Meet your Team of Educational Strategists
Diane Ripple - Owner, Educational Strategist
Diane Ripple has been a professional developer on Long Island and the surrounding areas since 1996. In 1999 she started her own company, Consulting That Makes A Difference, Inc. CMDI is a small company that provides professional development in such areas as inclusive education, co-teaching, differentiated instruction, paraprofessional training and community building. CMDI also provides family coaching services. After earning her Bachelor’s from SUNY at Geneseo and her Master’s at SUNY at Stony Brook, Diane began her career as a speech therapist. She worked in both inclusive and segregated settings with people of all ages and ability levels. Without question, Diane has found her true passion collaborating with teachers, administrators and families.
Stephanie Dempsey - Educational Strategist
Stephanie Dempsey is dually certified in general education and students with disabilities, as well as Literacy K-12 and TESOL K-12. Stephanie has had a variety of experiences teaching various grade levels, as well as Resource Room and ENL. She first began working with children 20 years ago and knew immediately that this is what she wanted to pursue as her career. She has mentored teachers and presented workshops providing effective classroom management strategies. Stephanie has spent much of her career collaborating with teachers, administrators and community members in low income neighborhoods to implement a supportive, structured and rich education for each and every student. She continues to be passionate about sharing her experiences and enthusiasm for teaching and learning.
Christa Van Tronk - Educational Strategist
Christa is a dynamic and vibrant NYS retired master teacher who brought excitement into her classroom for 34 years. She worked collaboratively with her special education teachers in an engaging and fun integrated co-teaching classroom. An analytical and conceptual thinker, Christa effectively works with teachers, parents, principals and district administrators. She is an innovator who possesses excellent leadership qualities, while being flexible and adaptable to change. Throughout her career, she has continued to grow as an educator, making her an excellent advocate for best practice and program for students with special needs. She will forever have a passion for teaching and meeting the needs of all learners.
Bill McNally - Educational Strategist
Bill McNally is an experienced special education teacher and administrator. He brings great enthusiasm, energy, and humor to his teaching. Having taught students in Kindergarten through grade 12, the majority of his career was at the secondary level. He taught all academic subjects to students with disabilities in self-contained, integrated co-teaching, and resource room settings. By combining his passions for learning and science, he achieved great success in preparing students for their Regents exams. In addition, Bill supervised an alternative high school program, and a multi-district extended school year program for classified students requiring year-long education. He oversaw a federal character education grant which received national recognition for implementing social-emotional learning programs focused on building strong character. Bill has been providing professional development on inclusive teaching practices and character education for many years.
Jan Pilkington-Kaler - Educational Strategist
Jan is a passionate educator who enthusiastically taught students of all abilities for over 30 years. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at SUNY Geneseo and her Master’s at SUNY Stony Brook. As a master teacher, Jan mentored numerous teachers and worked closely with colleagues, students, administrators and parents to create environments where all students could be successful. Through the years, she has been involved in creating and selecting curriculums, investigating best practices, and teaching to all learning styles. Jan has worked as a co-teacher in an ICT classroom where she successfully utilized a variety of co-teaching models. She enjoys working collaboratively with teachers to support and create effective and positive learning environments for all.
Mary Verdone - Educational Strategist
Mary is a retired special education teacher. She is dually certified in Elementary Education and Special Education, with a SOCE certification in Secondary English Special Education. Mary has taught various grade levels, ranging from 1st -12th grade, although the majority of her career has been at the secondary level. Mary has taught in resource room, self-contained, life skills, and ICT classrooms. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to any educational setting and is flexible and easily adapts to any situation. Mary has a passion for learning and a love for children. She has always said, “I love my job more and more each day, and if I had to do it again, I would choose the same career!” In addition to the classroom, Mary has mentored many new teachers along the way, as well as teaching in an alternative high school program, summer school and regents prep. She has spent much of her career collaborating with teachers, administrators and families. Mary has a love of learning and is eager to bring her enthusiasm to other teachers and students. She believes that children are the future of the world, and teachers are the ones to help them spread their wings to fly.
Donna Greenberg - Educational Strategist
Donna is certified in Special Education K-12 with a SOCE certification in Social Studies. She has taught various grade levels and subject matter throughout her career. Donna has experience educating students in an ICT setting by providing her co-teacher with insights on how to differentiate and modify lessons to meet the needs of diverse learners within the classroom. Her other teaching experiences include life skills, self-contained classes, resource room, alternative high school and credit recovery programs. In addition, Donna was selected to mentor many new teachers and provide them support for planning their academic lessons by incorporating skills that would benefit not only special education students, but all students in the classroom. These varied teaching experiences helped her successfully collaborate with colleagues, administrators and families to create effective and positive learning environments. Donna believes that teaching is more than just teaching subject matter. Teachers have the power to inspire young minds and encourage them to fulfill their dreams.
Denise Cappiello - Educational Strategist
Denise is a retired special education teacher with extensive experience at all grade levels from kindergarten through high school. During her teaching career, she has taught students in many settings, including resource room, self-contained, ICT, ENL, alternative high school, home instruction, and summer school. Denise holds certifications in Special Education, TESOL, a SOCE in secondary English, and is Wilson Reading certified. She can offer strategies for educating students of diverse backgrounds and has an overwhelming desire to support educators in building their students’ self-esteem and sense of worth. Denise believes that every child is capable and deserving of success and that there is no “one size fits all approach” to education. Denise embraces every opportunity to share her abundance of knowledge and expertise with educators in her role as an educational strategist.
