Faculty and Staff
Get to know the individuals that comprise the Department of Special Education.
Faculty


Marijke Devos
Faculty Advisor
Program in Visual Impairments
Marijke is a lecturer in the VI department (student teacher supervisor and co-instructor of the student teaching support seminar) and Interim VI Program Advisor for Spring 2023. Before joining the adjunct faculty of the VI department in 2020, she was an itinerant teacher for students with visual impairment for almost 20 years. She has a wide array of educational experience covering various locations on the globe in a variety of instructional settings serving students of all ages between birth and adulthood and various degrees of abilities. Her main professional interests include working with students with CVI (cortical/cerebral visual impairment), comprehensive assessments and mentoring new TVIs.

Amber Friesen
Associate Professor
ECSE Program Coordinator
Early Childhood Special Education
afriesen@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-7654
Dr. Amber Friesen is an assistant professor is early childhood special education in the Department of Special Education and Communicative Disorders. Her primary teaching responsibilities include courses in family systems and services, and early intervention. Dr. Friesen’s primary research interests focus on supporting young children at-risk or diagnosed with disabilities and their families. Specifically she is interested in promoting inclusive early childhood settings and strong family partnerships.

Mayumi Hagiwara
Assistant Professor
Extensive Support Needs
mhagiwara@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-1161
Mayumi Hagiwara is an assistant professor in the Extensive Support Needs (moderate/severe disabilities) Program in the Department of Special Education. Before joining the faculty at SFSU, she was a postdoctoral researcher at University of Kansas, focusing on promoting self-determination and inclusive community participation for people with extensive support needs. Her primary teaching responsibilities include courses in instruction of students with extensive support needs and transition planning. Her research interests focus on inclusive education, self-determination, family-school partnerships, transition planning, and inclusive adult outcomes for people with extensive support needs.

Summer Hsia
Associate Professor
Early Childhood Special Education | Intern Program Coordinator
summerh@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-2502
Dr. Summer Tsai-hsing Hsia is an associate professor and coordinates the Intern Program and the Early Childhood Special Education credential and master’s degree programs in the Department of Special Education. Her primary responsibilities include teaching courses in the area of early childhood special education, supervising student teachers, chairing the master’s degree students’ projects, and mentoring students in the Joint Doctoral Program.

Maryssa Kucskar Mitsch
Assistant Professor
SPED Minor Program Coordinator
Early Childhood Special Education
mkucskar@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-3430
Maryssa Kucskar Mitsch, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of Early Childhood Special Education in the Department of Special Education. Her primary teaching responsibilities includes courses in early intervention, assessment of young children at-risk and with disabilities, and family systems. Dr. Kucskar’s primary research interests focus on inclusive practices, social skills interventions for young children with disabilities, implementation of evidence-based practices, and strategies for effective professional development.

Kathleen Mortier
Associate Professor
ESN Program Coordinator
Extensive Support Needs
kmortier@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-7847
Kathleen Mortier is an associate professor in the Extensive Support Needs (moderate/severe disabilities) Program in the Department of Special Education. Before joining the faculty at SFSU she was involved in systems change and inclusive education in Central America and in Belgium. Her primary teaching responsibilities include courses in instruction of students with extensive support needs, research methods, and inclusive education. Her research interests focus on inclusive education, communities of practice, family-school partnerships for Latinx families with children with disabilities, and literacy instruction for students with extensive support needs.

Mary Requa
Assistant Professor
MMSN Program Coordinator
Mild to Moderate Support Needs
mrequa@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-3428
Mary K. Requa, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of special education in the Department of Special Education, mild/moderate disabilities program. Her primary teaching responsibilities include courses related to understanding, assessing, and instructing individuals with mild/moderate disabilities including methods and materials to promote successful learning outcomes for typical and atypical learners of all ages. Dr. Requa’s primary research interests include early literacy, vocabulary development, and family engagement.

Sandra Rosen
Professor
O&M Program Coordinator
Program in Orientation & Mobility
srosen@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-1245
Dr. Rosen is coordinator of the Program in Orientation & Mobility (O&M). She is internationally known for her work in the field, including the development of new teaching approaches in O&M and methods of teaching mobility to people who have both physical and visual impairments. Dr. Rosen has also helped develop O&M professional preparation programs in other countries and is a frequent speaker at international conferences. Her current research interests include the facilitation of balance in children born with visual impairments and the facilitation of proprioceptive awareness in teaching motor and mobility skills.


Gloria Soto
Professor
Joint Doctoral Program Coordinator
gsoto@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-1757
Dr. Gloria Soto is a professor in the Department of Special Education. She teaches graduate coursework in special education, cultural diversity, augmentative communication and curriculum-based language and communication intervention.
Her area of professional expertise is in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Her areas of research interest include applied educational issues such as multiculturalism, collaborative teaming, inclusive education and professional preparation, as well as more basic areas such as narrative language in AAC, language development through augmented means and the impact of graphic symbol use on language development. She is a frequent speaker at national and international conferences related to communication intervention and special education. She has published numerous articles and book chapters.

Jude Wolf
Faculty Advisor
Mild Moderate Support Needs (MMSN)
Jude Wolf, Ed,D., is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Special Education in the Department of Special Education, mild/moderate disabilities program. Her primary teaching responsibilities include assessment, adolescent literacy, and student teaching. Dr. Wolf is also the coordinator for the Special Education Teacher Performance Assessment (TPA) for the Mild Moderate Support Needs (MMSN). Dr. Wolf's primary research interests include the intersection of Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL), educational neuroscience and executive function skills for students with disabilities, and teacher efficacy / prevention of teacher burnout.
Staff

Steven Macaris
Student Services Specialist
smacaris@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-1271
- Student teaching application & credential exit
- Master’s exam and graduation
- JD Admission and program support
- Intern credential support
- Present at monthly Information Sessions
- Manage department website
- General student inquiries

Jason Madeloso
Student Services Coordinator
jamadeloso@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-1161
- New student graduate admissions (Masters, Credential, Certificates)
- Undergraduate Minor in Special Education admissions and support
- Continuing students petitions and waivers (e.g., Advance to Candidacy, Petition for Culminating Experience, course substitution, 7 Year Limit Extension, Transfer of Units, change of program, express readmission)
- Coordinate recruitment activities and present at monthly Information Sessions
- Continuing student enrollment data
- Conditional admissions and archival data
- Department email account
- General student inquiries

Denise Miyajima
Academic Office Coordinator
dmiya@sfsu.edu | (415) 338-1161
- Course scheduling
- Lecturer Faculty appointments and evaluations
- Purchasing and receiving
- Faculty and student travel
- Grants and honorariums
- Operating and expenses budget
- Trust and U-CORP accounts
- Accreditation support
- Department newsletter
- General office coordination