Nancy J. Lavelle, Ph.D is the creator and author of the Taking Charge® personal responsibility training programs. Beginning as a special education teacher for middle school students, Nancy went on to earn her Ph.D. in Psychological Studies in Education from UCLA and to found a non-profit organization in 1974, the Institute for the Redesign of Learning, where she currently serves as President.

With over 50 years experience developing the principles of the Taking Charge® philosophy, Nancy credits Taking Charge® with empowering thousands of children and adults, their parents or caregivers, and the professional and support staff who serve them, to turn learning failure into learning success. In 1997, Dr. Lavelle established Total Education Solutions, a private, full-service company that offers professional services to clients and special education and pediatric therapy services in homes, at public & private schools, online, and in the community.

TES operates its own family-centered clinics in California, Michigan, and Ohio where it also established the TES Academy, a school for students on the Autism Spectrum. Dr. Lavelle founded Taking Charge LLC in 2015, with the intention of disseminating the Taking Charge® programs more widely, through in-person and online courses, workshops, blogs, an online community forum, and by certifying committed mentors of all ages, parents/caregivers, and professionals in Linguistic Coaching® methods.