Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System for Infants and Children (AEPS®), Curriculum for Birth to Three Years

Dr. Bricker served as Director of the Early Intervention Program at the Center on Human Development, University of Oregon, from 1978 to 2004. She was a professor of special education, focusing on the fields of early intervention and social-communication.

Her professional interests have addressed three major areas: early intervention service delivery approaches, curricula-based assessment and evaluation, and developmental-behavioral screening. Dr. Bricker's work in early intervention approaches has been summarized in two volumes: An Activity-Based Approach to Early Intervention, Fourth Edition (with J. Johnson & N. Rahn; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2015) and An Activity-Based Approach to Developing Young Children’s Social Emotional Competence (with J. Squires; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2007). Her work in curricula-based assessment/evaluation has focused on the development of the Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System for Infants and Children, Second Edition (AEPS®; with B. Capt, K. Pretti- Frontczak, J. Johnson, K. Slentz, E. Straka, & M Waddell; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2004). This measure and curricula provides intervention personnel with a system for the comprehensive assessment of young children with results that link directly to curricular content and subsequent evaluation of child progress.

Dr. Bricker has been a primary author of the Ages & Stages Questionnaires® (ASQ®; with J. Squires; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 1995, 1999, 2009) and directed research activities on the ASQ system starting in 1980. Developmental Screening in Your Community: An Integrated Approach for Connecting Children with Services (Bricker, Macy, Squires, & Marks; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2013) offers a comprehensive system for creating and operating community-wide developmental-behavioral screening programs for young children.

Dr. Bricker's distinctions include the Division of Early Childhood, Council for Exceptional Children Service to the Field Award, December 1992, and the Peabody College Distinguished Alumna Award, May 1995.

Misti Waddell is Senior Research Assistant/Project Coordinator at the Early Intervention Program at the University of Oregon. She used the Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System for Infants and Children (AEPS) in classroom settings early in her career and, since the early 1990s, contributed to the development and research of the second edition of AEPS (2002), including project coordination for several field-initiated research and outreach training projects. Most recently, Ms. Waddell served as coordinator for the field testing of AEPS-3.

Her professional activities in curriculum-based assessment also focus on the social-emotional development of young children. She coordinated the research study Project SEAM: Preventing Behavior Disorders and Improving Social Emotional Competence in Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities to examine the psychometric properties of the Social-Emotional Assessment/Evaluation Measure, Research Edition (SEAM™) (with J. Squires, D. Bricker, K. Funk, J. Clifford, & R. Hoselton; Brookes Publishing Co., 2014). She is currently part of the development team and serves as project coordinator for Project SELECT: Social-Emotional Learning in Early Childhood for Infants and Toddlers, a federally funded project to develop the curricular component of SEAM.

Ms. Waddell provides training for early childhood teachers, interventionists, and parents in developmental and social-emotional screening, assessment, and intervention, including AEPS, SEAM, Ages & Stages Questionnaires®, Third Edition (ASQ®-3), and Ages & Stages Questionnaires®: Social-Emotional, Second Edition (ASQ®:SE-2).

Dr. Johnson is Emeritus Professor in Child and Family Studies at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, where she retired from providing professional development education in early childhood education, early intervention, and early childhood special education. She completed her undergraduate degree in special education and elementary education at the University of Idaho and her master’s and doctoral degrees in early intervention at the University of Oregon under the advisement of Dr. Diane Bricker.

Dr. Johnson has worked at University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities in Louisiana, Oregon, and Nevada as Program Coordinator, Teacher, Service Coordinator, Grant and Contract Administrator, Director, Principal Investigator, and Instructor. She served as Director of the Research and Educational Planning Center and the Nevada University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities from 2001 to 2008, where she developed and administered lifespan programs, services, and supports for individuals with disabilities and their families.

Her professional experiences encompass all service settings for young children, including neonatal intensive care units, pediatric intensive care units, well-baby clinics, home- and center-based programs for infants and young children (including Head Start and Early Head Start), nursing homes, supported employment, transition programs, special education schools, and university lab school programs. Much of her professional career has focused on developing and refining assessment and curriculum systems to support the provision of services, interventions, and teaching for young children with disabilities, birth to age 6, and their families. Dr. Johnson is author, developer, and trainer of An Activity-Based Approach to Early Intervention, Fourth Edition (with N. Rahn & D. Bricker; Brookes Publishing Co., 2015), and the Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System for Infants and Children (AEPS; Brookes Publishing Co., 2002, 2022) and has been involved with the system since her days as a graduate student at the University of Oregon. In her spare time, Dr. Johnson likes to read, work on home projects, observe and interact with young children, and support human and animal rights.

Dr. Kristie Pretti-Frontczak is a highly sought-after speaker, accomplished author, and educators’ educator. With nearly three decades of educational experience, Kristie cultivates real change within educational systems. She instills an impressive sense of joy, humor, and fun in creating inclusive educational practices and empowering teachers and leaders to spread wellness both in and beyond the classroom walls. Along with Dr. Julie Causton, at Inclusive Schooling, Kristie designs and delivers transformative professional development that addresses and supports the wholeness of the adult professional and helps leaders create school cultures that ensure all children experience a sense of belonging. Kristie spent 16 years, as faculty, at Kent State University and has published extensively in peer-referenced journals and is an author of over 10 books and monographs. Since 2013 she has followed her true passion, which is supporting adult learners. As a result, she has accumulated over 50,000 hours of helping educators and leaders work from a place of compassion, hope, and love in locations from Cincinnati to Singapore. She currently resides in Northeastern Ohio. You can learn more about Kristie and Inclusive Schooling at www.inclusiveschooling.com.

Dr. Slentz began her career in early intervention and early childhood special education with home visiting and classroom teaching with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers and progressed to directing a regional home-based early intervention program in Montana. For decades, she was involved in preservice preparation of early interventionists and early childhood special educators at University of Oregon and Western Washington University. She also provided technical assistance and program development for Part C in Washington. She is currently Professor Emeritus in the Department of Special Education at Western Washington University.

Dr. Slentz’s involvement with AEPS began with the earliest versions of the system and continues today, including development, consultation, research, and training. Her particular areas of interest and expertise are assessment and evaluation, infant development, early intervention, and working within family contexts across cultures. She has been fortunate to combine her love of travel with international training and consultation opportunities in Canada, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Kenya.

Elizabeth Straka, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, provides training and technical assistance to agencies that provide services to young children with disabilities and their families. She also provides training seminars nationally in regard to recommended practice in assessment and intervention with young children and their families, with an emphasis on team collaboration. Dr. Straka continues to practice as a therapist, focusing on the assessment and treatment of developmental disorders in young children.