Dr. Severino is a faculty member in the special education program. She teaches courses in reading, high incidence disabilities, and student teaching. Her area of expertise is in reading disabilities. Prior to teaching at Drexel, she was a special education teacher in public education for 26 years in which she taught first through twelfth grades. Most of her teaching career was working with students with dyslexia. She is committed to preparing all teachers to be able to teach all students to read. She is a member of the instructional strategies committee of the Philadelphia Read by 4th campaign.
Dr. Severino is a certified Wilson Language trainer and teaches the Wilson coursework as well as offering professional development to local districts. Dr. Severino worked with a team of researchers to develop an iPad app to assess adolescent reading comprehension. The team is currently piloting the app in local schools in the Tri-state area. In addition, Dr. Severino has been an invited speaker with Dr. Fredricka Reisman on the intersection of dyslexia and creativity.
Dr. Severino is married and has two grown children and one grandson. She enjoys traveling with her family. She is an avid snowboarder and looks forward to snowy winters. Although a struggle, she has been a long time, dedicated Eagles fan.