Peggy S. Bud

Peggy is a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist and school administrator with 30+ years’ experience in public education. She founded Speaking Skillfully to provide consultation services to families of children with special needs and to help business professionals bridge the communication gap. As a communication coach, educator, speaker, and author, she utilizes her background in cognitive-neuroscience and language to teach effective communication strategies. 

Peggy serves as a vital voice for families and facilitates collaborative Special Education teams, putting her extensive knowledge from her time as a Special Education administrator to use as she assists both sides of the IEP team. She advises families on how to successfully advocate for their child by having data-driven conversations and building strong home-school partnerships. Additionally, she provides professional development opportunities to educators, teaching them how to effectively communicate with parents, write strong educational plans, and differentiate their instruction to address the needs of all students. 

Peggy teaches her clients how to ‘up their executive presence’ across all platforms, strengthen their non-verbal and verbal skills, and understand the power of active listening. She provides customized training to organizations and their leadership: teaching them how bias impacts communication, decision-making, and relationships. It also directly links to recruitment, hiring, promotions and employee retention. 

Her clients come from a variety of fields including medical, legal, financial, marketing, insurance, engineering, and education. She brings her expertise to organizations by providing customized talks and group training sessions. She has spoken at National Conferences, Women’s Summits, Rotary Clubs, libraries, and more.

In addition to her private consulting practice, Peggy is on the Board of Directors for EarthPlace—a place where science, conservation and education meet. She is also  Community Outreach Director of Kids Are Talking, Director of Recruitment for The Financial Executives Consulting Group, a member of the Leadership Team of The Financial Executives Networking Group, and a member of the Board of Directors of Bridge Academy, a charter school in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She holds a B.S. from Indiana University, as well as an M.S. and 6th Year Certificate in Educational Leadership from Southern Connecticut State University. Her motto is: It’s more than what you say, it’s how you say it.

Tamara L. Jacobson

Tamara Jacobson has over 30 years of experience advocating for children throughout the United States.

Tamara previously taught English as a second language, Theater arts, History, Public Speaking, and language arts for over 18 years. She served as the head of curriculum and instruction for five years and as supervisor, then as Assistant Principal for four years. She holds lifetime and praxis certificates in administration and supervision K-12, ESL/Bilingual Education/Dual Language K-12, History K-12, Communication arts (public speaking, debate, forensics) K-12, early childhood education PreK-3, and elementary education K-6. 

Tamara worked as an Educational Consultant for Total Training Solutions, Ask the Educators, and East Coast Special Needs Advocacy and is currently the executive director of East Coast Educational Consulting LLC. She has conducted hundreds of workshops for teachers, teacher-aides, therapists, administrators, boards of directors, parent associations, and private community organizations on topics including 1) Looping, 2) Curriculum Design, 3) DEI, 4) Unconscious Bias, 5) Protecting Marginalized Communities, 6) Positive Partnerships in Special Education, 7) Special Needs Communication, 8) Child Study Team Organization, 9) Individual Educational Plan (IEP), 10) Goal Writing, 10) CRT, 11) Funds of Knowledge, 12) Authentic Leadership, 13) Pedagogy v. Andragogy, 14) Critical Thinking Skills, 15) English as a Second Language Learning, and 16) Resume Building. 

Tamara is the mother of three daughters, one of whom lives with severe significant physical and cognitive developmental delays. Her daughter inspires her daily to make a difference in the educational landscape of practice. 

Combining her interests in education and theater, Tamara has an acting and theater arts and MFA in Directing. She has owned and directed Stars Theater and Dance Academy for many years. In 2011, she was profiled in Cambridge’s Who's Who as a successful businesswoman. 

Tamara holds a Post-Graduate Certificate in Administration & Supervision with a concentration in Urban Studies. Currently, she is a doctoral candidate in Learning & Organizational Change at Baylor University. She is expected to graduate in May 2023. 

In 2012, Tamara graduated from the “Partners in Policymaking in the State of NJ” program, a non-partisan advocacy group that looks at legislation affecting marginalized communities. She is affiliated with the following organizations and conferences: American Education Research Association, Council for Exceptional Children, Academy for Educational Studies Critical Questions in Education Symposium, Carnegie Project on Special Education Doctorate, Southeastern Universities Graduate Research Symposium (SUGRS), Baylor Education Research Conference (BERC).