Dr. Marguerita DeSander, JD, PhD earned her juris doctorate from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing Michigan, and her doctorate of philosophy from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg Virginia. She practiced law for five years in the metropolitan Detroit area, with an emphasis in employment law. Dr. DeSander was the Executive Director for Human resources for Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools and Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources in Lincoln County North Carolina. Prior to joining Western Kentucky University, she was an Assistant Professor of Educational Policy and Leadership at the George Washington University. In 2014, Dr. DeSander joined WKU as the department chair for Educational Administration, Leadership and Research, later merging the department with the School of Professional Studies to create the School of Leadership and Professional Studies. From 2016 – 2022, she served as the principal investigator and program director for the WKU University Principal Preparation Initiative, a $6 million dollar grant funded by the Wallace Foundation.

Dr. Houchens is a Professor in the Department of Educational Administration, Leadership, and Research. He is a former social studies teacher, assistant principal, principal and district administrator, who has served in both public and private school settings. Dr. Houchens joined the WKU faculty in 2010. His research interests focus on the inner lives of school leaders, including the intellectual, emotional, and spiritual aspects of leadership, and how these dimensions influence the practice of school administration. His current research studies focus on theories of practice for instructional leadership and using coaching protocols to enhance principals' self-reflection and self-awareness. Dr. Houchens is also a member of the Rock Solid Evaluation Team, and is actively involved in the team’s current evaluation projects. In 2016, Dr. Houchens was appointed by Governor Matt Bevin to a four-year term on the Kentucky Board of Education. He was also appointed to serve the Kentucky delegation as a member of the Education Commission of the States.

Dr. Redifer is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology, Assistant to the Dean for Research in the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences, and an active member of the Rock Solid Evaluation Team. Her research examines cognitive factors related to student learning and achievement. She earned her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Florida in 2012. Dr. Redifer teaches courses in educational psychology, cognitive psychology, program evaluation, and survey research methods. Prior to joining WKU in 2012, Dr. Redifer was a member of the University of Florida’s Collaborative Assessment and Program Evaluation Services team, conducting quantitative and qualitative evaluations of educational programs and social service organizations.

Dr. Norman is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychology at Western Kentucky University. Dr. Norman’s previous administrative experiences include serving as Director of the Educational Leadership Doctoral Program,  Interim Chair for the Department of Educational Administration, Leadership and Research and Associate Dean for Accountability and Research for the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences. Additionally, he served as Assistant Dean for Assessment and Accountability in the College of Education and Human Services at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia. During his time as faculty, he also accepted responsibilities as Assistant to the Dean for Assessment and as Assessment Coordinator for WKU’s Title II Renaissance Partnership for Improving Teacher Quality Project. Through collaborative relationships with colleagues, Dr. Norman has published over a dozen articles and technical reports, conducted nearly thirty national presentations, served as external evaluator for five U.S. Department of Education funded grants, and served on numerous state and national professional boards and committees. He has worked with others to procure funding for new science and math education programs such as SKyTeach, built on the work of UT-Austin’s UTeach program, and GSKyTeach, a graduate-level teacher residency program in partnership with the highly diverse Jefferson County Public School System in Louisville, Kentucky. Dr. Norman received his bachelor’s and master’s degree at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, and earned his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Virginia in 1990.