for the Accreditation of Early Learning Programs. She actively lends her voice and expertise locally and serves on the board for Reach Out and Read Colorado and Playworks in Denver.

Dr. Mitchell holds a BA in African and African American Studies, MA in Human Development and Family Life and MBA from the University of Kansas. She earned a Doctorate of Education in Higher Education and Adult Learning from Walden University. Additionally, she holds a graduate certificate in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion from Cornell University.

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Sandra Schwarz is the Senior Manager in Education Services for Emerson responsible for quality in education offerings. She works out of the Final Control location in Marshalltown, Iowa. Prior to Emerson, she worked for the Maytag Company, Farm Bureau Financial Services and was a contractor working for global companies developing courses and curriculum. She has 25 plus years’ experience in educational services and holds a Master of Science in Education Curriculum Design and Technology from Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. She completed her thesis on digital badges focusing on the impact to the earner, versus the observer and issuer. She has helped Emerson grow their education offering through quality practices adopted by use of the IACET Standard.

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Brandon Smith, CPTD is an Instructional Design Manager with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). During his 17 years with the NAIC he has worked in multiple areas of the Education & Training Department. With 12 years’ experience in Instructional Design, he has helped create a variety of courses and events, from webinars with hundreds of attendees to in-person events and countless online courses. Brandon loves the daily challenges of course design and the opportunities they present. Brandon received his Bachelor of Arts from Park University and earned the Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD) Certification from the Association for Talent Development. As a lifelong learner he has also received various other certifications including that of HTML5 Specialist. Brandon is an active member of IACET serving on the Standards Council since 2023. He currently chairs the Awards Committee and CET Talks Podcast Advisory Group. In his spare time, Brandon loves watching his daughters compete in sports, being active outdoors, traveling with his family, reading and recently picked up gardening. Brandon also volunteers with various organizations fighting human trafficking in the Kansas City area.

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Caroline Van Howe is responsible for the organizational aspects of the ATIA international conferences and educational programs; partner and alliance programs with national and international assistive technology organizations; member support; technical assistance to federally awarded grant programs; and production management for peer reviewed online research journal, Assistive Technology Outcomes and Benefits (ATOB).

Under Ms. Van Howe’s leadership, the educational program has expanded its content leadership with national organizations including AOTA, ASHA, AHEAD, ATHEN, JAN and RESNA. The Continuing Education program has expanded to include ACVREP, ASHA, CRC CEUs/CPDUs. ATIA is an accredited IA.C.E.T. provider and an approved AOTA Continuing Education Provider.

Ms. Van Howe works with a number of assistive technology focused organizations and federally funded programs

• AAC-RERC – the RERC on Communication Enhancement
• Center for Applied Special Technologies (CAST)
• RERC on Advancing Cognitive Technologies
• G3ict – United Nations Global Initiative on Inclusive Computer Technologies

Prior to joining ATIA, Ms. Van Howe worked in the assistive technology K-12 industry for six years and was responsible for professional development and marketing programs. She joined the ATIA Board of Directors in 2001 holding positions of Conference Chair and President before joining the Executive Staff in 2006.

Ms. Van Howe worked in international software for over 15 years in both the UK and US and held management positions in sales, training and marketing. Ms. Van Howe originally trained as a teacher of students with learning disabilities in the U.K. She obtained her M.A. in Education from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and also holds an M.A. in American Literature.

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