About Amy Ballin.

Amy Ballin is a career educator and counselor. Before earning her doctorate in education, she worked in K-12 schools as both a teacher and counselor for over 25 years. She served as an assistant professor at both Simmons University and Antioch University, supporting pre-service teachers in special education. For the past two years, she developed and implemented professional development training for Walker Therapeutic and Educational Programs with a focus on social-emotional well being. Currently, Dr. Ballin provides services to support schools and families as an educational consultant and parent coach (Amy Ballin Consulting, ABC)

Dr. Ballin received her Bachelor of Science from Cornell University as an environmental education major. She earned a Masters in Science Teaching from Antioch/New England and worked as a science educator for ten years before earning her Masters in Social Work from Boston University. Dr. Ballin received her C.A.G.S. in education administration and her Ph.D in education from Lesley University, where she explored theories of school culture, the ethics of special education, and the complexities of student motivation.

Dr. Ballin’s scholarly interests include a focus on creative approaches to teaching pedagogy and social action to eradicate injustices embedded within our educational system. She believes in connecting the social and emotional lives of children with their academic success. As such, she focuses on designing teaching methods to engage a wide range of learners, helping educators to find solutions to teaching children rather than finding blame. Her research area and interests include exploring how racial and socioeconomic assumptions intersect with the social constructs of special education. Her publication, The Quest for Meaningful Special Education, explores these concepts in depth. Dr Ballin has authored numerous research articles and presented at myriad academic conferences on the impact of calming corners, trauma-sensitive approaches, secondary trauma, and anxiety in schools.

In Dr. Ballin’s role as a school counselor, she worked with parents, students, and teachers to find common ground and solutions for student academic success. She continues this work as a parent coach and also offers professional development and coaching for educators.