Professor
School of Special Education, School Psychology and Early Childhood Studies
College of Education
University of Florida
1408 Norman Hall
Gainesville, FL 32611-7050
phone: 352.273.4266
Fax 352.392.2655
pts@coe.ufl.edu
Research Biography
My research has focused on change in the special education teacher labor market and its implications for policy makers and teacher educators. In U.S. public schools, fewer special education teachers are employed today than were employed a decade ago. The reasons for the decline are unclear, although reductions in the number of students identified with learning disabilities, changes in service delivery, and the economic downturn are likely to be playing a role. Currently, we are studying the impact of these changes on outcomes for students with disabilities and other struggling students. As Co-Director of the CEEDAR Center, my work to date has focused on policy analysis, developing demographic state profiles, and project evaluation.
Degrees
Ph.D. – University of Minnesota, 1977, Educational Psychology
M.S. – University of Illinois, 1974, Special Education
A.B. – Dartmouth College, 1969, History
Key Professional Appointments
Associate Dean for Research, University of Florida, Office of Educational Research, 2005-2008
Director, University of Florida Center on Personnel Studies in Special Education, 2000-2005
Director, University of Florida Center for School Improvement, 1996-2001
Professor, University of Florida Department of Special Education, 1988-present
Chair, University of Florida Department of Special Education, 1988-1996
Activities & Honors
University of Florida, Faculty Achievement Recognition Award, 2007
University of Illinois, College of Education Alumni Association, Distinguished Alumni Award, 2007
Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, TED Publication Award, Volume 30, April, 2009
Grants
Principal Investigator, Project Invest: Optimizing Investments in Teacher Education Alternatives. January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2007. U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, $540,000.
Co-Principal Investigator (with Dr. Mary Brownell, Principal Investigator), National Center to Inform Policy and Practice in Special Education Professional Development. October 1, 2007, to September 30, 2012, $2,500,000.
Co-Principal Investigator (with Mary T. Brownell and Erica D. McCray), Research on Quality in Educating Special Education Teachers (Project ReQuEST): A Program to Prepare Leadership Personnel in Special Education. U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education, July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2013, $800,000.
Co-Principal Investigator (with Dr. Mary Brownell, Principal Investigator and Erica McCray, Co-Principal Investigator), Center for Educator Development, Accountability, and Reform. U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, January 1, 2013, to December 30, 2017, $25,000,000.
Selected Publications
Brownell, M. T., Bishop, A. M., & Sindelar, P. T. (2005). NCLB and the demand for highly qualified teachers: Challenges and solutions for rural schools. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 24(1), 9-15.
Hardman, M. L., Rosenberg, M., & Sindelar, P. (2005). NCLB, IDEA, and alternative routes in preparation of rural special education teachers in high incidence areas. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 24(1), 16-22.
Brownell, M. T., Adams, A., Sindelar, P., Waldron, N., & van Hover, S. (2006). Learning from collaboration. The role of teacher qualities. Exceptional Children, 72, 169-187.
Rosenberg, M. S., & Sindelar, P. T. (2005). The proliferation of alternative routes to certification in special education: A critical review of the literature. Journal of Special Education, 39, 117-127.
Sindelar, P. T., Shearer, D. K., Yendol-Hoppey, D., & Liebert, T. W. (2006). The sustainability of inclusive school reform. Exceptional Children, 72, 317-331.
Blanton, L. L., Sindelar, P. T., & Correa, V. I. (2006). Models and measures of beginning teacher quality. Journal of Special Education, 40, 115-127.
Rosenberg, M. S., Boyer, K. L., Sindelar, P. T., & Misra, S. (2007). Alternative route programs to certification in special education: What we know about program design, instructional delivery, and participant characteristics. Exceptional Children, 73, 224-241.
Sindelar, P. T., Bishop, A. G., Gill, M. G., Connelly, V., & Rosenberg, M. S. (2007). Getting teachers where they’re needed most: The case for licensure reciprocity. Teacher Education and Special Education, 30, 103-114.
Dai, C., Sindelar, P. T., Denslow, D., Dewey, J., & Rosenberg, M. S. (2007). Economic analysis and the design of alternative-route teacher education programs. Journal of Teacher Education, 58, 422-439.
Sindelar, P. T., Brownell, M. T., & Billingsley, B. (2010). Special education teacher education research: Current status and future directions. Teacher Education and Special Education, 33, 8-24.
Brownell, M. T., Sindelar, P. T., Kiely, M. T., & Danielson, L. C. (2010). Special education teacher quality and preparation: Exposing foundations, constructing a new model. Exceptional Children, 76, 357-377.
Sindelar, P. T., Heretick, J., Hirsch, E., Rorrer, A., & Dawson, S. A. (2010). What district administrators need to know about state induction policy. Journal of Special Education Leadership, 23, 5-13.
Sindelar, P. T., Dewey, J. F., Rosenberg, M. S., Corbett, N. L., Denslow, D., & Lotfinia, B. (2012). Cost effectiveness of alternative route special education teacher preparation. Exceptional Children, 79, 25-42.
Leko, M. M., Brownell, M. T., Sindelar, P. T., & Murphy, K. (2012). Promoting special education preservice teacher expertise. Focus on Exceptional Children, 44(7), 1-16.
Boe, E. E., de Bettencourt, L. U., Dewey, J., Rosenberg, M., Sindelar, P., & Leko, C. (2013). Variability in demand for special education teachers: Indicators, explanations, and impacts. Exceptionality, 21, 103-125.
Sindelar, P. T., McCray, E. D., Lignugaris/Kraft, B., & Brownell, M. T. (Eds.). (in press). The handbook of research on special education teacher preparation. New York: Routledge.
