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KAITLIN LEONARD, M.Ed. is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in special education with a specialization in reading at the University of Connecticut. Recently, Kaitlin was fortunate to engage in university teaching and was the instructor for two courses at UConn: Language and Literacy for Students with Cognitive Disabilities and Teaching Reading and Writing in the Elementary School. Kaitlin previously served as a Hanson Initiative for Language and Literacy (HILL) Facilitator. The HILL is a non-profit organization that specializes in school-wide literacy change. There, she served as a literacy consultant for multiple school districts and an expert literacy coach for an IES Grant, Enhancing Core Reading Instruction (ECRI), for the Center on Teaching and Learning at the University of Oregon. In addition, Kaitlin served as an external literacy coach for Connecticut Kindergarten through grade 3 Literacy Initiative (CK3LI). The initiative is part of the CT Education Reform that supports schools in implementing research-grounded practices to improve the reading abilities of children in kindergarten through third grade. Prior to joining the HILL, Kaitlin worked as a special education teacher and classroom teacher in a school district that served as a model for response to intervention (RTI). Her research interests include aiding schools to implement RTI with fidelity, intensive interventions in reading, and effective coaching models.

Kaitlin enjoys spending time with her husband, Justin, daughter, Maura (8), and son, Will (6).