Angelica Downey, Ph.D.
Instructor
College of Education
Special Education | Academy for Community Inclusion
Boca Raton Campus | EC MC12- 202J
Angelica Downey
Angelica Downey, Ph.D., is an Instructor for the Â鶹ŮÀÉ Department of Special Education. She received her Doctorate’s and Master’s degrees in Special Education from Â鶹ŮÀÉ and assisted in the development of the Inclusive Post-Secondary Education program, Â鶹ŮÀÉ Academy for Community Inclusion (ACI). As one of the original staff since the creation of Â鶹ŮÀÉ ACI, Dr. Downey currently instructs courses for the students in the program and coordinates the employment component of the program by mentoring and supervising job coaches and helping students be successful at work. Dr. Downey has experience teaching coursework at Â鶹ŮÀÉ to Education majors and 12 years of teaching individuals with disabilities at the high school or post-secondary level. She is the co-author of ten research studies that were conducted at Â鶹ŮÀÉ ACI. In 2021, Dr. Downey was awarded the ARDRAW Small Grant Project to conduct research on workplace communication for adults with ID. She has presented her work on Employment for Individuals with ID at various conferences including the Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities, Florida Division for Career Development and Transition, Eastern Education Research Association, and National Rehabilitation Education Conference.
Key Words: Inclusive Post-Secondary Education, Intellectual Disability, Career Development
Courses and Syllabi
General statement about approaches to teaching
Dr. Downey’s approach to teaching incorporates the universal design for learning to accommodate the needs for all learners. Dr. Downey incorporates access to materials in various formats and various evaluation methods in her coursework. She also provides consistent feedback and communicates with students regularly to ensure that each student is successful in their academic endeavors.
- EEX4070- Inclusive Ed for General Educators
- EEX6210- Assessment of Students with ASD
- EDG6408- Managing Inclusive Classrooms
- EDG4419- Building Classroom Management and Discipline
Publications
Publications in Print
Downey, A. , Dukes, C., Kearney, K.B., Ramasamy, R., Torres, A., Carey, G., Adams, K., & Kenney, S., (2024). Teaching Workplace Communication Skills to College Students with Intellectual Disability. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 62, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.3233/jvr-240038
Downey, A. , Kearney, K.B., Adams, K., Brady, M.P., Berlingo, L., & Kenney, S. (2023). Effects of remote audio coaching on workplace communication for college students with intellectual disability. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 58(3), 317-327. https://doi.org/10.3233/JVR-230020
Carey, G. C., Downey A., & Kearney, K. B. (2022). Perspectives of university faculty regarding the inclusion of students with intellectual disability. Inclusion, 10(3), 201-212.
Torres, A., Kearney, K. B., Downey, A. , & Tedesco, C. (2022). Self-determination development among college students with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A longitudinal study. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities.
Brady, M. P., Kearney, K. B., Downey, A. , Torres, A., & McDougall, D. (2022). Using mnemonics, remote coaching, and the range-bound changing criterion design to teach college students with IDD to make employment decisions. Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities, 57, 303-319.
Downey, A. , Torres, A., Kearney, K.B., Brady, M.P., & Katz, J. (2021). Teaching virtual job interview skills to college students with IDD using literacy-based behavioral interventions. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals,1-13 (Advanced online publication). https://doi.org/10.1177/2165143421989408
Joseph, B. M., Kearney, K., Brady, M. P., Downey, A. , & Torres, A. (2020). Teaching small talk: Increasing on-topic conversational exchanges in college students with intellectual and developmental disabilities using remote audio coaching. Behavior Modification,45(2), 251-271. https://doi.org/10.1177/0145445520975174
Kearney, K. B., Brady, M. P., Dukes, C., & Downey, A. (2019). Push hard and fast: Teaching adults with intellectual disability to perform hands-only CPR. Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities, 54, 328-342.
Hall, K., Brady, M. P., Kearney, K. B., & Downey, A. (2018). Comparing different delivery modes for literacy-based behavioral interventions during employment training for college students with developmental disabilities. Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities, 53, 299-310.
Works in Progress
International and National Conference Presentations
Downey, A. , Kearney, K. B., & Ramasamy, R. (2023, January 18-20). Teaching workplace communication skills to college students with IDD. Council for Exceptional Children Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities, Clearwater Beach, FL, United States.
Kearney, K. B., Torres, A., & Downey, A. (2022, January 26-28). Using virtual literacy-based behavioral interventions to teach employability skills to college students with IDD [Paper session]. Council for Exceptional Children Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities, Clearwater Beach, FL, United States.
Kearny, K.B., Joseph, B., Torres, A., Downey, A. , Valle-Riestra, D., & Brady, M. (2021, February 18-19). Research on short notice: COVID’s unintended opportunity to study remote learning in college students with IDD. Eastern Education Research Association, Virtual Conference. https://www.eeraorganization.org/conference
Torres, A., Kearney, K. B., Brady, M. P., & Downey, A. (2020, October 26-30). Intervention Research: Teaching Virtual Job Interview Skills to Youth with Intellectual Disabilities. National Rehabilitation Education Conference, Virtual Conference.
Brady, M. P., Kearney, K. B., Downey, A. , Wood, J., & Meiners, T. (2020, February 19-22). College students with intellectual and developmental disabilities: An emerging research agenda [Symposium session]. Eastern Education Research Association, Orlando, FL, United States. https://www.eeraorganization.org/conference
State and Regional Conference Presenations
Downey, A. (2019, March) Job Shadowing As the Key to Job Development. Presentation at Florida Vision’s Division for Career Development and Transition Conference.
Downey, A. (2017, May) Learning Job Skills Through Specialized Curriculum. Presentation at Florida DCDT Visions XXIV Conference.
Carey, G., & Downey, A. & Wright, M., (2017, May). Surviving and Thriving : College Social Life. Presentation at Florida DCDT Visions XXIV Conference.
Carey, G., & Downey, A. , (2016, April). Post-Secondary Education Opportunities for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities. Presentation at the Down Syndrome Association Family Café.
University Symposia and Invited Presenations
Downey, A. Panel Presentation: Building Bridges for Success: Neurodiverse College Programs (with M. Brady). Els for Autism Foundation 2019 Autism at Work Summit, Jupiter, FL, October 2019.
Downey, A. , & Carey, G., (2016, October). Preparing Students with Developmental Disabilities for Post-Secondary Education. Presentation at Â鶹ŮÀÉ’s Honoring Outstanding Owl Teachers program.
Downey, A. (2015, October) Supported Employment for Individuals with Disabilities in Post-Secondary Education Programs. Presentation at Â鶹ŮÀÉ’s Jupiter Campus.
Research Interests
Dr. Downey’s research interests include:
- Inclusive Post-Secondary Education Programs
- Single-subject design research studies regarding employment and independent living skills for individuals with Intellectual Disability
- Employment outcomes and skills for adults with Intellectual Disability
- Social Security Administration’s Analyzing Relationships between Disability, Rehabilitation and Work (ARDRAW). See more here.
Service
Dr. Downey’s service activities include:
- Peer reviewer for educational journals
- Departmental committees (doctoral planning, undergraduate planning, and textbook and course materials)
- Member of the Council for In Transition Youth of Palm Beach County