Dr. McWilliam is the Siskin Endowed Chair of Research in Early Childhood Education,Development, and Intervention at Siskin Childrena€?s Institute. He is also a professor ofeducation at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and an adjoint professor of specialeducation at Vanderbilt University. He has formerly been a professor of pediatrics atVanderbilt University Medical Center, a senior scientist at the Frank Porter Graham ChildDevelopment Institute, and a professor of education at the University of North Carolina atChapel Hill. Dr. McWilliama€?s research centers on infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with andwithout disabilities, with a specific focus on child engagement, service delivery models, andcollaboration with families. He has provided consultation, training, and technical assistanceacross the United States and in some countries overseas on providing early intervention innatural environments and on the Engagement Classroom Model. His Routines-BasedInterview (RBI) is a widely used method of assessing familiesa€? needs and developingindividualized family service plan (IFSP) outcomes and individualized education program(IEP) goals.
Dathan Rush is the Associate Director of the Family, Infant and Preschool Program (FIPP) at Western Carolina Center and a research associate at the Orelena Hawks Puckett Institute in Morganton, North Carolina. Prior to accepting his position at FIPP, Mr. Rush was a clinical assistant professor and personnel development consultant in the Lee Mitchener Tolbert Center for Developmental Disabilities at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City. He served as Assistant Director of the Oklahoma SoonerStart Early Intervention Program at the State Department of Health from 1992 to 1999. He served as an editorial board member of the journal Infants and Young Children until 2002 and has published articles in the areas of in-service training, coaching, supporting children and families in natural learning environments, and teaming in early intervention. He is past president and former executive council member of the Oklahoma Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Mr. Rush has presented numerous workshops nationally on topics related to team building, use of a primary coach model of support, training of trainers, coaching, and provision of supports in natural environments.
M'Lisa L. Shelden, PT, Ph.D., is Director of the Family, Infant and Preschool Program (FIPP) at Western Carolina Center and an associate research scientist at the Orelena Hawks Puckett Institute in Morganton, North Carolina. Prior to accepting her appointment at FIPP, Dr. Shelden was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Science at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. She is a graduate Fellow of the ZERO TO THREE: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families, and she has also served the Section of Pediatrics of the American Physical Therapy Association. She is a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Early Intervention. Dr. Shelden has co-authored several articles related to early intervention teamwork and a chapter related to physical therapy personnel preparation. She presents nationally on topics related to transition, inclusion, coaching, evaluation and assessment, use of a primary coach model, and provision of supports in natural environments.
