Dianne L. Ferguson, Ph.D.
Dianne L. Ferguson, PhD, is professor and director of program improvement and
accreditation at Chapman University. She brings expertise and experience in the areas
of school reform, inclusive practices, teacher education, families, and disability studies.
She is experienced at preparing teachers and designing systems and approaches
that support and sustain ongoing school improvement efforts that are inclusive of very
diverse groups of children, youth, and their families. As a parent of a young man with
significant disabilities, she has worked with families, schools, and service systems. She
is currently on the board of a nonprofit organization that provides self-directed support
services to adults with disabilities in Eugene, Oregon. Dr. Ferguson has taught
classes and provided consultation for general and special educators in Canada, Iceland
(as a Fulbright Scholar), Finland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark (also as a Fulbright
Scholar), New Zealand, and India as well as in numerous states in the United States.
Her areas of interest and expertise include issues and strategies for school inclusion
for students with disabilities, family experience and the relationships between school
personnel and families, administrator and teacher support for licensure and professional
development and collaboration, and use of interpretivist research methods in
education. She has served as a college administrator and consultant on higher education
reform, teacher education reform, licensure reform, and ongoing assessment
of teacher quality. Dr. Ferguson has published widely, is the author or co-editor of
seven books, and serves as an associate editor or on the editorial board of four professional
journals.