Joel R. Arick - Author

Joel R. Arick, Ph.D. is a professor in the Graduate School of Education at Portland State University and serves as the school's primary researcher and lead teacher for several of the doctoral-level classes. Joel has extensive experience in coordinating federal research and training grants focusing on the education of children and youth with severe disabilities.

He is an expert in assessment and inclusive programming for youth with severe disabilities, and currently leads statewide efforts in Oregon for developing assessments for such students that are being used by public school special education teachers to meet statewide standards.

Dr. Arick has served as the research associate for the NCEP and NICP studies and has been instrumental in helping develop and validate various instruments to determine the growth outcomes of campers and students participating in both of these nationwide projects. Joel's leadership in the area of assessment and evaluation for youth with disabilities positively impacts the field at local, state, and national levels.

One of his interests is developing accommodations for children and youth with autism in camps. He has recently completed a book with Phyllis Coyne entitled Supporting Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Recreation.