Barton Gilman is pleased to announce that Paul T. O’Neill is the 2024 recipient of the Eileen M. Ahearn Education Visionary Award for special education.
The Center for Learner Equity, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that students with disabilities have equitable access to a high-quality public education, established the award in 2019 to recognize individuals or organizations that champion access and inclusion of students with disabilities in charter schools.
“We are honored to celebrate Paul’s remarkable contributions to advancing the education options, experiences, and outcomes for students with disabilities,” said Lauren Morando Rhim, Executive Director and Co-Founder of The Center for Learner Equity. “His leadership roles and thought leadership in many education organizations for nearly 30 years, along with his current education law practice and volunteer leadership at the NYC for Autism Charter Schools, Digital Pioneers Academy Charter School in Washington, DC, and Union County College in New Jersey, demonstrate his steadfast commitment to advancing the interests of students with disabilities.”
Paul is a Partner at Barton Gilman and Co-chairs the firm’s Education Law Group. He is one of the nation’s foremost experts on the legal issues impacting education reform. Special education is one of Paul’s primary interests and areas of legal expertise. He frequently advises clients on federal and state laws impacting students with disabilities. He is also a Co-founder and Senior Fellow Emeritus of The Center for Learner Equity.
Paul’s professional experience spans the education sector. He served as General Counsel of the SUNY Charter Schools Institute, one of the nation’s leading charter school authorizing offices. He served as Senior Vice President & Chief Regulatory Officer for EdisonLearning, the national school management and services organization. Notably, Paul led EdisonLearning’s efforts to engage in the post-Katrina revitalization of public schooling in New Orleans. He is a former Associate Director of the Newgrange School and Educational Outreach Center in New Jersey, which serves individuals with learning disabilities.
On the academic side, Paul has served for more than 20 years as an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College, where he teaches courses on education law and policy, including Designing Charter Schools, Private School Law and Special Education Law & Policy. He is the author of numerous scholarly and professional books, chapters, and articles on education law and policy.
Paul was honored as the 2024 recipient of the Eileen M. Ahearn Education Visionary Award on June 5 in Washington, D.C., at The Center for Learner Equity’s 10th anniversary celebration.
About Barton Gilman
Barton Gilman (bglaw.com) serves clients throughout the Northeast with offices in Boston, Providence, New York, Philadelphia, Milford, Connecticut, and Fairfield, New Jersey, offering legal services in over twenty five service areas, including education law, medical malpractice and aging services defense, professional liability defense, insurance coverage and bad faith litigation, product liability and general liability, business and commercial litigation, employment, as well as immigration, family law, trusts and estates, criminal defense, corporate formation and intellectual property. Committed to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, Barton Gilman has achieved Midsize Mansfield Certification Plus status. The firm and its attorneys have received numerous awards and accolades, including Best Lawyers, Best Law Firms, Best Places to Work Rhode Island, Outstanding Philanthropic Business, Common Good Award, and Super Lawyers.
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