Rebecca Gajda is an Assistant Professor in the Secondary Education and Educational Leadership Programs in the College of Education and Social Services at the University of Vermont. She teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in curriculum, instruction, and assessment. She has a master's degree in special education and spent many years developing and teaching in programs for children at risk. She was the Education Codirector at Youth S.A.F.E., a shelter for homeless and abused children and adolescents, and the dropout prevention coordinator for a large, demographically diverse school district in Colorado for several years.