Reading ASSIST Institute - Unlocking the written word... one sound at a time

Our Team

Top (L-R) Sally Coonin, Lauren Riale, Sue McGrath, Jeanne DiChiara Bottom (L-R) Jacquelynn Langdon,
Judie Caroleo, Marilyn Monahan, Debbie DeGrosky, Wilmarie Fuentes  

Marilyn Monahan, Executive Director
Marilyn brings strong management and organizational skills to RAI. Prior to this position, she worked for the MBNA Foundation as a First Vice President in charge of special events. Previously, she served as the Secretary-Treasurer (1990-97) of the National Education Association (NEA) in Washington, DC. In this position, Marilyn has traveled throughout the United States, Europe, Africa and the Middle East representing the interests of teachers and children. A former elementary classroom teacher in New Hampshire, Monahan was appointed by President Clinton to the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars where she served as a commissioner from 1992-2000. She currently serves on the Advisory Board of the National Women’s Law Center in DC and is a member of the St. Patrick’s Society in Wilmington, Delaware.

Judie Caroleo, Director of Instruction
Judie has nearly 18 years experience in classroom instruction, program development, implementation, assessment, and professional development. Additionally, she has received extensive training in all areas of effective literacy instruction with nationally recognized literacy experts. These include, but are not limited to: Language Essential for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS), Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing (LiPS), Institute for Multisensory Education Comprehensive Training, and DIBELS^® Essential and Mentor Training. Judie is the engineer of RAI’s current Professional Development curriculum and its principal implementer.

Debbie DeGrosky, Assistant Director of Instruction
Debbie brings instructional experience spanning more than 30 years to RAI. Deb taught as a classroom teacher and certified reading specialist before linking up with Reading Assist in 1994. She has served as a volunteer tutor, mentor, instructor and curriculum developer within the RAI organization. In addition to this experience, she has received extensive professional development training in Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing (LIPS), Seeing Stars, Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS), and DIBELS Essential and Mentor Training.

Sally Coonin, Director of Development and Public Relations
Sally has 30 years experience as an English teacher in Sao Paolo, Brazil and the Colonial School District. Sally retired in 2003 to serve as Projects Director for Reading ASSIST, and subsequently served as Education Policy Advisor to Governor Ruth Ann Minner, representing Governor Minner on a variety of educational commissions, committees and task forces, including the LEAD Committee and the Child Poverty Task Force. Sally was co-organizer of the America’s Promise Delaware Dropout Prevention Summit.

Sue McGrath, Volunteer Program Manager
Sue has extensive experience in the nonprofit world, and in literacy in particular. She was involved with low literacy adult education as a tutor and trainer for 15 years. Prior to joining RAI’s staff, Sue served as a volunteer tutor for RAI for six years. Sue also brings a wealth of nonprofit management experience from her positions with Girl Scouts of America. She was the Manager of Girl Scouts of America’s Lone Troops Overseas in Singapore, and a Volunteer Manager for the Girl Scouts of Chesapeake Bay, where she also directed a volunteer run day camp.

Linda Laganosky, Mentor Coordinator
Linda first came to RAI as a result of her son’s reading difficulties 15 years ago. She took RAI’s courses to help her son, and then became a tutor and mentor for RAI. Linda says, “I enjoy my job, but there is nothing that warms my heart more than to see my students appreciate their new found ability to read.”

Cheryl Graf, Testing Coordinator
Cheryl has 10 years experience as a teacher in the classroom with mostly fourth grade students in regular, special and gifted education in Wilmington. For the past seven years she has worked at Reading ASSIST as the Testing Coordinator with her partner, Jenny McGuire. In addition, Cheryl is one of the DIBELS trainers and coaches. She has received Essentials and Mentor Training.

Jenny McGuire, Testing Coordinator
Jenny was an elementary classroom teacher in the Penn Hills School District in Penn Hills, PA for 5 years. Since coming to RAI she has trained with the developers of DIBELS as both a mentor and an instructor. In her 8 years with RAI, she has administered hundreds of DIBELS, Tests of Written Spelling, and Kaufman Tests of Educational Achievement-II. She and her partner, Cheryl Graf, are the DIBELS facilitators and coaches for RAI.

Arlene Sulek, Product Development Coordinator
Arlene has 15 years’ experience with RAI as a tutor, mentor, instructor and coordinates the development of RAI products.

Our Support Team

Lauren Riale, Program and Technology Coordinator
Jeanne DiChiara, Administrative Assistant
Wilmarie Fuentes, Office Assistant