Dr. Melissa Jackson, is the Director of Faculty Development and Outreach at a private special education school and Adjunct Faculty in the Early Childhood Development and Learning: Diverse Children and Families Graduate program in the Special Education Department at Hunter College, in New York City. She holds a doctorate in Instructional leadership, a graduate degree in Early Childhood Special Education, and an Advanced Certificate in Applied Behavior Analysis. Melissa is passionate about working with young children with special needs, their families, and the professionals that work with them. Her research interests include the relationship between practitioners' self-efficacy and the implementation of evidence-based supports provided to children with special needs, building evidence to teach essential emergency response skills to children with ASD, collaboration with families, social validity, and professional development for pre-service and in-service teachers.