Adult Learning and Education Consultants: 4

Dr. Joseph S. Schwartzberg, is an Educational Consultant / Expert Witness who provides consultation and testimony on cases involving students with disabilities.

Dr. Schwartzberg was responsible for developing and administering legally compliant special education programs for the 14 districts of North San Diego County. For 13 years, he served as the Senior Director of the North Coastal Consortium for Special Education for the San Diego County Office of Education. For the 7 years prior, he was the Division Director for the Southern Westchester, NY, Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES).

Litigation Support - Dr. Schwartzberg is experienced and skilled at deposition and trial testimony in state and federal court, broad knowledge and expertise in several areas, including but not limited to the following: matters related to the appropriate programming / services for children with disabilities, standards of care and school district responsibilities, child abuse and mandated reporter responsibilities,school safety, other agency services and responsibilities, plaintiff and defendant responsibilities, family court, civil court and administrative hearings, alternative dispute resolution. 

Areas of Expertise:

• IDEA
• Inclusion
• Mainstreaming
• Standards of Care
• Other Agency Responsibilities
• Non-public Schools
• Appropriate Programming for Students with Disabilities

View Dr. Schwartzberg's Expert Witness Profile.

Brian L. Landers has 20 years of Law Enforcement experience, as well as over 25 years in Law Enforcement Training and Education, including experience as a police and jail academy director and a full-time criminal justice professor.

Mr. Landers holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration, a Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice, and is pursuing his PhD in Forensic Psychology at Walden University. He also holds multiple certifications as a Master Trainer for law enforcement topics and use of force. 

 Mr. Landers frequently serves as a media consultant on police and criminal justice issues for ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox News affiliates. He was elected to three terms on the Columbia County Board of Supervisors (WI) and three terms as Mayor of the City of Wisconsin Dells. His trusted knowledge and experience have been recognized by those he has served in all capacities, and his expansive background has propelled him to be an incredibly reliable, trustworthy, and confident consultant.

A full-time educator and trainer, Mr. Landers' services include:

Consulting - Performance and Personnel Evaluations

Research - Use of Force Concepts, Training Guidance, and Policy Revisions

Training - Use of Force Concepts, Policy Training, and Training Curriculum Services

View Brian L. Landers' Expert Witness Profile.

A Special Education expert for five decades, Dr. Steven C. Imber served as a professor of special education from 1973 2021. He serves as a special education advocate, consultant to attorneys, parents and schools. He has conducted more than 600 independent educational evaluations.

Education:

• B.S. Psychology (High Honors) State University of New York at Buffalo
• Doctoral Studies, Clinical Psychology, University of Connecticut
• M.A. from the Department of Educational Psychology (Special Education - Learning Disabilities), University of Connecticut (Kappa Delta Phi)
• Ph.D. from the Department of Educational Psychology (Special Education -Emotional Disturbance (High Honors)

As a special education expert, Dr. Imber has worked on cases with children, adolescents and adults with a broad array of disabilities. He provides professional advocacy and consultation for children with the following disabilities:

• Autism Disorders
• Attention Deficit Disorders
• Emotional and Behavioral Disorders
• Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Intellectual Disabilities (Cognitive Deficits)
• Learning Disabilities
• Other Disabilities and Disorders

Areas of Expertise:

• Criminal Defense of Individuals with Disabilities – competence to stand trial and comprehension of Miranda Warning Rights
• Family Custody Matters involving Disputes regarding matters of Education and Special Education
• School Safety
• Special Education Regulations and Law
• Wrongful Death

Dr. Imber has been involved in cases from the following states: Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia. 

Depositions and Direct Testimony
Dr. Imber has testified in federal court, various district courts, superior court, family and probate court and in numerous due process hearings since 1975.

Below are listed recent cases in which Dr. Imber provided testimony during depositions or directly in various court matters:

• October 21, 2021, Family Court: State of Hawaii, Plaintiff
• October 19, 2021, Hancock County Circuit Court, West Virginia Criminal Action, Defendant
• September 29, 2021, Chicago Public  Schools Cook County, Defendant
• July 6, 2021, Worcester County Probate and Family Court, Plaintiff
• August 10, 2021, Springfield District Court, Defendant
• May – June 2019, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Division of Administrative Law Appeals, Bureau of Special Education Appeals BSEA, Plaintiff

Additional Accomplishments

• Published several articles in national and international journals within the fields of special education and psychology
• Presented at several local, state, regional, national and international conferences and meetings

Dr. Imber's CV is available upon request.

Hastak Consulting Services is a Construction Engineering and Management firm established by Prof. Makarand (Mark) Hastak, PhD, PE, CCP, CRIS, Professor and the Dernlan Family Head of Construction Engineering and Management as well as Professor of Civil Engineering at Purdue University. Dr. Hastak offers consulting services to clients around the world in the following areas:

• Project Controls and Risk Management
• Process Improvement of Capital Projects
• Profitability Improvement and Construction Analytics
• Process Improvement for Factory Built Housing
• Capital Rehabilitation Planning
• Strategic planning and decision-making for resolving project complexities
• Planning for Disaster Mitigation, Resilience, and Capacity Building

Dr. Hastak has been involved with the construction industry for the past 35 years providing his expertise through consulting, research, teaching, and service to the industry. He is a world renowned expert in the area of construction engineering and management including process improvement, disaster risk reduction, resilience and capacity building, infrastructure management, factory built housing, intelligent planning for the built environment, project control, project management decision-making, risk management, contracts and warranties, and strategic planning.

Dr. Hastak is a Professional Engineer (PE), a Construction Risk Insurance Specialist (CRIS), and a Certified Cost Professional (CCP). Dr. Hastak has given over 50 keynotes and invited lectures around the world. As a prominent educator, he also engages in developing training material and workshops as well as regularly teaching professional courses for the A/E/C industry. He has completed the 30-Hour OSHA Hazard Recognition Training for the Construction Industry. His services include consultation, on-site investigation, data collection, assessment,and reporting.

Dr. Hastak Lectures at the 2015 International Conference on Building Resilience

Prof. Hastak has worked on numerous projects sponsored by the Construction Industry Institute (CII), NSF, State DOTs, and City Agencies. He has authored over 200 publications on process improvement, project controls, capital rehabilitation planning, strategic planning, and decision-making. He has co-authored a widely used book on Infrastructure Planning, Engineering, and Economics (McGraw-Hill 2006 and 2015). 

Dr. Hastak is the current President of CIB (International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction), He is also the academic Advisor to the Downstream and Chemicals Committee of the Construction Industry Institute (CII) and serves as the Chair of the Advisory Board of the Global Leadership Forum for Construction Engineering and Management programs (GLF-CEM). He served on the Education Board of the Association for Advancement of Cost Engineering (2004-2016). He was Editor for two AACE books, the Skills and Knowledge of Cost Engineering (6th Ed. 2015) and the CCP Certification Study Guide (2nd Ed. 2016). He was also the Editor-in-Chief of the ASCE Journal of Management in Engineering (2009-2016).

View Dr. Hastak's Expert Witness Profile.