Dr. Mabel Rivera, a faculty member in the School of Education, served as a facilitator during the N.C. Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities’ virtual mini-conference on April 25.

The purpose of the event was to develop and provide high-quality professional development designed to help educators, students, administrators, parents and other stakeholders in education during the Covid-19 crisis. 

Mabel, an assistant professor in the Educational Leadership and Specialties department, was instrumental in the success of the event by presenting time-sensitive information to attendees, monitoring the technology and troubleshooting during the conference. Additionally, she helped create and edit videos of presentations.

Dr. Rivera collaborated with educators, administrators and support staff across four states from 10 institutions of higher education, three school systems, and two public charter schools. Participants from eight states and over 50 cities in North Carolina attended the conference.

Rivera serves as co-chair of the N.C. Council for Exceptional Children Conference. She previously served as past president and represented the organization nationally at the 2018 and 2019 assembly where she played an active role in developing national educational policy recommendations to the U.S. Congress.

“Dr. Rivera has been consistently dedicated to advancing the success of children with and without disabilities by supporting students and educators, families and others,” said Xaviera Johnson, president elect.

“We sincerely appreciate Dr. Rivera’s ongoing willingness to collaborate with many respected researchers, educators, administrators and parents familiar with the challenges of both teachers and students in 21st century educational settings in order to enable attendees to better serve all stakeholders involved in educating children during this unique time in our history.”