Personal/Professional Development Consultants: 6

Virginia Rhodes, EdD has over 35 years experience in Urban School District Policy, School Development, Administration and Teaching. Dr. Rhodes' specialties include persistently failing city schools, new school start-ups, intentional school design 

Consulting Focus:

• District and individual school strategy for equity
• Replacing factory model district & school structures with highly engaging models
• Replacing punitive discipline with developmental systems
• *STEM start-ups and environmental school design 
• Innovative teacher hiring, and teacher-led school models, including in districts with collective bargaining
• Replacing toxic district or school culture with human-friendly models
• Effective school security and safety--beyond electronics to the human side
• Collaborating with community grassroots organizing partners

Background - Dr. Rhodes has provided consulting services to an international firm on certain aspects of U.S. public school practices prior to their exploration of a related market sector. She acted as a consultant to the University of Cincinnati Career Center assisting in the development of pre-service teacher hiring expectations. Dr. Rhodes was retained by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center to co-investigate a study for mental health and achievement factors related to excessive student mobility. 

As a consultant on AdvancedEd School Accreditation Teams, she has evaluated high school performance. Dr. Rhodes has researched and written numerous articles on school mobility, achievement, culture, and STEM (NSF). She has conducted numerous training workshops and spoken on urban school district policy and other related topics to various community groups and national educational organizations.

View Dr. Rhodes' Expert Witness Profile.

Parallax Education is an Organization Development firm specializing in the Prevention of Employment Harassment, Discrimination, and Retaliation. They offer highly-specialized, distinctly effective, and specifically designed training to provide breakthroughs for teams and entire organizations

Parallax has consulted with numerous Fortune 500 companies, including American Express, ARCO, Sizzler Int’l, First Interstate Bank, Exxon, Jack-in-the Box, Washington Mutual Bank, Ritz Carlton Hotels, Goodyear Tire & Rubber, RAND Corporation, MCA/Universal Studios, MTA, and Motown Record Company. 

Web-Based Training

Instructor Led Training

Monica Ballard, President of Parallax Education, is an Organizational Development Consultant with 25 years of experience specializing in the Prevention of Harassment, Discrimination, and Retaliation. She has trained over 500 Human Resources professionals in conducting investigations and trained over 10,000 persons on the subjects of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation.

Monica has written over 20 workbooks and produced 4 web-based training programs on the prevention of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation  She has written 4 workbooks on Conducting Effective Investigations. She has been Interviewed on CBS News, CNN, and Fox News, and featured in newspapers including the WSJ, LA Times (8 times), US News & World Report, Time Magazine, Chicago Tribune, Miami Herald, New York Times, and others. 

View Monica Ballard's Expert Witness Profile.

Michael T. Motley, Ph.D. has over thirty-five years of experience in the field of Communication, with specialization in the areas of public-speaking anxiety (stage fright), interpersonal communication, meaning, and psycholinguistics. He has developed an approach to reducing public-speaking stage fright that has been proven in several clinical trials to be the most effective therapy available. The method is successful in about 95% of severe cases and 85% of moderate cases. Dr. Motley is a Professor of Communication with the University of California at Davis. He has authored almost 200 books, articles, and research papers in communication and psycholinguistics. He has won eighteen excellence awards for his research and was recognized as among the "Top 1%" of communication scholars of the 1970's, 1980's, and 1990's. Areas of Expertise:

• Stage Fright Reduction
• Interpersonal Communication Skills
• Male / Female Misunderstandings
• Communication of Sexual Consent

Services Offered:

• Consultation and Advice in Above Areas
• Therapy for Public-Speaking Anxiety (Stage Fright)

View Expert Witness Profile.

Centennial Advisory Group is a boutique consulting firm specializing in Investment Management and Financial Services. They are a member of the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches and hold the Certified Professional Resume Writer designation. Their goal is to enhance the career success and earnings potential of investment industry executives.

