“Advocating for children with learning difficulties” Susan Donahue of Norwell, MA is named co-chair of the Board of Directors of ResearchILD in Lexington, MA.

DATELINE: LEXINGTON, MA … Taking on a new challenge has become a matter of course for Susan Donahue of Norwell, MA, who has established four non-profit organizations to date. Not surprisingly, as the newest member of ResearchILD’s Board of Directors, she has also been named as the Board’s co-chair.

ResearchILD (The Research Institute for Learning and Development), located in Lexington, MA, is a not-for-profit educational and research organization that develops and disseminates research-based educational strategies to create pathways to success for all learners by conducting cutting-edge research and developing instructional tools that can be used at home and in school.

Donahue is currently the Director of Public Relations/Development for the Talking Information Center Network (TIC), a non-profit reading for the visually impaired and print disabled, where she has served as a board member since 1982. Goal oriented with a flair for fundraising, Donahue is an active member of a number of Boards in the Boston area.

A graduate of Skidmore College, Donahue did her graduate work at Harvard University, and has headed up marketing areas of Bank of Boston, Stop & Shop Companies and Mobil Oil Corporation.

The ResearchILD Board of Directors

Donahue’s co-chair on the ResearchILD Board of Directors, J. Scott Barrie, is Vice President at InterBay Funding LLC in Foxborough, MA, an international small balance commercial real estate lending conduit. Barrie, a resident of Lincoln, MA, also served on the Board of Trustees at The Carroll School in Lincoln Massachusetts where he chaired the Annual Fund for three consecutive years.

Martha Gavin, a long time supporter of Research ILD and ILD, has 25 years of experience consulting in education and learning differences. Her professional experiences range from educational consultant, to Special Education Chair in the Swampscott Public Schools, to Psycho educational specialist at Boston’s Children’s Hospital. A resident of South Hamilton, MA, Gavin has served in various leadership positions on her town school committee, building committee and parent teacher committees.

Leslie Jacques is a former medical writer and editor with 10 years experience in the pharmaceutical advertising and publishing business in NYC. A resident of Wayland, MA, Jacques participates in volunteer activities for her church and for the Wayland Public Schools, where she spearheaded a campaign to start the elementary after-school foreign language program.

Thomas O. Jones is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of EXIT41 in Andover, MA, Jones third start-up business. A seasoned leader and entrepreneur, Jones was a co-founder of Epsilon, which grew to become the nation’s leading database marketing company with over $100 million in annual revenue. Jones, a resident of Andover, MA has also served on the faculty of the Harvard Business School where he taught General Management and Service Management.

Melvin Kutchin is a retired electrical industry executive whose experience lies in the marketing administration portions of industry. Kutchin, a resident of Lexington, MA, has formed and directed numerous companies, and currently serves on several boards of directors in addition to ResearchILD.

Mark Tomizawa, President/CEO of Smash Advertising in Boston, MA has played an integral role in network launches, program image campaigns, brand positioning, and communications planning. Honored by the television industry with numerous awards for advertising and design, Tomizawa is a resident of Brookline, MA.

About ResearchILD
The Research Institute for Learning and Development (ResearchILD) is a not-for-profit educational and research organization, directed by Dr. Lynn Meltzer and Dr. Bethany Roditi, that is dedicated to creating pathways to success for all learners in order to empower students to “learn how to learn”. The goal of ResearchILD is to improve the lives of children, adolescents, and adults with learning and attention differences by conducting cutting-edge research and developing instructional tools that can be used at home and in school.

At ResearchILD, research-based educational strategies for successful learning and effective teaching are developed, evaluated, and promoted through research, program development, dissemination of instructional materials, professional development, and scholarship support for educational services.

For example, some of the learning strategies developed by ResearchILD have been incorporated into the award winning “Brain Cogs: Test-Taking Survival” software, produced in collaboration with FableVision. “Brain Cogs” has won numerous educational awards including Media & Methods Awards Portfolio and District Administrator’s District Choice Award – Top 100 Products of 2002. The software was also chosen as a featured web resource for the PBS special “Misunderstood Minds.”

“Drive to Thrive” is a collaborative program currently in place in the Watertown, MA Public Schools that helps students, especially those with learning and attention difficulties, develop learning strategies that foster effort, persistence and resilience, processes that are more important predictors of life success than IQ or skill level. ResearchILD’s current priorities include the expansion of this initiative once adequate funding is secured.

The Research Institute for Learning and Development is located at 125 Hartwell Avenue
in Lexington, MA 02421. For more information about ResearchILD please visit www.researchild.org, email Elizabeth Cameron at RILD@ildlex.org, or call 781-861-3711.