Dr. Vreeburg Izzo is Program Manager for the Special Education and Transition area at the Nisonger Center, a University Center Of Excellence In Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) at Ohio State University. With over 26 years experience in the special education field, Dr. Izzo has extensive experience with grant management, program evaluation, and political advocacy. She has also developed educational curricula for students with disabilities and their parents, conducted numerous trainings, focus groups, and interviews with teachers and students, managed the development of videocassettes, websites, and other dissemination products including a national teleconference, and has published several articles, papers, and information briefs on disability and transition issues. Currently, Dr. Izzo is the Principal Investigator of two federally funded education projects, Steppingstones of Technology Innovation, Phase 1 and The Faculty and Administrator Modules in Higher Education (FAME) grant. The two-year Phase 1 Steppingstones focuses on improving career planning, grant information literacy, and reading achievement for high school students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms through technology-based instruction. The three-year FAME grant concentrates on improving the teaching-learning process for postsecondary students with disabilities through the development of a web-based training curriculum. Prior to her current position at OSU, Dr. Izzo was the Project Coordinator of Ohio's Transition Systems Change Grant, a five-year federally funded project located at the Ohio Department of Education (ODE). This project was designed to improve transition services by facilitating systemic change within eight agencies at both the state and local level. Dr. Izzo completed her Ph.D. in Special Education, Rehabilitation and Research at OSU in 1998, and received her MA from George Washington University in Washington D.C. She is a recipient of a Mary E. Switzer Fellowship from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) and is also a Past President of the Division of Career Development and Transition (DCDT) within the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC). Books: Izzo, M.V. & Guider, S. (2005). Inclusion in the FAC Classroom. Columbus, OH: Glencoe/McGraw Hill. Izzo, M.V. & Torres, K. (2005). Guide to Meeting the Education and Transition Needs of All Students with Project Discovery. Louisville, KY: Education Associates, Inc. Articles: Izzo, M., Murray, A., & O'Hanlon, N. (2005, September). Enhancing academic achievement and transition outcomes using technology. Addressing Trends and Developments in Secondary Education and Transition Information Brief, 4(5). National Center on Secondary Education and Transition (NCSET). Available at: http://www.ncset.org/publications/viewdesc.asp?id=2472 Izzo, M.V. Lamb, P., Test, D.W., Wood, W.M. & Fowler, C.H. An Essential Tool for Self-determination. (In press). University of Minnesota. Published by the National Center for Secondary Education and Transition. Leake, D., Burgstahler, S, Applequist, K., Rickerson, N., Izzo, M.V, Arai, M. & Picklesmimer, T. Literature Synthesis of Key Issues in Supporting Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students with Disabilities to Succeed in Postsecondary Education. In Press. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability. Hillier, A.a1; Campbell, H. 1, Mastriani, K. 1, Izzo, M. V. 2, Kool-Tucker, A. 1, & Beversdorf, D.Q. 1 Brief Report: Evaluation of a Pilot Vocational Support Program for High-Functioning Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder Two Years Post Inception., In Press. Career Development for Exceptional Individuals. 1. Grants Written and Submitted: Izzo, M.V. Way-To-Work Mentoring Model for Transition-Age Youth & Young Adults with Disabilities. Sponsor: Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission. Three Year Funding Amount: $299,000. Funded Izzo, M.V. & Murray, A. Enhancing Academic Achievement and Transition Outcomes through Technology - Phase 2. Sponsor: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Funding Amount: $899,938. Status: Funded Izzo, M.V. & Murray, A. Improving the Quality of Education for Students with Disabilities: A Multi-State Collaborative Network of Colleges and Universities. Sponsor: Office of Postsecondary Education. Funding amount for three year grant period: $802,000. Lost
