Dr. Christine Panarese is the Region 2 Assistant Director for Special Education for Boston Public Schools. She has over 20 years of experience serving the needs of students with disabilities in urban and suburban public schools in Massachusetts. She is a former middle school special education teacher and regular education math teacher, math coach, assistant principal, principal, and a central office administrator for research, data and accountability. Dr. Panarese holds school administrator, special education director and superintendent MADESE educator licenses. In 2014, Dr. Panarese earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from Boston College. Her work experience includes time spent in higher education as a full-time lecturer for special education and the coordinator of pre-service teacher and practicum student evaluator for the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Currently Dr. Panarese is a UMASS Boston TLC Project Trustee and adjunct professor for UMASS Boston. She is also a MADESE certified LEAP trainer and member of the MADESE IEP Improvement Project Cohort. Dr. Panarese’s research interests include investigating the relationships among teachers and paraprofessional teams working in inclusion and sub-separate classroom environments and how their relationships impact students’ learning, creating community in schools and universities and investigating the intersection of dyslexia and language barriers among English Language Learners. In addition to her research, she has also collaborated on a book that explores the structures and similarities of professional sporting franchises and educational institutions.