Services:

Frank Carr is a Certified Professional Resume Writer, a former Hedge Fund Chief Financial Officer, a Corporate Banker, and a 20-year executive search veteran for the Financial Services and Investment Management industries. Mr. Carr has advised thousands of junior, mid-level and senior executives on how to position and maximize their careers within the financial world. With over 4,800 investment industry connections on Linked In, his reach throughout the financial services world is extensive. He has written articles for and has been frequently quoted by publications such as Bloomberg News, CNN Money, Fund Fire, Ignites, Absolute Return, Hedge Fund Alert, and Hedge Fund Manager Week. Prior to forming Centennial, Mr. Carr had been a Managing Director in the Global Asset Management practice at A.T. Kearney Executive Search, a top 10 U.S. search firm. He began his search career at LAI Ward Howell which was later acquired by TMP Worldwide (owners of Monster.com). 

Prior to entering executive search, Mr. Carr was Chief Financial Officer of a Connecticut-based equity long-short hedge fund. He managed investor relations, accounting, and compliance, including registration with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Frank had spent eight years in commercial bank lending, initially with Citibank in their Wall Street Commodities division and later was a banker to the feature film and TV industries.

View Frank Carr's Expert Witness Profile.

Aaron T. Olson of A.T. Olson Consulting, LLC., specializes as an expert in police practices and human resources lawsuits. His knowledge and skills come from a career in law enforcement, former human resources investigator, being an expert witness on criminal and civil cases, private investigator, adjunct professor, author and trainer. 

Background Experience: Mr. Olson has 26 years of police experience with management assignments in communications, recruitment, and patrol. He supervised and evaluated both police and non-police employees. He was a member of the OSP Procedures and Rules Advisory Committee and worked with Oregon's Department of Justice in rewriting and validating OSP's trooper and cadet applicant hiring process. 

As a patrol supervisor, Mr. Olson directed major crime scenes and traffic fatalities investigations. He reviewed and approved administrative, police, and use of force reports. Mr. Olson also investigated allegations of police officer misconduct, conducted background checks, and participated in specialized tasks in community policing, dignitary protection with the U.S. Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies. 

Mr. Olson is a former human resources investigator with Local Government Personnel Institute, Salem, OR. He conducted background and misconduct investigations on city and county employees and city and county elected officials, as well as department directors. The misconduct investigations included sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation and hostile work environments. He wrote the investigative reports and made the findings of facts on all misconduct allegations.

Expert Witness: Mr. Olson has experience as an expert on cases involving police misconduct, police procedures, police use of force, police pursuits, wrongful death, personal injury, citizen use of force, murder, manslaughter, attempted murder, assault, felon in possession of a firearm, employer investigations on employees, employer negligent hiring, negligent training, negligent supervision, negligent retention, management performance and retaliation. He has experience in testifying in civil and criminal court cases, as well as civil depositions. Mr. Olson's services are available to attorneys' representing plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal court cases. Contact him today for a free initial consultation.

Areas of Expertise:

Besides being an expert witness, Mr. Olson is a private investigator. He is insured and bonded, and licensed through the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training, Private Investigator License #113509.   

Mr. Olson is a published co -writer of multiple books, CARE Approach: Seeking Solutions to Human Problems and Multicultural Law Enforcement: Strategies for Peacekeeping in a Diverse Society. He is an adjunct professor teaching at a community college and state university. His classes are Cultural Diversity in Criminal Justice and Multiculturalism in Emergency Services. 

Mr. Olson has experience in providing his consultation services to law firms, businesses, hospitals, and government at the city, county and state level.    

Contact Mr. Olson today for a free initial consultation.

View Aaron T. Olson's Expert Witness Profile.

Cheryl Stephens is an experienced Plain Language and Communication Consultant with a proven track record over 35 years. Ms. Stephens helps organizations simplify complex information for broader accessibility, ensuring messages are clear, concise, and suited to the audience. She assures clients that their messages comply with both the ISO Plain Language Standard and Accessibility Canada’s Plain Language Standard.

 Experience includes leading national projects, redesigning complex documents, developing curriculum, translating legal materials, and publishing guides on clear communication. I have partnered with institutions such as the Department of Justice, Canadian Bar Association, and medical agencies, consistently improving public access to information.

Expertise: Clarity, Plain Language, Writing for Readers, ISO, Accessibility