Dr. Derek Ihori
Dr. Derek Ihori is a co-founder and operator of FAPE Consulting. Dr. Ihori has approximately 18 years of experience in the field of special education, including nearly 14 years as a special education administrator.
As an administrator, Dr. Ihori has held positions as an Executive Director of Special Education & Psychological Services, a Director of Pupil Services, and as a Program Specialist. In addition, Dr. Ihori is a former school psychologist and has assessed hundreds of students for various disabilities.
Dr. Ihori's primary areas of expertise are the application of case law to the real-world setting, evaluating and providing feedback regarding the quality of special education assessments and IEP documents, program improvement, behavior intervention, and special education compliance. In addition, Dr. Ihori has extensive experience handling due process complaints and has advanced training in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and mediation.
Dr. Ihori earned his doctorate in educational leadership with a concentration in educational psychology from the University of Southern California (USC), his master's degree in counseling with a specialization in school psychology from California State University, Northridge (CSUN), and his bachelor's degree in psychology and social behavior from the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Dr. Ihori has also completed 40 hours of advanced training in mediation through the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution within Pepperdine University's Caruso School of Law. Additionally, Dr. Ihori is certified by the Crisis Prevention Institute as a Nonviolent Crisis Intervention instructor.
In addition to his practical experience, Dr. Ihori is a national professional development presenter and is the co-author of several books, newsletters, and professional articles. He can be reached directly at dihori@fapeconsulting.com
Dr. Alexia Melara
Dr. Alexia Melara is a co-founder and operator of FAPE Consulting. Dr. Melara has 17 years of experience as a bilingual (Spanish/English) school psychologist and has assessed over a thousand students with various disabilities. She has extensive experience assessing, servicing, and developing programs for students with autism, emotional disturbances, learning disabilities, and intellectual disabilities.
Dr. Melara earned her doctorate in educational leadership with a concentration in educational psychology from the University of Southern California (USC), her master's degree in counseling with a specialization in school psychology from California State University, Northridge (CSUN), and her bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Dr. Melara is the co-author of several books covering topics including IEP development, executive functioning interventions, and leadership in special education. She can be reached directly at amelara@fapeconsulting.com
National/State/County/SELPA Presentations
Ihori, D. (2024). Building better behavior intervention plans. [Workshop]. Foothill SELPA, La Cañada, CA.
Ihori, D. (2023). Special considerations in assessment and IEP development. [Workshop]. Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District, Norwalk, CA.
Ihori, D. (2023). Analyze this! Conducting thorough assessments, writing reports, and developing IEPs. [Workshop]. Foothill SELPA, La Cañada, CA.
Ihori, D. (2023). Leadership essentials: Supporting staff in complex meetings. [Webinar]. North Coastal Consortium for Special Education, San Marcos, CA.
Ihori, D. (2023). From the assessment report to the offer of FAPE: Data, decisions, and documentation. [Webinar]. Texas Region 4 Education Service Center, Houston, TX.
Ihori, D. (2023). When mindfulness didn't work: Evaluating your options and documenting responses to intense disagreements [Conference session]. LRP's National Institute on Legal Issues of Educating Individuals With Disabilities, New Orleans, LA.
Ihori, D., Coates, V., Murphy, J., Padilla, L., & Soltau, A. (2023). Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) through the lens of universal design for learning (UDL) [Panel presentation]. Webinar hosted by the California Coalition for Inclusive Literacy (CCIL).
Ihori, D. (2023). From suspected disabilities to placement/services: It all starts with the assessment report. [Workshop]. Southern California Special Education Administrators (SoCalSEA), El Monte, CA.
Ihori, D. (2023). Multitasking under pressure: Resolving conflicts while taking meeting notes. [Webinar]. Los Angeles Unified School District Charter Operated Programs, Los Angeles, CA.
Ihori, D. (2023). Put it in Writing: Best practices for compliant IEPs supported by detailed meeting notes. [Webinar]. LRP Publications' Educational Webinars.
