SST3 Staff

Jillian Alli is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is responsible for supporting school districts with the implementation of the Ohio Improvement Process by developing and facilitating professional development and providing technical assistance for school personnel. 

Her areas of focus at the SST include Early Childhood Education, Special Education, and Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports (PBIS). 

After growing up in Cleveland Heights, Jillian began her teaching career in New York City, where she became a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), and has expertise in students with Autism, Emotional Disabilities and Early Childhood. She lived in New York for 14 years and started out as an Intervention Specialist and then finished working there as a BCBA and Director of a Therapy Center working with kids from birth through adulthood, and taught BCBA coursework at Manhattanville College prior to moving back to NorthEast Ohio. 

She spent the last 5 years working as a Behavior Specialist first in Parma City School District and then Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District, where she worked to support students in need and Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports within the district. 

Jillian and her husband, David, live in Solon, where they are raising their two daughters and two dogs.

Elizabeth Bondi is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is responsible for supporting school districts with developing and implementing MTSS structures, special education compliance and best practices and ensuring students with disabilities have access to the least restrictive environment. 

Prior to joining the SST 3 team, Elizabeth was a school psychologist at Medina City Schools. In addition to completing evaluations, Elizabeth was responsible for overseeing the building's MTSS process which included academic and behavioral supports. 

In addition to her School Psychology license, she also holds a Pupil Services Administration license. 

Elizabeth and her husband, Matt, live in Rocky River.

Brian Callahan is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. He is responsible for supporting school districts by developing and facilitating professional development and providing technical assistance for school personnel. His areas of focus include Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) and the Ohio Improvement Process (OIP).

Brian spent seven years teaching in the classroom setting. He provided instructions to students in both elementary and secondary settings during his time as an educator. In 2018, Brian moved into building administration and served in the districts of Field Local Schools and Streetsboro City Schools, respectfully.

Brian and his wife, Katie, have two children and live in Twinsburg.

Elizabeth Creel is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is responsible for supporting school districts with the implementation of the Ohio Improvement Process (OIP) by developing and facilitating professional development and providing technical assistance for school personnel. 

Her areas of focus at the SST include mathematics, best practice instructional strategies, curriculum mapping, curriculum adoption and assistance facilitating the OIP process. 

A Cleveland native, Elizabeth taught high school mathematics for 10 years in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) before transitioning to central office roles. She has held positions as Mathematics Manager and Executive of Curriculum and Instruction at CMSD. 

Elizabeth resides in Richmond Heights with her husband, Aaron.

Sydney Gruhin is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is responsible for supporting school districts with the implementation of the Ohio Improvement Process by developing and coaching leadership skills and professional development. She is also responsible to provide technical assistance to district and school personnel. 

Prior to joining the SST 3 team, Sydney began her educational journey as an eighth-grade social studies teacher with Breakthrough Public Schools. She then pursued her passion of leadership development and became an instructional coach with I CAN SCHOOLS (ACCEL) and ultimately the principal of Citizens Leadership Academy (part of Breakthrough Schools) for nine years. Sydney’s past experiences has been focused on the development of instructional and cultural school leaders and further expand the growth of emerging leaders. She furthered her education by receiving certificates from the Harvard Business School in Leading Change, Leading People and Leading Schools. 

Sydney and her husband, David, live in Solon with their two sons (Ethan and Connor) and 2 dogs (Scout and Storm).

 

Lisa Howell serves as an educational consultant for the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio and State Support Team, Region 3 (SST-3) focusing on district curriculum support and development, professional and technical development for school personnel, and facilitating districts through the Ohio Improvement Process (OIP). 

Districts should call on her expertise for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), curriculum mapping, formative assessment development and implementation, reading strategies, best practice instructional strategies, common assessment development, literacy instruction, and assistance facilitating the OIP process. 

Before working for the ESC, Lisa was a Network Leader/Academic Superintendent in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. Working with building leadership for nine Kindergarten through grade 8 buildings and two high schools, she focused on instructional leadership, family and community engagement, and positive school climate.

Kathy Jillson, M.A., CCC-SLP, is an Early Childhood Consultant with the State Support Team Region 3 at the Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio. Focus areas include providing support to districts in early childhood and preschool special education, collaborating with community agencies and families, bringing the early childhood voice to school districts through the OIP process and developing and delivering professional development related to early childhood and school readiness issues. 

