Dr. Melanie Reese joined CADRE as Director in October 2017. Prior to that, Melanie was the Idaho Department of Education's Dispute Resolution Coordinator for Special Education since 2010. In that time, she helped grow Idaho’s facilitation program into a thriving and valuable option for Idaho’s districts and parents. Additionally, she oversaw the state's mediation, state complaint and due process hearing processes. In this role she worked closely with Idaho's Parent Training and Information Center and Local Educational Agencies to build relationships to serve children with disabilities.
As professor emeritus (Boise State University, 2009), Melanie remains active in the academic community. The co-author of two successful textbooks (Personal Conflict Management: Theory and Practice, 2nd edition, and Mediation Theory and Practice, 3rd edition), Melanie sits on the Boise State University’s Dispute Resolution Graduate Advisory Board and is a member of their graduate teaching faculty. Prior to joining CADRE, Dr. Reese served on their National Advisory Board.
In addition to her career as a university professor, her past work includes serving on the Executive Board of the Idaho Mediation Association, practicing as a professional mediator since 1990, and being a college ombudsman. She is regularly called to present on dispute resolution issues in special education, conflict management, alternative dispute resolution processes, and hot topics in special education. Additionally, Melanie has consulted for numerous organizations to improve their communication processes.
Get to know Melanie:
Watch Marshall Peter, CADRE's founder, interview Melanie for the 2015 Voices from the Field series.