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Theresa Armstrong

“Everyone has a defining moment. Mine came in the Spring of 1990, the day I was recruited by the Brain Injury Association of Virginia (BIAV), to work at their summer camp. Although I knew nothing about camp, or counseling, even less about traumatic brain injury when I drove up to five rustic old cabins in a woodsy setting south of Richmond, the 24 amazing women survivors I met, lived, laughed, and learned from those three weeks in May unknowingly defined the next 27 years of my career.”

Theresa is the former Coordinator of Brain Injury Teacher Preparation Program in the Graduate School of Education and Human Development (GSEHD) at the George Washington University (2010-2017). Currently a clinical professor at Arizona State University, she has taught disability courses to pre-service teachers at George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University, and Coastal Carolina University. She is a Certified Brain Injury Specialist Trainer (CBIST). Dr. Armstrong has published numerous articles on children and adolescents with traumatic brain injuries, including a qualitative study on Novice Teachers’ and their professional development, instructional practices, and teacher efficacy, relating to children with traumatic brain injury (2017).

As a special educator, case manager, and intervention specialist, Theresa has worked with children with Acquired Brain Injuries of all ages. She has developed and directed transition programs for adolescents with disabilities and consulted with school and community-based programs for children and young adults in Virginia, North Carolina, and Arizona. Theresa is a former President of the Board of Directors for the Arizona Brain Injury Association (2004-2007) and ICON Employment Services in Virginia—a supported employment provider to individuals with TBI for over 25 years. Theresa served on the Virginia State Rehabilitation Council. She also provided capacity building technical assistance to federal grantees under the TBI Act.