Meet The Team

The Staff At
EnCourage Institute

The Staff At EnCourage Institute

Mary Rozendal

PhD, ET/P

Mary is the founder and director of EnCourage Institute. She has extensive teaching experience in K-16 settings. She has a BA degree from Calvin College and MA and PhD degrees from Michigan State University. She is certified in K-8 General Education, K-12 Special Education and K-12 Music Education. Her research has focused on metacognitive learning strategies, instructional strategies for effective inclusive education, impact of developmental music skills on early reading, and professional teacher development. She is a Professional Educational Therapist with the Association of Educational Therapists, is DIR/Floortime trained, and is a Cogmed Qualified Coach. Dr. Rozendal specializes in identifying the breakdown in learning and development and designing interventions to effectively (re)build processing, knowledge, strategies, and skills for long-term results.

Rebecca Zwart

MEd

Becky is a certified teacher in K-8 General Education and 6-8 Language Arts and Math. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hope College, and a Master of Education degree in Reading and Language Arts from Grand Valley State University. She has worked for EnCourage for many years, and in addition to managing the office, she provides interventions and is a Cogmed Qualified Coach. She specializes in math, language arts, study skills and test preparation.

Sarah Rubingh

RBT

Sarah is a certified teacher in K-8 General Education, K-12 Deaf and Hard of Hearing, K-12 Cognitive Impairment. She earned her degree from Grand Valley State University. She has over 20 years of experience in a variety of educational settings working with students with various learning needs. She specializes in integrating processing therapies with academic interventions, test preparation, executive function coaching, study skills, and Behavioral Therapy for children with autism. She is bilingual in English and American Sign Language.

Becky Tasma

MA, RBT

Becky is a certified teacher in K–8 General Education, Grade 9 Language Arts, and Music, and holds a master’s degree with an early childhood endorsement. She has taught in a variety of educational settings for more than 40 years and is known for making learning fun and meaningful for her students.

Becky excels at incorporating diverse learning strategies to meet the individual needs of each learner. She is also a certified P.L.A.Y. Project Home Consultant and works with children and teens on the autism spectrum, supporting growth through developmentally appropriate, relationship-based approaches.

Shari Farrell

Shari L. Farrell, MA is an ABA Therapist and Behavior Specialist at EnCourage with more than 20 years of experience in special education. She earned her teaching certificate in Special Education with a focus on Autism in 2013 and began working with EnCourage as a part-time ABA Behavior Technician during summers in 2018, transitioning to full-time ABA work in 2020. Shari holds a Master of Teaching in Special Education with an emphasis in Autism from Liberty University.

Shari is passionate about supporting families navigating the challenges of raising a child with autism. She values building strong, collaborative teams around each child and finds it deeply rewarding to help families see progress that once felt out of reach. Outside of her professional work, Shari brings lived experience to her role as a parent in a large family that includes children with disabilities, giving her a deep understanding of both the challenges and the joys that come with this journey.
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Kathleen Veenstra

Kathleen is a certified teacher in K-8 General Education. She has a bachelor’s degree from Calvin College and a master’s degree in reading from Western Michigan University. Her teaching experience includes elementary classroom teaching, reading and math interventionist ,and homeschool teaching. Kathleen specializes in reading, writing and math interventions.

Sally Frahm

Sally is an experienced educator with more than 30 years of teaching experience in grades 3–12. She earned her education degree from Cornerstone University and has taught in a variety of settings, including Montessori schools, Christian schools, and homeschool programs at the middle and high school levels.

Sally enjoys working with students one-on-one and in small groups, with a special passion for math and language arts interventions. Math is her favorite subject, and she loves helping students gain confidence by showing them strategies and shortcuts that make concepts click. Seeing the “light bulb” moment when a student understands something new is one of the most rewarding parts of her work.

Kate Versluis

Kate Versluis is a student at Grand Rapids Community College. Her goal is to earn a bachelor’s degree in special education from Grand Valley State University. At EnCourage, Kate is a behavioral technician working with kids who have been diagnosed with autism.