Meet Our Faculty
Carol Burns, Director – Carol is an assistant professor in the National College of Education. Her 35 year teaching career has included positions in public and private school settings, both regular education (English, Reading, and Art) and special education (Learning Disabilities and Behavior Disorders), as well as teacher preparation classes in special education at NLU for 20 years. She served as assistant director of the PACE program for 10 years under Dr. Robert Harth, the founder of the program, and has been the director of the program since 1997.
Barbara Kite, Assistant Director – Barb has been a special education teacher for 30 years. She received her undergraduate degree in education and master’s degree in school guidance and counseling. Barb has been with the PACE program for 16 years, serving as assistant director since 2000. She taught in the public school system for 10 years and continues to instruct classes in special education at NLU.
Jennetta Grant, Administrative Assistant - Jennetta Grant joined NLU in January of 2004 as a Human Resources Assistant and in 2006 took on the role of Administrative Assistant in The PACE Program. She brings to the PACE Program over twenty five years of office support experience and BA in Organizational Leadership. She has been awarded a top recipient of a Quarterly Staff Recognition Award. Working at PACE has taught me that “We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences” -Marian Wright Edelman
Vocational Team
Luisa Rapisarda, Team Leader - Luisa Rapisarda received a master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling Psychology from the University of Wisconsin and a master’s degree in Special Education. She has worked as the Vocational Coordinator for The PACE Program since 2000, and previously as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor performing vocational assessments and assisting individuals with brain and spinal cord injuries to return to the workforce. She enjoys seeing the students succeed, getting to know the internship partners, working with the vocational team and teaching in the classroom.
You cannot teach people anything. You can only help them discover it within themselves.
~ Galileo
Mary Gizzi, Field Work Instructor - Mary has been with the PACE Program for 7 years. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Management and her Masters in Secondary Education. Prior to coming to PACE she was employed in private industry. Her specialization areas are technology and career preparation.
Adjunct Field Work Instructors
Robin Sowl - Robin Sowl has been working in the special education field for the past 12 years, specializing in vocational rehabilitation. She received her undergraduate degree in Psychology and master’s degree in Rehabilitation Psychology, and is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. Robin has been a Fieldwork Instructor at the PACE Program for the past 4 years.
Student Life Team
Philip Rabbitt, Residence Coordinator – Philip is currently in his second full year at PACE as the Residential Life Coordinator. He has two years prior experience working for direct care homes in central Minnesota, primarily assisting adult men with Life Skills and Community Involvement. Philip looks forward to beginning a Special Education graduate degree program in the fall. In addition, he brings with him a theological background rooted in Benedictine monastic traditions and thought. When not organizing students and coordinating with PACE staff, he might be found in a local pub playing music in one of the three musical projects he is involved in during his free time.
Roger Hansen, Counselor - Roger is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and has been the counselor for students Pace Program at National Louis University for the past 15 years. Before working for the Pace Program Roger worked at Evanston Hospital in both the Psychiatric Intensive Care Inpatient Unit and Partial Hospitalization Program for 13 years. Roger received his Bachelors degree at Western Illinois University and Masters in Human Services Counseling at National Louis University.
Barbara Richardson, Student Life Instructor - Barbara has been with the PACE Program for 3 years. She received her undergraduate degree in Behavioral Science and is pursuing her master’s degree in Psychology at National-Louis University. Prior to coming to PACE she worked with adults with developmental, mental and various disabilities for 9 years. She also worked in recreational therapy and specialized in teaching various forms of dancing to groups in the surrounding suburbs. She believes that we all need a bit of PACE in our lives because the program covers all areas of life, “work” as well as “play”.
Resident Assistants
Lauren Kornhauser - Lauren Kornhauser is an RA in the PACE dorm, and a Special Education Graduate student at NLU. She received her BA in Psychology and Art Therapy from Milikin University, and has over four years of experience serving adults with diverse ranges of disabilities. Lauren currently facilitates the Art Club at PACE, and is editor of the program’s student newspaper, PACE Press.
Andrew King - Andrew King has worked in the Pace Program for 6 years as a Resident Intern and Field Work Instructor. He’s currently working on his master’s degree in psychology and education at National-Louis University. Andrew continues to instruct a diverse group of students on the job and in extracurricular activities including Fitness Club, Homework Club and International Club within the Residence Hall, at the Pace Program.
Joanna Berezowska - Joanna is a special education teacher with degrees from The Maria Grzegorzewska Academy of Special Education in Warsaw, Poland in Special Education and Policy and Education Management. She is spending the 2007-2008 school year at PACE as a professional intern and resident assistant (R.A.) learning the program in order to assist in replicating it in Poland.
MiJung Kim – MiJung studied vocational rehabilitation for her bachelor’s degree at Daegu university in South Korea. During her time at the university she traveled and studied in Australia for a year. She also worked at a rehabilitation center, doing job coaching and vocational evaluation people with disabilities in Korea. She interned at the Korean Rehabilitation Society’ and is studying Rehabilitation science with Professor Na. At PACE MiJung serves as a resident assistant and is enjoying being with the students and learning the program.
