Biography:

I am a Mishawaka, IN native and have lived in the Michiana area for 34 years. I have also lived and worked in the educational system (elementary, special education, behavior and college level) in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Florida. Prior to coming to Andrews University I worked on a large research grant through the National Institute of Child Health and Development while working at Florida Center for Reading Research/Florida State University.  I married a Berrien Springs native who graduated from the seminary and is a pastor. We have three wonderful young adults.

Current Research or Professional Activities:

My research interests are reading, writing, RtI, and behavior. I belong to several organizations (Pacific Coast Research Conference, PCRC; Council for Exceptional Children, CEC; Society for Scientific Studies in Reading, SSSR; and International Dyslexia Association, IDA)  and try to present as much as possible.

Manuscripts in Review

Puranik, C., Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J., Greulich, L., Cute, S., & Keffer, L. (in review). Examining early writing skills: A comparative analysis of typically developing students and students with speech and language impairments. Manuscript submitted for review to Journal of Learning Disabilities.

Young-Suk, K., Al Otaiba, S., Puranik, C., Folsom, J., Greulich, L., Li, Z., & Wagner, R. (in review). The relative contributions of semantic knowledge, phonological awareness, alphabet fluency to word reading and spelling for kindergartners. Manuscript submitted for review to Reading Research Quarterly.

In Press Publications

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C. M., Folsom, J. S., Greulich, L., Meadows, J., & Li, Z. (in press). Assessment data-informed guidance to individualize kindergarten reading instruction: Findings from a cluster-randomized control field trial. Manuscript accepted for publication in Elementary School Journal.

Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J. S., Schatschneider, C., Wanzek, J., Greulich, L., Meadows, J., & Li, Z. (in press). Predicting first grade reading performance from kindergarten response to instruction. Manuscript accepted for publication Exceptional Children.

Publications

Al Otaiba, S., Lake, V. E., Greulich, L., Folsom, J. S., & Guidry, L. (2010). Preparing beginning reading teachers: An experimental comparison of initial early literacy field experiences. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, online edition published.

Al Otaiba, S., Puranik, C., Rouby, D. A., Greulich, L., Folsom, J. S., & Lee, J. (2010). Predicting kindergartners’ end of year spelling ability from their reading, alphabetic, vocabulary, and phonological awareness skills, and prior literacy experiences. Learning Disabilities Quarterly, 33(3), 171-184.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C. M., Foorman, B., Schatschneider, C., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J. S. (2009). Identifying and intervening with beginning readers who are at-risk for dyslexia: Advances in individualized classroom instruction. Perspectives, Fall, 13-19.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C. M., Foorman, B., Greulich, L. & Folsom J. S. (2009).  Implementing response to intervention: The synergy of beginning reading instruction and early intervening services. In T. E. Scruggs & M. A. Mastropieri (Eds.), Policy and practice: Advances in learning and behavioral disabilities (vol. 22). Bingley, UK: Emerald.

Conference Presentations

Greulich, L., Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba S, Rouby, A. & Meadows, J. (2011, April) Where are we now? A literature review on response to intervention. Poster presented at the 2011 Council for Exceptional Children Convention and Expo, National Harbor, MD.

Greulich, L., Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J. S., Rouby, A. & Meadows, J. (2011, February). Kindergarten reading, writing, and spelling instruction. Poster presented at the Eighteenth Annual Pacific Coast Research Conference, Corando, CA.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C., Folsom, J. S., & Greulich, L. (2010, July). The role of pre-kindergarten home literacy and kindergarten classroom reading instructional environments on student reading outcomes in kindergarten and first grade. Paper presented at the  Seventeenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Berlin, Germany.

Cooper, L., Thomas-Tate, S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J. S. (2010, July). First grade predictors of reading comprehension. Poster presented at the annual convention of the National American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Schools Conference, Las Vegas, NV.

Puranik, C., Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J. S., & Greulich, L. (2010, July). The effect of writing instruction on writing productivity in kindergarten children. Paper presented at the  Seventeenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Berlin, Germany.

Lee, J., Al Otaiba, S., Puranik, C. S., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J. S. (2010, July). End of kindergarten spelling performance: Are spelling errors associated with response to instruction? Poster presented at the Seventeenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Berlin, Germany.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L. & Meadows, J. (2010, July). A SEM on reading development from kindergarten to second grade: The role of vocabulary. Poster presented at the Seventeenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Berlin, Germany.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L. & Meadows, J. (2010, July). Kindergarten resilience factors of reading difficulties. Paper presented at the Seventeenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Berlin, Germany.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., & Meadows, J., (2010, June). The contributions of print knowledge, vocabulary, PA, and word reading on reading comprehension development. Poster presented at the 2010 Institute of Education Sciences Research Conference. National Harbor, MD.

Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J. S., Rivera, M., Greulich, L., Whalon, K., & Delano, M. (2010, April). Effective reading instruction for students with autism, behavior disorders and intellectual disabilities. Paper presented at the Council for Exceptional Children’s 2010 Annual Convention and Expo, Nashville, TN.

Al Otaiba, S. Denton, C., Folsom, J. S., & Greulich, L. (2010, April). Tiered reading interventions in the primary grades: What we have learned. Paper presented at the Council for Exceptional Children’s 2010 Annual Convention and Expo, Nashville, TN.

Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J. S., & Greulich, L. (2010, April). Findings from the Florida Center on Learning Disabilities: KG-RTI promise and challenge. Paper presented at the Council for Exceptional Children’s 2010 Annual Convention and Expo, Nashville, TN.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L. & Meadows, J. (2010, April). Does student behavior and teachers’ individualizing instruction mediate kindergarten reading outcomes? Poster presented at the Council for Exceptional Children’s 2010 Annual Convention and Expo, Nashville, TN.

Al Otaiba, S., McCardle, P., Denton, C., Wise, B., Schatschneider, C., Wexler, J.  Connor, C., Folsom, J. S. & Greulich, L. (2009, November). Research from the cutting edge of response to intervention: Findings from the learning disability center grants. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Dyslexia Association, Orlando, FL.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., & Meadows, J. (2009, November). What role do home, child, and classroom factors play in determining resilience among kindergarteners at risk for dyslexia. Paper presented at the International Dyslexia Association Sixtieth Annual Conference, Orlando, FL.

Greulich, L.,Al Otaiba, S., Folsom, J. S., & Meadows, J. (2009, November). Rudiments of RTI: A focus on attention, behavior and motivation for struggling readers. Paper presented at the International Dyslexia Association Sixtieth Annual Conference, Orlando, FL.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., & Meadows, J. (2009, July). Examining the relations between vocabulary, teacher quality, and student outcomes. Poster presented at the Sixteenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Boston, MA.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., & Meadows, J. (2009, July). Examining the relations between vocabulary, teacher quality, and student outcomes. Poster presented at the Sixteenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Studies of Reading Conference, Boston, MA.

Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., & Meadows, J. G. (2009, July). A comparison of two behavior rating scales and the relation between behavior and reading achievement. Poster presented at the 2009 Institute of Education Sciences Research Conference. Washington, D.C.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C., Schatschneider, C., Wagner, R., Petscher, Y., Meadows, J., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J. S. (2009, February). Understanding child by reading instruction interactions: Exploring the relations among instruction and initial characteristics. Paper presented at the Seventeenth Annual Pacific Coast Research Conference, Coronado, FL.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C., Meadows, J., Petscher, Y., Greulich, L., Folsom, J. S., & Lang, L. (2008, July). Responsiveness to kindergarten reading instruction: Examining the interactions among student characteristics, reading instruction, and student outcomes. Paper presented at the Fifteenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading, Asheville, NC.

Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., Folsom, J., & Granger, J. (April, 2008). Research from the cutting edge: The work of the Florida Center for Reading Research. Paper presented at the annual Florida Branch of the International Dyslexia Association. Jacksonville, FL.

Al Otaiba, S., Meadows, J., Connor, C., Petscher, Y., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J. S. (2008, March). Predicting response to kindergarten literacy instruction: The effects of oral language, IQ, initial reading readiness, parental education and home literacy environment. Paper presented at the annual American Educational Research Association, New York, NY.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C., Meadows, J., Petscher, Y., Logan, J., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J. S. (2008, February). Examining the relations among student characteristics and student outcomes in kindergarten classrooms. Paper presented at the Sixteenth Annual Pacific Coast Research Conference, Coronado, CA.

Al Otaiba, S., Lake, V., Greulich, L., & Folsom, J.  (2007, November). Preparing early childhood teachers to support response to intervention: The role of structured tutorials. Paper presented at the annual Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional children, Milwaukee, WI.

Al Otaiba, S., Connor, C., Meadows, J., Logan, J., & Greulich, L. (2007, July). Examining the interactions among student characteristics, reading instruction, and student outcomes in kindergarten classrooms. Paper presented at the annual Society for the Scientific Study of Reading  Conference, Prague, CZ.