Patricia Hantzidiamantis- Educational Strategist
Dr. Hantzidiamantis began her professional journey in education after graduating from SUNY Geneseo. She received her MS in Special Education from Adelphi, her administration certification at SUNY Stony Brook, and her doctorate in 2011 from Hofstra University in Foundations in Leadership and Administration. Patricia has published the book, “ A Case Study Examining Co-teaching in an Inclusive Classroom” and taught special education for 18 years. She was a special education administrator from 2002 until retiring as Assistant Superintendent of Pupil Personnel Services in 2020. Since then, Patricia has been serving as interim administrator in several school districts while also completing educational evaluations as an educational diagnostician. She is excited to continue her work in the field of education with CMDI, collaborating with teachers, teams and administrators to ensure the success of all students.
Jeniffer Orlowski - Educational Strategist
Jeniffer is certified in Special Education N-12, Reading N-12, Elementary Education N-6, and Art N-12. She obtained her undergraduate degree in Fine Arts from St. Lawrence University and obtained a master’s in special education and literacy from Dowling College. Jeniffer has taught students at the elementary and secondary level in a variety of special education settings. They include Resource Room, ICT, and Self-Contained classrooms. She has also worked as a Consultant Teacher and certified ABA home instructor. Jeniffer’s other teaching experiences include being trained in and implementing a variety of literacy programs such as Wilson, Fountas & Pinnell's Leveled Literacy Instruction, Reading Recovery, and Balanced Literacy. She has a passion for learning and loves to share that with others. Jeniffer has spent her career as an educator collaborating with teachers, service providers, staff, administrators and families as a co-teacher, consultant, member of the School Leadership Team, and member of the Pupil Personnel Team/Child Study Team. She believes a positive approach and the understanding of "more heads are better than one" is essential for student success. She looks forward to working with teachers to create classrooms that allow everyone to experiment, grow, and succeed.
Carolyn Schick - Educational Strategist
Carolyn Schick is a passionate educator who has been actively and positively engaging students and teachers for over 36 years. She holds professional certifications in the areas of Special Education (B-21), General Education (N-6), Reading and School District Administration. She has served as a middle school principal and an alternative secondary program principal as well as in the role of special and general education teacher and mentor. Carolyn has had the opportunity to work in a variety of high-quality educational settings, which have facilitated her development of an extensive knowledge of innovative practices, and to collaborate with others in crafting impactful instruction. Her innate ability to see the best in every child has been the catalyst to her development of novel programs and supports that target the whole child and ensure that each maximizes his educational potential. Carolyn has had the unique opportunity of working with students and teachers in almost all grade levels K- college providing her with a well-rounded understanding of children and best practices. She possesses a compelling desire to assist 21st century educators to find purpose and passion through consistent engagement in a cycle of reflection and the implementation of methods and progressive educational paradigms that target each student’s learning needs/styles. Carolyn believes that each student and teacher has a particular gift to share and that through the careful cultivation of their uniqueness, the development of goal-oriented instruction, and a positive outlook, they can change the world!
Catherine Campanale - Educational Strategist
Catherine is a retired special education teacher of 21 years. She holds a master’s degree in Elementary Education and Students with Disabilities in Grades 1-6, School Building Leader Certification, and School District Leader Certification. During her time as the special education teacher in ICT classrooms, Catherine had the opportunity to partner with many general education teachers. Utilizing her strengths and skills in team communication, co-planning and PBIS, Catherine was able to successfully support classrooms of very diverse learners. During her teaching career, she greatly enjoyed sharing her expertise in teaching English Language Arts, with a concentration on reading comprehension and writing. As an educator, Catherine strived to always provide an academic tone for students where educational improvement was the focal point while simultaneously developing responsible individuals who have respect for themselves, their peers, and the adults with whom they interact.
Nina DiMauro- Educational Strategist
Nina DiMauro is a passionate teacher who is dually certified in general education and students with disabilities. She also carries a degree in speech pathology. Nina has teaching experience working with students at many grade and ability levels. Through the years, she has taught in a school tailored for children who are on the autism spectrum and those with emotional disabilities. She is also a tenured teacher from the NYCDOE. Nina has worked as a co-teacher in ICT classroom settings, where she was able to successfully utilize the various co-teaching models to meet the diverse needs of students. She has also taught in a self-contained classroom and provided at home ABA instruction. In all classroom settings, Nina collaborated with colleagues and families to create a safe and supportive environment for all learners. Over the years, she has enjoyed mentoring teachers and presenting workshops on various special education topics. Nina brings her leadership, positivity, and love for learning to her role at CMDI.
Dr. Alyssa SooHoo- Educational Strategist
Dr. Alyssa SooHoo is an experienced special education teacher. She has taught in grades kindergarten through post-secondary education in both private and public schools. Alyssa has also worked in recreational settings with individuals with disabilities and their families through her work with Autism on the Seas. Alyssa graduated in 2019 from Columbia University with her PhD in Special Education- specializing in Autism and Intellectual Disorders. Additionally, she enjoys her on-going opportunity to shape future educators, as she advises and teaches undergraduate and graduate courses at Adelphi University and supervises student teachers. Research interests include collaborating with families, working with pre-service teachers, and respite services. Alyssa is looking forward to collaborating with teachers, administrators, and families through CMDI!
Jennifer Panzner- Office Assistant
Jennifer has over 35 years of professional sales experience working in the corporate industry. Jen was first employed with Marriott International for 22 years, working in many sales capacities. She continued her career working with JP Morgan Chase and other finance and banking corporations. After her experience in the corporate world, Jen switched careers by obtaining her certification as a Level 1 Teaching Assistance and working with students with a variety of disabilities. Jen’s outstanding organizational skills and attention to detail, along with her licensure as a Notary Public for NYS, make her a great asset to the CMDI team as the company’s office assistant. Jen looks forward to supporting CMDI’s mission in making a difference in educating the students of today.