Kathy has been a consultant with SST Region 3 and CSESC since 1993. Additional areas of expertise and interest include speech language pathology practice, assistive technology, low incidence disabilities, autism, and special education compliance. Previously she was a speech-language pathologist and augmentative communication specialist in Colorado. 

Kathy contributed to the Ohio Master's Network Initiative in Education (OMNIE) projects involving recruitment and retention of professionals to the fields of speech-language pathology and audiology including co-facilitating the SLP Guidelines. Active in state and national professional organizations she served as Ohio's American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) Advisory Council Representative, on Ohio School Speech Pathology and Educational Audiology Coalition's (OSSPEAC) Board and as an Ohio Speech Language Hearing Association's (OSLHA) regional representative. Additionally she has been instrumental in facilitating state-wide conferences and leadership projects. Kathy was the recipient of the Honors of OSSPEAC and the Nancy L. McKinley Leadership Award. 

Kathy and her husband, Steve, live in Strongsville and are parents of two young adults.

Roxann Lozar serves as an Urban Literacy Specialist with the State Support Team for Region 3 (SST3) at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She has over 22 years of experience in education, including 9 years with the Warrensville Heights City School District. There, she spent 2 years as a curriculum director and 7 years as the primary curriculum coordinator. Before joining Warrensville Heights, Roxann worked as an Academic Team Coach for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, was the Director of Curriculum and Instruction at The Prep Schools (a Breakthrough Charter School in Cleveland), and taught grades K, 1, 3, and 7th English Language Arts. 

Outside of work, Roxann enjoys spending time with her family. She is married to a self-employed realtor and is the mother of two energetic children. Roxann strongly believes in the power of education and is a passionate advocate for educational equity

Nyeshja Malone is an Administrative Assistant II for State Support TeamRegion 3 of the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. 

Prior to joining the SST 3 team, Nyeshja most recently worked as an administrative assistant the ESC student wellness department and the Ohio Online Learning Program. 

Nyeshja has a lengthy 10+ years background in customer service but joined the education workforce in 2021 as a substitute teacher. Nyeshja enjoys being in a support role that contributes not only to the success of students but educators as well.

Candace Muetzel brings a passion for reading and literacy to her current position as the Early Learning and Literacy Specialist for Cuyahoga County. 

Prior to joining the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio in 2008, Candace worked for Ashland City Schools as a literacy specialist at the Middle and High school level designing and implementing individualized plans for struggling students. 

She taught as a classroom teacher at the primary level for Mansfield City Schools and as a literacy specialist for Cloverleaf Schools at the k-2nd grade level. While obtaining her undergrad degree she worked in the special education services for Brunswick City Schools.

Deborah Musiek is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is responsible for supporting districts by developing and facilitating professional learning and providing technical assistance for school personnel. Her areas of focus at the SST3 include Curriculum/Instruction/ Assessment and Literacy. Deborah previously worked as a Principal in Akron Public Schools (APS) for 7 years. While in APS, she conducted weekly professional learning committee meetings with teacher leaders to interpret and analyze data, monitor, and adjust instruction. Planned for professional development, supported, and coached teachers and mentee principals. She facilitated multiple training sessions to staff throughout the years on various topics to include MTSS/RTI, 5-Step PLC+ Model, Hattie's Visible Learning Strategies, Collective Efficacy, PBIS, PAX Good Behavior Game, Teacher Clarity, and Classroom Management. 

Deborah completed her M. Ed in Organizational Leadership with a focus on organizational change to benefit all staff and students through root cause analysis, high evidence-based instructional strategies, collective efficacy, and improvement processes. 

Deborah lives in Medina with her husband, Tim, and their two children, (Annabelle and Timothy Jr.).

Rhonda's work with the Region 3 State Support Team involves implementing evidence-based strategies to boost family and community engagement, which is essential for student success. By focusing on effective program organization and sustainability, she helps schools create supportive and collaborative environments that contribute to better academic performance. 

In addition to her work on family and community engagement, Rhonda also addresses school climate and culture by promoting the social and emotional well-being of everyone involved-administrators, educators, students, and families. This holistic approach is key to fostering a positive and inclusive school environment, ultimately leading to improved overall student success and well-being. 

