Our Team

Robert Vogel, Ed.D.

Founder/Director - Writers Matter
vogel@lasalle.edu

Professor Emeritus, La Salle University

  • I have recently retired from full-time teaching after 43 years at La Salle University and currently serve as Professor Emeritus of Education. I am the Founding Director of Writers Matter in Philadelphia and Israel and founding Co-Director of Leadership and Global Understanding at La Salle University. I earned my doctorate from Temple University in Educational Psychology and Organizational Development and taught three years for the School District of Philadelphia.

    I have co-authored numerous articles and co-authored "Methods of Teaching: Applying Cognitive Science to Promote Student Learning (Feden & Vogel) - McGraw-Hill, 2006; Voices of Teens: Writers Matter (Vogel & Galbraith). National Middle School Association, 2008; Empowering Young Writers: The Writers Matter Approach (Yost, Vogel and Lewinski). Temple University Press, 2014; and Writers Matter: Empowering Voices of Israeli and Palestinian Teens -Cultural Narrative Building through Writing (Vogel & Adwan). 2016

The Writers Matter team is comprised of a group of professionals from a wide range of schools and educational backgrounds. On this page, you will find information on each team member, including a short bio, their contact information, and the name of their home institutions.

Kimberly Lewinski, Ph.D.

Director - Writers Matter
lewinski@lasalle.edu

Associate Professor, La Salle University

  • I am an Associate Professor of Education at La Salle University and the Director of the Writers Matter Program. I earned my Ph.D. and M.Ed. from the University of Virginia in Curriculum and Instruction and Reading respectively. As a graduate student at UVA, I served on a Writing Across the Curriculum research team for three years and was an instructor of literacy courses at James Madison University. Prior to this, I taught for seven years at the elementary level. I earned my B.A. in Elementary Education from The Catholic University of America.

    I have co-authored numerous articles and co-authored Empowering Young Writers: The Writers Matter Approach (Yost, Vogel and Lewinski). Temple University Press. Active in the literacy field, I am a member of many national and local literacy agencies including National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), International Literacy Association (ILA), Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), Association of Literacy Educators and Researchers (ALER) and Keystone State Literacy Association (KSLA).

Trent McLaurin, Ph.D.

Consultant - Writers Matter
mclaurin@lasalle.edu

Associate Professor, La Salle University

  • Dr. Trent McLaurin has worked as a teacher, case manager, behavioral specialist, ABA therapist and director of special education. His practical experience combined with his work as a researcher and professor help him blend the practical and theoretical gap that often eludes our schools, homes and communities.

    Dr. McLaurin cites his passion for providing strong supports for all students especially marginalized youth and ending the school-to-prison pipeline as motivating factors for his work. He sees the need for educators to be professionally trained by someone from outside their school community who understands education and mental health. His combination of practical and theoretical experience as an educator and researcher drives his desire to provide support that is accessible for front-line educators, families and community providers.

Board of Directors

Robert Vogel, Ed.D.
Executive Director, Writers Matter
Professor Emeritus, LaSalle University

Kimberly Lewinski, Ph.D.  
Director of Writers Matter
Associate Professor at La Salle University

Alan E. Casnoff – Esquire
Partner, P&A Associates

Sister Edward William Quinn, I.H.M.
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

Katie Dunphy
Special Assistant to the CEO of Community Behavioral Health

Ralph A. Burnley, Ed.D.
CEO of The Burnley Educational Group, LLC 
Retired Associate Superintendent – School District of Philadelphia

Michael Farrell
Chief Learning Officer, School District of Philadelphia
Neubauer Fellow

Penny Nixon, Ed.D
Superintendent of Schools and Chief Executive Officer for Universal Education Companies.
Past chief academic officer; associate superintendent; regional superintendent; principal; academic coach; and teacher for the School District of Philadelphia.

Steve Downs
Serves as Marketing and Branding specialist for Writers Matter
Retired teacher – Council Rock School District
Retired - V.P. Marketing for the United States - Rhone- Poulenc     
Retired -Director of Business Development for Omnicare Pharmaceutics.

Donors

PTS Foundation – Tony and Pam Schneider

Kessler Family Foundation – Howard and Michele Kessler

Jeff and Dana Berstein

Mari Shaw – Bernice, Mari, Zack, Solomon Fund

Alan and Debbie Casnoff

Steve and Barbara Shotz

Howard and Phyllis Fischer