Women leaders whom we should hail
Who are some developing leaders in special education as or 2026?
On 8 March 2026, the International Women’s Day for 2026, Special Education Today recognizes contributors to the advancement of individuals with disabilities and the betterment of special education. In contrast to previous posts on SET that paid homage to historical individual women and women who are so accomplished that they are routinely (and deservedly) revered,1 this year, we focus on some contributors who are early in their careers but are already doing excellent work that promises to advance the lives of children with disabilities, families of those children, the teachers of their children, and social services for those children.
This list is, to be sure, just a subjective selection of early-career women who are making valuable contributions to special education. I make no assertion that is founded on any objective standards. These women are not necessarily the ones with the most federally funded grants, the most followers of their Substack profiles, the most citations for their academic publications, the most high-profile speeches at international conventions… the most whatever. They are just people whose work I’ve read. Sometimes I disagree with their work or approaches, but I think they are genuinely helping to move special education ahead, to make a better future for out kids.
OK, so 🥁 drumroll…. In alphabetical order, 12 leaders for tomorrow: 2
Allison Gilmour, American Institutes for Research
Carly Blustein Gilson, The Ohio State Univeristy
Taucia Gonzalez, Arizona State University
Linda J. Graham – Queensland University
Shanna E. Hirsch,3 University of Maryland
Veronica Kang – University of Maryland (USA)
Sofia Santos, University of Lisbon
Phillandra Smith, University of Pittsburgh
Stavroula Sofologi – University of Macedonia
Amanda Sullivan, University of Minnesota
Hannah M. Tavares, University of Hawai’i Mānoa
Alison Zagona – University of Kansas
These people are high-fliers. They’re the people on whom I would place bets for “who will do helpful work in the near and long-term future.” I hope you keep up with them. Watch for their articles. Go listen to them when they speak publicly, ask them questions when your and their interests overlap.
Of course, Dear Readers, there are many (many) other women who are leading the way to better understanding of people with disabilities and or how to provide beneficial special education. This list is incomplete. Please let those of us at SET know whom you think we should have included. Meanwhile, celebrate these women’s contributions and seek to further them.
Footnotes
In case you can’t tell, the list is alphabetical by last name, and doesn’t indicate relative importance.
I’m just putting a thumb on the scale to give extra weight to Shanna here. I have had the amazing good fortune to work with her since 2013 (or so), and I learned a lot from the experience. But, let the record show that she is providing no kickbacks for this endorsement (teehee).