Rhonda's background as an Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant for SST3 highlights her deep expertise in supporting the mental health needs of young children and the adults who care for them. Her role in this capacity involved a partnership between the Ohio Department of Education and the Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services, which underscores her experience in navigating complex educational and mental health systems.

Theresa Richardson is an Administrative Assistant for the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio's State Support Team. She is responsible for providing administrative support to six Education consultants.

Lindsay Slater is the Assistant Director with State Support Team 3 where she provides coaching, professional development, and technical assistance to districts and schools to improve educational outcomes for students, with a focus on students who are at risk and students with disabilities. She has a particular interest in the areas of language and literacy, MTSS, universal design for learning, and ensuring ALL learners have equitable educational opportunities. She completed her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership at Youngstown State University with a dissertation focused on exploring how principal leadership impacts the creation of equitable and inclusive systems and practices in urban high schools. 

Lindsay currently holds a school speech-language pathologist license, a K-12 Principal's license, and a Superintendent's license. Prior to working at the SST3, Lindsay was a speech-language pathologist and special education consultant with the Akron Public Schools. She teaches courses in assistive technology at Kent State University and is a member of the CAST National Faculty. 

Lindsay and her husband, Joel, have three children and reside in Hudson.

Jodi Snyder is an Urban Literacy Specialist with the State Support Team for Region 3 (SST3) at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. Jodi's primary responsibilities with the SST3 include facilitating districts and schools through the Ohio Improvement Process, supporting principals in their leadership development and designing and delivering professional development and technical assistance for teachers in order to provide equitable access to high-quality instruction and support for all children. The goal is to have all Ohio students reading proficient or above by the end of third grade, and to have all students ready for college, career and/or independent living. 

Prior to joining the State Support Team, Jodi served in a variety of roles in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District including Model Lead Teacher Data Specialist, Instructional Coach, Intervention Specialist, and Teacher of students with disabilities. In addition, Jodi has been an adjunct professor at Cleveland State University

Care Walter is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is an Urban PBIS specialist responsible for supporting school districts through coaching, developing & facilitating professional development and providing methodology assistance for school personnel. Her area of focus at the SST is Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) in connection to special education and school climate. Care began her career in education teaching students with disabilities. She worked as an Intervention Specialist for 15 years in 7-12 classrooms. After working to earn a license in Educational Administration she obtained a position as a middle school administrator. She spent 8 years supporting students, staff and parents. During this time she developed an in-depth capacity for secondary PBIS by supporting her staff to implement a program that earned multiple state awards. She acquired a broad set of skills during her time as a teacher and then building administrator. Care believes that coaching and support is the most effective way to be a changemaker. 

Care, her husband Chris, daughter Kasey and son Kellen enjoy spending time with family and friends that all live in the Cleveland area. They travel as a family and are always looking for new and fun experiences to have together. 

Anne Zito is an Educational Consultant with the State Support Team (SST) Region 3 at the Educational Service Center (ESC) of Northeast Ohio. She is responsible for supporting districts by developing and facilitating professional learning and providing technical assistance for school personnel. Her areas of focus at the SST3 include Special Education, the Ohio Improvement Process (OIP), Curriculum/Instruction/Assessment, and Literacy. 

Anne previously worked as a speech-language pathologist in Akron Public Schools (APS) for over 20 years. While in APS, she collaborated with and provided services to students, staff, and families from preschool through high school. She served on the Speech-Language Pathology Advisory Council, School Improvement Team, and Intervention Assistance Teams (RTI). She holds a Principal license (PreK-12), Administrative Specialist license, and SpeechLanguage Pathologist licenses. She has her Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 

Anne completed her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership with a focus on building collective efficacy, supporting diverse voices, special education, and implementation science. Her dissertation focused on understanding how teachers perceive their own silence during staff meetings. Findings highlighted specific practices that school leaders can use when designing and facilitating meetings to build a positive climate/culture and equity. Anne is a strong believer in the power of both voice and silence to impact organizational change, and it is through a respect of diverse perspectives that real change can be realized. Anne presented her dissertation research at the American Evaluation Association Conference in New Orleans in November 2022. 

Anne lives in Hudson with her husband, their three children, and their three dogs.