Deb Thomas has been an educator and advocate in the area of special education for over thirty years. Deb was a special education teacher for many years with a specialty in behavior disorders. She was the Director of the Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center at Drake University, The State Educator Coordinator for the Parent Educator Connection Program [now known as the FEP] with the Iowa Department of Education, Coordinator of Special Projects at Heartland AEA, an Educational Advocate for children, youth and families at Disability Rights Iowa and the Training Coordinator for the Iowa Behavioral Alliance. Deb has been and is currently an Adjunct Special Education Professor at Drake University, teaching nearly all courses in special education over the past thirty years. Deb’s primary teaching responsibility has been to teach the course she developed called “Schools, Families, Community and Disability”. Deb has been a State Special Education Mediator on contract with the Iowa Department of Education for nearly 9 years. She has also conducted the statewide mediator training for the past six years. In addition to her professional work Deb has served on several boards, including her local school board and has been a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) for over four years.