The Beach Center Faculty belong to the faculty of the Department of Special Education at the University of Kansas.
Core Faculty
Ann Turnbull, Rud Turnbull, Wayne Sailor, Mike Wehmeyer
About the Core Faculty
Ann Turnbull, Ed.D., is co-director and co-founder of the Beach Center and professor of special education. She has been principal investigator of more than 25 federally funded research and personnel preparation grants. She has authored 14 books (several in 3rd to 6th editions) and more than 200 articles, chapters and monographs. Ann’s research focuses on family supports and services (especially in early childhood services), family quality of life, and individual control of funding for adult supports and services. She is the parent of an adult son with multiple disabilities and is an active participant in national and international family advocacy organizations. In 1999 Ann was selected by the KU Graduate School as the recipient of the Louise E. Byrd Graduate Educator Award for excellence in mentoring doctoral students. She and her husband, Rud Turnbull, were 2 of 36 recipients selected by 7 of the leading developmental disability organizations “changing the course of history for individuals with mental retardation/developmental disabilities in the 20th century.”
Rud Turnbull, Ll.B., Ll.M., is co-director and co-founder of the Beach Center and professor of special education. As a specialist in law, policy and ethics, Rud has written eight books and more than 200 articles, chapters, and monographs. He has generated approximately $16 million in research and training grants at the University of Kansas over 20 years. He has testified before Congress. Rud has written briefs in Supreme Court cases and carried out more than 200 technical assistance activities at the national, state, and local levels. He is the only person in the developmental disability field who has served as a senior officer or committee chair in the American Association on Mental Retardation, The Arc, TASH, American Bar Association Committee on Disability Law, and the Bazelon Center for Mental Disability Law. Rud has received leadership citations from the American Association on Mental Retardation and the Council for Exceptional Children, among others. He also is the parent of a son with multiple disabilities.
Michael Wehmeyer, Ph.D., is professor of special education, associate director, Beach Center, and director, Kansas University Center for Exellence in Developmental Disabilities, all at the University of Kansas. Dr. Wehmeyer is engaged in teacher personnel preparation in the area of severe, multiple disabilities and directs multiple federally funded projects conducting research and model development in the education of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. He is the author of more than 180 articles or book chapters, and has authored, co-authored, or co-edited 19 books on disability and education-related issues, including those pertaining to self-determination, transition, universal design for learning, access to the general curriculum for students with significant disabilities, and technology use by persons with cognitive disabilities. He is past-president of the Council for Exceptional Children's Division on Career Development and Transition and is the Editor-in-Chief of Remedial and Special Education. In 1999 Dr. Wehmeyer was the inaugural recipient of the Distinguished Early Career Research Award from the Council for Exceptional Children's Division for Research. In May 2003 he was awarded the American Association on Mental Retardation's National Education Award.
Wayne Sailor, Ph.D., is associate director of the Beach Center and professor of special education. He has been a leader in the field of pro-social development and school reeform since its inception. His current priorities focus on the full integration of students with significant cognitive disabilities through school restructing processes and service integration strategies for health, social, and educational services for all children at the school site. He has done extensive research on schoolwide applications of positive behavior support and, in particular, uses empowerment evaluation in whole school reform. His most recent research has focused on a structural school reform model called the Schoolwide Applications Model (SAM) which has been field-tested in California, Kansas, and Louisiana.