Kelli Esteves, Ed.D.
Assistant Professor of Education
Phone: (616) 632-2432
E-mail: estevkel@aquinas.edu
Dr. Kelli Esteves is an Assistant Professor in the School of Education and oversees the Learning Disabilities program at Aquinas College. She holds a B.A. from Hope College in Learning Disabilities, an M.A. from Western Michigan University in Visual Impairments, and an Ed.D. in Special Education from Western Michigan University. Before joining the faculty at Aquinas, Dr. Esteves was a special education teacher, teacher consultant, and interim reading specialist in the Rockford Public Schools, where she taught students at the elementary level. She is also a certified teacher consultant for the visually impaired and has worked with preschool through high school students and adults who are blind or have low vision. Her research interests include response to intervention, assessment in special education, and working with struggling readers. She speaks locally and nationally on these topics. In her free time, Dr. Esteves enjoys reading, yoga, and spending time with her family.
Publications
Whitten, E., Esteves, K.J., & Woodrow, A. (2009). RTI Success: Proven Tools and Strategies for Schools and Classrooms. Minneapolis, MN: Free Spirit Publishing Inc.
Esteves, K.J. (2009). Audiobooks and Struggling Readers: Using Audio-Assisted Reading in a Balanced Literacy Program [book based on dissertation study]. Saarbrucken, Germany: VDM Publishing House.
Esteves, K. J. & Rao, S. (2008). The evolution of special education. Principal, 88(2), web exclusive.
Selected Presentations
Esteves, K.J. & Whitten, E. (February, 2009). RTI: Changing the Way Teachers Teach and Schools Think!, Association of Teachers Educators Annual Meeting, Dallas, Texas.
Esteves, K.J. (January, 2009). Working with Students who have Learning Difficulties. Presentation given at the Kids Hope USA Annual Mentor Conference, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Esteves, K.J. (March, 2008). Differentiating Reading Instruction with Audiobooks and MP3 Players. Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning Annual Conference, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Esteves, K.J. (May, 2007). Audio-assisted Reading with Audiobooks. International Reading Association Annual Conference – Ticketed Session, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Esteves, K.J. (March, 2007). Motivating Struggling Readers during SSR. Michigan Reading Association Annual Conference, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Esteves, K.J. (February, 2007). Maximizing Instructional Time for Struggling Readers: Audio-assisted Reading in the Elementary Classroom. Council for Exceptional Children, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and Learning Disabilities Association Tri-Collegiate Student Conference, Aquinas College, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Esteves, K.J. (March, 2006). Effective Partnerships with Paraprofessionals. Michigan Council for Exceptional Children Annual Conference, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Esteves, K.J. & Goethal, M.J. (October, 2006). Communication Strategies for Effective School-wide Collaboration. Presentation given at a school-wide inservice, Ottawa Area Center, Zeeland, Michigan.
Esteves, K.J. (November, 2005). Making Data-Driven Decisions with Technological Support. Teacher Educators for Children with Behavior Disorders Annual Conference, Tempe, Arizona.
