Biography
Mary Margaret Hughes is a doctoral student in special education at the University of Virginia working with Professor William Therrien and the STAR (Supporting Transformative Autism Research) group. Hughes has worked with people with disabilities across the lifespan, in a variety of settings from residential group homes to private and public schools. She taught special education for a combined 14 years in functional skills classrooms, as a general special education teacher, and most recently in a resource room for elementary students with autism. For many of her years of teaching, Hughes also held leadership roles, including assistant clinical coordinator at a private ABA school for students with autism and as special education team leader in local public schools. Her research interests include addressing barriers to inclusion in standards-based general education curriculum for students with autism, as well as the socioeconomic disparities in access to services.
Hughes also serves as a graduate intern in the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Education
M.A., University of Virginia
B.A., Virginia Tech