Heidi O’Leary has worked with students with disabilities for over 28 years. First, as an educational technician, a special education teacher, and she is currently the Director of Special Education for MSAD 75 in Maine. What’s more, she works as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Maine at Farmington, where she teaches “Transition for Youth with Disabilities from High School to Adult Life” and “Curriculum and Instruction for Special Education Teachers.”
Heidi’s expertise is in the area of working with students with disabilities. These disabilities include: Autism/Asperger’s, ADD/ADHD, emotional/behavior disorders, learning disabilities, and intellectually disabled. Heidi has consulted with other professionals about reducing physical restraints in schools. Her primary goal is to reduce the use of physical restraints while maintaining the safety and security of educators, students, and others.
Heidi has a strong connection to law enforcement. She not only grew up in a family of police officers, but she married her husband Shawn, who recently retired from law enforcement after 36 years, retiring as Chief of Police. Her brother Adam also retired from law enforcement after serving 25 years, and her other brother, Erik, who recently retired from Maine State Police, where he has spent the last 25 years, now the Chief of Police in Sabattus.