Dena Slanda

About Dena Slanda

I lead large-scale projects to deliver tools, training, and services to state agencies, districts, schools, and other education organizations.For the Lead IDEA Center, I lead intensive technical assistance guiding the development of a menu of TA services to build the capacity of leaders to improve systems serving children with disabilities.In my role as the Project Director for the CLSD National Literacy Center, I leverage my expertise in personnel preparation, supporting students with high-intensity needs, including dyslexia and multilingual learners, project implementation, and continuous improvement. I guide grantees in implementing state literacy initiatives and assist non-grantees in developing comprehensive state literacy plans. For the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders I connect with a national network of experts to lead technical assistance and research on the recruitment and retention of a strong, capable, and committed educator workforce through affordable, cost-effective, and responsive pathways.In my work with the West Comprehensive Center, I advanced state literacy initiatives designed to improve outcomes for all children from birth to post-school.Before joining AIR, I was a Co-Principal Investigator for several personnel and leadership development grants from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) at the U.S. Department of Education. I served as a professor-in-residence and project coordinator for a Teacher Quality Partnership grant. My experience includes developing and managing budgets, selecting and overseeing consultants and subcontractors, and generating logic models, organizational assessments, strategic plans, and process improvements. I monitored and implemented grant evaluation activities, including data compilation, focus group interviews, capacity-building tool development, data analysis, and report writing. As a former university faculty member at the University of Central Florida, I taught graduate and undergraduate courses, creating modules focused on data-based individualization, multi-tiered systems of support, early intervention, mentorship, and leadership development for various delivery formats.

Experience

1. Senior Technical Assistance Consultant

   American Institutes for Research

   Jul 2023 — Present

Education

• University of Central Florida

  Doctor of Philosophy - PhD

  2014 — 2017

• University of California, Davis

  Bachelor of Arts - BA

  1995 — 1997

• George Mason University - Schar School of Policy and Government

  Bachelor of Arts - BA

  1998 — 2000

• University of Central Florida

  Master of Arts - MA

  2011 — 2013