Experience with
purpose.

Gary McHenry spent 37 years in public education, beginning as a counselor and later serving in leadership roles that included principal, area superintendent, and superintendent in multiple California districts. He has also taught at the college and university level, earned credentials as a school psychologist, supported alternative education, coordinated an Early College High School program, and served as a leadership coach. His technical-assistance work has included supporting districts with State Performance Plan and equity-focused improvement efforts.

Trena Spurlock’s education career spans more than 45 years. She has served as a Special Education Director, SELPA Director, State Performance Plan Technical Assistance Facilitator, independent consultant, and university adjunct faculty member. Her work includes designing evidence-based programs for students with disabilities, strengthening parent partnerships, supporting districts with significant disproportionality and Compliance and Monitoring plans, and building policies and practices intended to interrupt inequitable outcomes. She also brings experience in racial-healing facilitation, teacher preparation, mentoring, and professional learning.

Suwinder Cooper specializes in addressing educational disparities through equity, diversity, inclusion, and intercultural practice. Her technical-assistance work supports Local Education Agencies with Compliance and Monitoring plans, equity walks, empathy interviews, focus groups, root-cause analysis, measurable outcomes, and implementation. She has also provided professional development, coaching, and mentoring for education leaders and has taught in education and counseling settings. Her academic background includes psychology and cross-cultural counseling psychology.

Dr. Mary Bacon brings a wide-ranging background as a teacher, university instructor, counselor, psychologist, school administrator, probation officer, and public-sector leader. For decades she has delivered keynote presentations, professional learning, and consulting focused on equity, culturally responsive education, and institutional change. Her technical-assistance work has supported school districts in examining disproportionality, identifying systemic root causes, and creating interventions that improve access and outcomes for culturally diverse students and families.

Steve Collins has supported district CCEIS and Continuous Improvement Monitoring work through leadership-team participation, plan development, data gathering, progress reporting, and review of policies, practices, and procedures. His experience includes helping develop tiered behavior approaches intended to reduce disproportionate suspensions, conducting empathy interviews, and supporting district teams as they examine root causes and implementation. His professional learning includes cultural responsiveness, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, and social-emotional learning.

Jean Robertson is an education leader whose work centers on student outcomes, authentic family collaboration, equity, and inclusion. Before retiring in 2024, she spent 36 years in San Francisco as a teacher, site principal, union president, Chief of Special Education Services for San Francisco Unified School District, and SELPA Director for San Francisco County. Her leadership has focused on strengthening learning environments and creating lasting improvement across classrooms, schools, and district systems.

Margaret Farruggio has more than 20 years of district-wide experience, particularly in special education and services for students on the margins. She has served as a Special Education Director, Court Schools Administrator, and special-education teacher, and has provided professional development on inclusive practices, dispute resolution, IDEA compliance, and cross-divisional collaboration. Her work emphasizes family partnership, access, equity, and examination of the systems and beliefs that can perpetuate poor outcomes for Black students and students with disabilities.

Susan Bobbitt-Voth has led multi-district SELPAs in Central and Southern California and has worked across rural and urban systems. Her experience includes state SELPA committee leadership, Alternative Dispute Resolution, inclusive practices, compliance, and significant disproportionality. Since retirement she has continued as a technical-assistance facilitator and ADR coach, with particular strengths in quantitative data analysis and case-study reviews. She is also the parent of an adult daughter with special needs and has written and presented about navigating systems and family engagement.

Joanne Murphy has more than 40 years of experience as a special-education educator and school-district administrator. Her background includes case management, program-specialist leadership, staff development, paraeducator and behavior-analyst program management, intervention systems, MTSS coordination, and district compliance. Her current work includes Alternative Dispute Resolution, mediation, facilitated IEP support, and equity planning related to significant disproportionality, including policy review, qualitative and quantitative data analysis, root-cause work, and educational-partner engagement.

Felicia Stuckey-Smith, J.D., has more than 30 years of experience across teaching, school leadership, and district administration. She has received regional recognition for pupil services, principal leadership, and district administration, and has held leadership roles with professional associations serving pupil-personnel administrators. Her consulting and presentation work helps school leadership teams develop behavioral expectations, discipline systems, and behavior matrices that respond to legal mandates while addressing inequities in student discipline.

Carol Higa is an education leader and consultant with more than three decades of experience in general and special education. Her senior leadership roles have included serving as Director II of the Division of Special Education at the Los Angeles County Office of Education, where she oversaw complex program transfers across multiple school districts and led countywide professional learning. Her work emphasizes evidence-based instruction, inclusive practices, literacy, Universal Design for Learning, and collaborative, strength-based approaches to special-education planning.