Ihori, D. & Warsofsky, A. (2023). Helping your children manage feelings of anxiety. [Webinar]. Foothill SELPA Community Advisory Committee, Glendale, CA.
Ihori, D. (2022). From suspected disabilities to placement/services: It all starts with the assessment report. [Workshop]. Ventura County SELPA, Camarillo, CA.
Ihori, D. (2022). It's more than just eligibility: Using comprehensive assessments to drive the IEP. [Conference session]. LRP’s National Institute on Legal Issues of Educating Individuals With Disabilities, Louisville, KY.
Ihori, D. & Klein, J. (2021). Post-pandemic SpEd tech: Capitalizing on reduced technophobia [Conference session]. Pacific Northwest Institute on Special Education and the Law, Seattle, WA.
Ihori, D. (2021). IEP Tricks of the trade: Meeting legal requirements with real-world practices [Conference session]. LRP's National Institute on Legal Issues of Educating Individuals with Disabilities, Phoenix, AZ.
Ihori, D. (2021). Best practices in reopening after the COVID-19 school closures [Webinar]. Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE), Los Angeles, CA.
Ihori, D. (2020). Leadership in special education: Relationships, problem- solving, and conflict resolution. [Conference session]. LRP's National Institute on Legal Issues of Educating Individuals with Disabilities, New Orleans, LA.
Ihori, D. & Falk, A. (2018). Developing defensible speech-language assessments, reports, and IEPs [Workshop]. Ventura County SELPA, Camarillo, CA.
Ihori, D. (2018). You be the judge: A review of case law [Workshop]. Ventura County SELPA, Camarillo, CA.
Ihori, D. (2013-2018). Tricks of the trade: Putting legal requirements into practice [Workshop]. Workshop presented annually for the Ventura County SELPA, Camarillo, CA.
Ihori, D. & Klein, J. (2017). Special education technology: Using Google Apps to assist students, manage staff and monitor caseloads [Conference session]. Future of Education Technology National Conference, Orlando, FL.
Ihori, D. & Klein, J. (2017). How technology and special education departments must collaborate to meet student and staff needs [Conference session]. Future of Education Technology National Conference, Orlando, FL.
Ihori, D. (2015-2016). Introduction to school-based counseling [Workshop presentation]. Ventura County SELPA, Camarillo, CA.
Publications
Ihori, D. (in press). Executive summary: What governing school board members need to know about special education. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2022). The special education assessment process and report writing - From start to finish. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2022). Updated: Addressing students’ executive functioning deficits to meet core state standards. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2019). Key principles for district administrators. Leadership in special education: Fostering collaboration, solving problems, and being an agent of change. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2019). Key principles for school administrators. Leadership in special education: Fostering collaboration, solving problems, and being an agent of change. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2019). Key principles for school staff. Leadership in special education: Fostering collaboration, solving problems, and being an agent of change. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2018). Updated for the Supreme Court’s Endrew F. decision: Your big picture, real life guide to the entire IEP process. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2016). Your big picture, real life guide to the entire IEP process. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Melara, A. (2015). Addressing students’ executive functioning deficits to meet core state standards. Horsham, PA: LRP Publications.
Ihori, D. & Olvera, P. (2015). Discrepancies, responses, and patterns: Selecting a method of assessment for specific learning disabilities. Contemporary School Psychology, 19(1), 1-11.
Ihori, D. (2012-2014). FAPE Monthly: Ventura County SELPA professional development newsletter. Camarillo, CA: Ventura County SELPA.
Ihori, D. (2010). Parents, protocols, and privacy: Where FERPA and copyright law meet. CASP Today: Quarterly Newsletter of the California Association of School Psychologists, 60(3), 7.
Ihori, D. (2010). FAQs regarding emotional disturbance. CASP Today: Quarterly Newsletter of the California Association of School Psychologists, 60(2), 13.
Ihori, D. (2010). How might our IEPs be judged? CASP Today: Quarterly Newsletter of the California Association of School Psychologists, 60(1), 14-15.