Cultivating Inclusive Excellence

Strategies for Special Education

Cultivating Inclusive Excellence is designed for grade 6-12 teachers, paraprofessionals, instructional coaches, and other school-based leaders. Building on the research of Boston College faculty, the workshop is focused on the education of students with high-incidence (mild/moderate) disabilities in inclusive classrooms, matching teaching and learning practices to the classroom, curriculum, and learners. Educators will leave with actionable strategies they can implement immediately.

Inclusive education isn't just a philosophy...

It's a transformative approach to teaching that ensures every learner feels valued and supported. In inclusive education, all students have access to the same curriculum and learning environment while their individual needs are met through adaptations and support.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this workshop, learners will be able to:

develop comprehensive instructional plans fully inclusive of students with educational disabilities

utilize an IEP to guide instruction

develop accommodations and modifications appropriate to students and the curriculum

design individual, small, and large group instruction

evaluate various service delivery options for educating students with disabilities

identify procedures for collaborating with colleagues, including general and special education teachers and paraprofessionals, in the development and use of IEPs and 504 plans

implement culturally and linguistically responsive instruction, and assessment including accommodations, to support content area learning in various disciplines for all students

Topic Areas

Our workshop covers a variety of topics, including:

An overview of disabilities: impact on learning, participation, and teaching

IEP and 504 plans: development and use

Practices in assessment, instruction, and social/emotional/behavioral learning

Universal Design for Learning

Strategies and supports for content areas including reading, writing, and math

Assessments and interventions

Classroom tips to address disability-related attention and behavior

Collaborating with special educators, specialists, and paraprofessionals

At a Glance

Online Structure


The program is offered in a series of highly interactive synchronous sessions, available online or in-person.

Flexible Sessions


This professional development workshop is broken up into nine modules, over the course of 15 hours.

Earn PDPs


As a DESE-approved professional development point (PDP) provider,
this program offers 15 PDPs.

Program Cost


$495 per person with a 10-person minimum. For groups of 15+, a discounted rate of $445 per person.

Our Program

Program Developers

David Scanlon

David Scanlon

Program Director, Moderate Support Needs
Associate Professor



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David Scanlon

David Scanlon

Program Director, Moderate Support Needs

Associate Professor

David Scanlon, Ph.D. is an associate professor of special education in Boston College's Lynch School of Education and Human Development. A former high school special education teacher, Scanlon focuses on teaching and learning for students with high-incidence disabilities ("mild/moderate"), particularly adolescents and content-area learning. He has developed and published multiple cognitive learning strategies and teaching routines on content-area learning as well as on academic accommodations. His most recent work addresses students developing agency for their own accommodations. David has published two textbooks.

Lori Ann Dunn

Lori Ann Dunn

Adjunct Professor



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Lori Ann Dunn

Lori Ann Dunn

Adjunct Professor

Lori Ann Dunn is a Professor of the Practice at Stonehill College and an adjunct faculty member at Boston College. She has been a special education teacher and reading specialist for over 20 years, mainly at the middle school level. She received her doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from the Lynch School of Education and Human Development at Boston College. Her dissertation was titled, ā€œUsing Elements of a Screenplay to Promote Visualization and Increase Reading Comprehension in Students with Disabilities and Striving Readersā€ and was based on an engaging intervention she designed for secondary students using movies, childrenā€™s books, and short stories. Her research continues in this area. Lori lives in Providence, RI with her husband and five children.

Questions?

If you are interested in bringingĀ Cultivating Inclusive ExcellenceĀ to your school or school district, or if you have questions about the program, email lynchschoolpce@bc.edu.