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Meet Dr. Kardos
Margaret Kardos, Ph.D., OTR/L
“Muncie” became involved in special education over 30 years ago. After becoming an occupational therapist, she worked with many students who required assistive technology. In order to best meet those needs, she went back to school and earned an advanced masters degree in occupational therapy with a concentration in assistive technology. During that time she became interested in the topic of transition planning and conducted research in that area. Following this, she went on to earn a doctorate in special education, focusing on students with disabilities who would require transition programming in order to move on to the adult world. Muncie’s research has been published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy and she has written and contributed to numerous articles on a variety of topics in special education. She has presented at professional conferences locally and nationally, and has served as an expert witness in due process procedures. In addition to working with students with disabilities and consulting to public schools, Muncie has taught graduate courses in assistive technology and special education in Connecticut. She is licensed as an occupational therapist in Connecticut and she held a national certification as a RESNA assistive technology professional (ATP) until 2022 when she retired from providing AT services and now devotes herself entirely to transition planning.
Holistic Approach
We consider the whole student—academic, social, emotional, and vocational needs—to create comprehensive plans that support long-term success.
Collaborative Partnership
We work closely with families, educators, and IEP teams to ensure every evaluation and recommendation is practical, personalized, and effective.
Innovation Hub
Grounded in research and best practices, our services bring fresh strategies and tools to guide students toward meaningful adult outcomes.
What We Do
A Comprehensive Approach
We provide transition services that consider the whole student—academic, social, and vocational needs—while partnering with families and schools to create meaningful, practical plans for the future.
Happy Students
Satisfied
Project Done
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Transition planning evaluations determine the student's present level of performance in the transiton planning areas. This information is necessary to guide appropriate program planning for the student.
All students who are going to remain under the domain of public education beyond the 12th grade need an evaluation to appropriately identify his/her strengths and needs. While this is often done by the student's team, there may not be enough information to determine where the student is presently performing which is necessary to determine realistic long-term outcomes. The following are examples of when an independent transition planning evaluation may be warranted:
- The parent/guardian feels that the current information is not sufficient enough to plan for appropriate long-term outcomes.
- The team determines that outside help/evaluation is needed for them to plan/propose an appropriate program for the student.
- There is a lack of consensus between the team and the parent/guardian regarding the needs of the student and the type of programming that will lead to relevant outcomes.
- There is a lack of consensus between the team and the parent/guardian over whether a student should accept their diploma at the end of 12th grade and exit special education services, or if that student should forego acceptance and continue his/her education to receive transition services.
Every evaluation is individualized and specific to the student's unique profile. It is designed to be a collabarative process and every evaluation will include 3 basic components including parent/guardian/family input, information from school staff who know the student well enough to speak to strengths and needs, and through observation and interaction with the student. Typically parent interview(s) take place virtually along with the completion of several assessments. The student is observed on site (usually school) and evaluated there as well. The student participates to the greatest extent possible (e.g. interview, completion of assessments, etc.) School staff participates through interview and through the completion of assessments as well. This approach leads to the identification of the student's strengths and needs. From that information, recommendations are made for each of the transition planning areas (postsecondary education, postsecondary employment, independent living and community access and participation.)
The answer to this question is "you can't." Under most circumstances I direct parents/guardians to approach the school district and ask that they fund an independent evaluation with me. The reason for this is that I rely heavily on seeing the student in their learning environment and speaking with staff who know the strengths and needs of the student. It makes the evaluation authentic and relevant and eliminates the "but you've never seen him/her in our program" line of thought when it comes to consideration of the recommendations. Private pay referrals are accepted on a case by case basis.
Yes. Trust me. It is.
The evaluation will be scheduled once a financial commitment is in place and records are received. I do not keep a typical waiting list. Once the evaluation begins, it is usually about 6-8 weeks until the report is finalized. That said, it must be understood that there are factors beyond my control that can slow down the process such as late returns on assessments from parents and school staff (#1 problem), the rotating schedule maintained by most high schools (I do not usually want to observe the student in gym or study hall) holidays, vacations, and for those of us living in cold climates, the dreaded snow day.