Life Skills Team
Cheryl Kaminski, Money Management Instructor - Cheryl is the money management instructor for the PACE program and has been with PACE for 5 years. She has an undergraduate degree in education and a master’s degree in Special Education. She is a former public school special education teacher and also has numerous years of experience working in the credit and bankruptcy industry.
Adjunct Life Skills Instructors
Bernadette Kucik – Bernadette graduated with honors from Northwestern University with a B.A. in Classics, and was awarded the Murley prize for excellence. She pursued additional graduate coursework at National-Louis University in special education. She served in the United States Air Force Reserve and Illinois Air National Guard. She is a classical Greek and Latin tutor and has been a life skills instructor at PACE for four years.
Mwajabu Mfaume - Mwajabu is a graduate student at National-Louis University pursuing her master degree, in Special Education. Mwajabu came to PACE as a professional intern from Tanzania, and has worked as a life skills instructor, independent living instructor, and tutor for the past 5 years. Mwajabu taught for 7 years in Tanzania before coming to the U.S. She is a dedicated worker who never quits no matter what and aspires to improve education for persons with disabilities in her native country.
Mwunghae Yoo - Mwunghae is a professional intern from South Korea. She graduated from Daegu University with a major in vocational rehabilitation and social welfare, and worked at Kyungnam rehabilitation center as a rehabilitation counselor doing vocational assessment, teaching, counseling and job coaching. Mwunghae is a graduate student at Daegu University spending a year at PACE learning the program. She lives in the residence hall with the students and serves as a Life Skills instructor.
Academic Team
All full time instructors teach two classes in the PACE Program. The curriculum is enriched through adjunct instructors in specialty areas. They are:
Ewa Januszkiewicz - Ewa graduated from The Maria Grzegorzewska Academy of Special Education in Warsaw, Poland majoring in Education for Individuals with Mental Retardation and currently is pursuing an additional Master’s Degree in Psychology at National-Louis University. After one year as a professional intern and resident assistant for the PACE students, she is now the Academic Support Instructor and Homework Club leader, helping students find strategies and accommodations for various academic challenges. She has been a part of PACE since September 2006.
Joe Connelly, Assertiveness Training - Joe Connelly has over 40 years experience in martial arts and is a 6th Degree Black Belt martial arts instructor in Taekwon-do. He is the Midwest regional director of Kidpower International, a padded-assailant violence-prevention skills training organization based in Santa Cruz, Calif.; and director of Connelly’s Academy of Martial Arts, an Evanston, IL. He has designed and taught programs that empower populations with special needs since 1981. His background includes 15 years of work experience in business education with IBM and The Fortune Group International, a training firm serving Fortune 1000 companies. Joe has his Master’s Degree in Human Services.
Daniel Domoleczny, Fitness - Daniel holds a BS in Biology from North Park University. He served in the Army active duty for over three years with time overseas. He has been working as a personal trainer for the past four years and has certifications through AFAA and NASM.
Janet Lerner, Computer Technology – Dr. Lerner is an adjunct professor in Computer Technology for the PACE program. Dr. Lerner received the J.E. Wallace Wallin Special Education Lifetime Achievement Award from the Council of Exceptional Children. Dr. Lerner serves as co-editor of the journal, Learning Disabilities: An Interdisciplinary Journal. She has authored and coauthored number articles and books, including the Learning Disabilities and Related Mild Disabilities, which is the 11th edition of this Seminole textbook, published by Houghton Mifflin Co. Dr. Lerner is professor emeritus at Northeastern Illinois University, where she served as professor and chairperson of the Department of Special Education.
Patricia Kessie, Greek Mythology and Shakespeare – Tricia came to teaching after a first career in international travel, and a second as a stay-at-home mom. She taught history and the humanities at the high school level for 17 years, specializing in Shakespeare and methods of teaching classes “In Action!”, many of which were adapted for students in special education courses. These methods were presented in workshops and courses given by members of the staff of the Royal Shakespeare Company, the ‘Shakespeare in the Schools’ projects of both Oxford and Cambridge Universities in England, as well as the Folger Shakespeare Theater and Chicago Shakespeare Theater in the States. Tricia came to PACE in 2004 and has greatly enjoyed working with PACE students in “Greek Myth & Legend in Action!” and “Shakespeare in Action!” classes.
The PACE Faculty
PACE faculty are master’s level professionals committed to giving their students the skills they will need to find success in relationships, on the job, and in the community. The ten full-time faculty, as well as about twelve part-time instructors—all primarily teachers—bring experiences from education, mental health and social work, recreational services and vocational rehabilitation.
Instruction integrates both group and individual teaching across all areas of their students’ lives to encourage growth and learning. The faculty believe that students learn best when they are actively involved in the process—and when teaching is linked directly to events, activities, goals and aspirations in their own lives.
Robert Harth, founder of the NLU PACE program, is leading a research initiative, with assistance from the PACE faculty, that focuses on three areas:
- A study of the program’s graduates
- Validation of multiple learning disabilities
- Experiences of PACE students and their families.
Graduate students whose area of study is learning disabilities and behavior disorders may choose to do their practicum or student teaching at PACE. Other college students are welcome to observe as part of their clinical experiences that are required as part of their major.