The Board of Directors of The Institute for Effective Education is honored to announce that, after nearly 40 years of service to the organization, Drs. Ken Traupmann and Suzy Fitch plan to step down from their positions as Executive Director on August 31, 2021, and will officially retire on December 31.
The Board is also pleased to announce that, following a search for the succeeding Executive Director, Hillary Whiteside, currently Director of Children’s Workshop, has been chosen to guide the organization into its future.
Hired in 1982, Drs. Traupmann and Fitch have led the organization from a single, small school for children with developmental disabilities, Children’s Workshop, to one of California’s most highly respected organizations that operate schools for children, adolescents, and young adults across virtually the full spectrum of individual talent. TIEE’s five schools are certified by California’s Department of Education as Non-Public, Non-Sectarian schools and all have obtained certification by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), having received WASC’s highest level of approval. In addition to its schools, TIEE has recently launched its Vocational and Adult Services program to provide its instructional expertise to adults in the San Diego community.
Ms. Whiteside has been employed by TIEE for over 25 years. She began as a classroom assistant in 1996, was promoted to classroom teacher in 1998 after acquiring a teaching credential, was promoted to Program Coordinator in 2000, and has been Director of Children’s Workshop, TIEE’s founding school, since 2006. Ms. Whiteside has earned a Masters of Science in Special Education and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. She has thoroughly embraced TIEE’s Mission and its applied behavior analysis programming. A highly successful program director, she has been an outstanding professional trainer, effectively developing staff members to adopt new, more challenging positions. In addition to her stellar efforts on behalf of TIEE, the school districts, and families it serves, Ms. Whiteside also serves as adjunct faculty in the Department of Special Education at San Diego State University. Ms. Whiteside will begin her duties as Executive Director on September 1, 2021.
