Dr. Patricia Arter
Dr. Arter received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education from Towson State University. At Johns Hopkins University, she earned her Master of Science Degree in Special Education-Inclusion and her Doctorate (Ed.D) in Special Education Administration and Leadership in Urban Setting Schools. Dr. Arter came to Marywood from Maryland, where she had taught in inclusive classrooms since 1993. She also served as an adjunct faculty member at Johns Hopkins University.
Dr. Arter has served as the project director for the SOAR program since 2008. She has conducted extensive research in her field. Dr. Arter's interests include Universal Design for Learning and creating access to learning for all students. She has made numerous presentations at local, national, and international conferences, and her work has been published in The Middle School Journal, The Pennsylvania Teacher Educator, and Teaching Exceptional Children.
Anne Mary Doyle
Anne Mary Doyle is a graduate of Marywood University with a B.S. in Special Education. She also received her Masters Degree in Reading Education and a Reading Specialist Certificate from Marywood. She has Elementary Principal, Secondary Principal and Special Education Supervisor Certifications all from Marywood.
Mrs. Doyle was a Special Education teacher for the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit for 26 years. For the past 4 years Mrs. Doyle has been a Special Education Supervisor overseeing vocational programs and IU classrooms in Scranton, Riverside, Carbondale, and the SOAR program.
She is a member of the Council for Exceptional Children and the Northeastern Pennsylvania Reading Association.
Ellen T. Dente
Ellen T. Dente is a graduate of Marywood with a B.A. in Special Education and Elementary Education. She received her Masters in Reading Education from the University of Scranton. She also has a Certification in Applied Behavioral Analysis from Penn State University and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst.
Mrs. Dente has been a teacher for the past 18 years. In her current position with the Northeastern Intermediate Unit, Mrs. Dente is an Educational Consultant with initiatives in Autism, Competent Learner Model, Verbal Behavior and Child Safety Care. She also provides on-site coaching for programs such as the Competent Learner Model, Verbal Behavior, and the SOAR Program.
She serves as an adjunct faculty member at Marywood and is a member of the Council of Exceptional Children, the National Association of Special Education Teachers, and the Pennsylvania Association of Applied Behavior Analysts. She was recently nominated to the Who's Who among Executives and Professionals.
Ellen Cummings
Ellen received both her Special Education Certification in 2000 and her Master of Science in Special Education in 2004 from Marywood. She works at the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit as a Comprehensive System of Professional Development Consultant. In this position, she acts as a transition specialist, interagency coordinator, and base service unit representative.
Ellen has been an adjunct professor at Marywood since 2006. She specializes in career development for students with disabilities.
Jack Kirby
Prior to joining the SOAR program, Jack worked at Carbondale Area High School, helping special education students transition from school to employment and independent living. He considers his decision to serve as the SOAR program teacher one of the best best choices he's ever made. Witnessing the positive outcomes for all involved has been very gratifying for Jack. He has watched students go from being dependent and highly supervised to being independent and selfreliant.
Sarah O'Brien
As the graduate assistant for the Special Education department, Sarah works part-time as the coordinator for the SOAR program. She oversees the undergraduate work-study students who act as job coaches. She is impressed by the success of the program and is humbled to be working with the SOAR program.
She realizes that the SOAR program has not only given the students an opportunity to grow as young adults, but also has opened the eyes of many Maywood staff members to a whole new population. The work supervisors admire the SOAR students for their abilities, organizational skills, and responsible dedication to any given task.