Tara K. Strang, Ed.S. Tara Strang holds a B.S. degree in special education from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. She obtained M.S. and  Ed.S. degrees in school psychology from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.  Ms. Strang taught special education for several years in Memphis, Tennessee where she learned to recognize, identify, and appreciate student learning differences.  In this job, Ms. Strang was introduced to the extreme importance of accurate assessment and the idea that the identification of cognitive and academic strengths and weaknesses should lead to effective educational programming. Teaching special needs students was a very valuable experience that shaped her interest in becoming a school psychologist.

Ms. Strang is a practicing school psychologist with over 20 years of experience. She worked as a school psychologist in the state of Georgia for 6 years and has worked in the state of Tennessee for the past 18 years. She has worked on many district and state committees on a variety of topics dealing with assessment of IDEA disabilities and intellectual giftedness. From 2004-2007, she served on the Tennessee State Eligibility Task Force for Intellectually Gifted which was charged with writing the current Tennessee Department of Education state criteria for gifted. Ms. Strang has been a presenter at district, state, national, and international conferences which include but are not limited to the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), East Tennessee Title I Conference,  Magnet Schools of America National Conference, National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC), National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), National Network for Educational Renewal (NNER), Tennessee Association for the Gifted (TAG), and Tennessee Association of School Psychologists (TASP).

Ms. Strang has been a certified scorer for the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, Figural Forms since 2002 and Verbal Forms since 2012. She and her colleagues have trained closely with the Torrance Center at the University of Georgia, and she has recently become a certified trainer for the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. She is a trained JDL IEP team meeting facilitator, and she has trained 15 school psychology interns and several school psychology practicum students. Currently, Ms. Strang is President-Elect of the Tennessee Association for the Gifted (TAG) and was the winner of TAG’s Jo Patterson Distinguished Service Award in 2013.

Most importantly, Ms. Strang easily establishes rapport with students and takes pride in being able to get accurate and optimal test results from individuals. She enjoys her work, has high interest in continuing education, and works hard to provide equitable assessment. She lives in the Chattanooga, Tennessee area with her husband, three children, and two dogs.

Leah Meulemans, M.Ed. has been a teacher of gifted students since 2002. She served nine years on the board of the Tennessee Association for the Gifted including two terms as president and in 2014, Leah was awarded the TAG Special Recognition Award. During her time on the TAG Board, Leah attended the annual NAGC Affiliates' Conference in Washington, DC as one of two gifted education representatives from Tennessee. Her seven consecutive years at this conference allowed her to maintain contact with the representatives from other states and stay current with latest issues in gifted education. In addition, each year provided an opportunity to meet with the delegates on Capital Hill to discuss the future of gifted education. Leah chaired three TAG Conferences and presented at many more including National Association for Gifted Children Conference (NAGC), TN State Special Education Conference (now PIE), and Tennessee Association of School Psychologists Conference (TASP). 

Leah is a certified Torrance scorer (Figural, Verbal, and TCAM). She and her colleagues were the first to receive certification from the University of Georgia to train others on the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, and are currently the only certified trainers outside of the Torrance Center. Leah and Tara piloted the current IG eligibility criteria and were part of the team that wrote the current Tennessee Gifted Manuel. In 2014, Leah also served on the state IEP manual task force.

Leah and her husband live in Chattanooga, TN, where she serves on two non-profit committees benefiting the arts and historic maintenance of the city. During the summer, Leah travels the United States and Europe with her camera developing her love for photography and cultural studies. Her work can be found in public and private collections in the United States and Canada.

Megan Parker Peters, PhD holds a B.S. degree in psychology from Middle Tennessee State University. She obtained an M.S. in Applied Educational Psychology and a PhD in School Psychology from the University of Tennessee- Knoxville.  Dr. Peters has served as a school psychologist in public schools and as a specialty psychologist at Vanderbilt University, assessing and consulting with families of intellectually gifted and twice-exceptional learners. Dr. Peters has worked with families and schools from across the country who were seeking expertise in the areas of appropriately evaluating and serving gifted learners. 

Currently, Dr. Peters is an Assistant Professor and the Director of Teacher Education and Assessment at Lipscomb University. She is a licensed psychologist and licensed school psychologist who has earned the designation as a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. Dr. Peters specializes in researching and assessing gifted and twice-exceptional learners. Dr. Peters has published numerous articles related to the social emotional needs of gifted learners. She also serves on the editorial board of the National Association for Gifted Children’s publication, Teaching for High Potential.

Dr. Peters is involved with the gifted community at both local and national levels. Dr. Peters has served on the board of the Tennessee Association for the Gifted for 5 years, and she has held positions with the National Association for Gifted Children for the past 6 years. Dr. Peters has attended the annual NAGC Affiliates' Conference in Washington, DC as one of two gifted education representatives from Tennessee for the past two years. Her presence at this conference allowed her to establish contact with representatives from other states and stay current with latest issues and legislation in gifted education. Dr. Peters has also met with Tennessee’s delegates on Capital Hill to discuss the future of gifted education. Closer to home, Dr. Peters serves on the Tennessee State Task Force for Intellectually Gifted. She has been a presenter at district, state, and national conferences which include but are not limited to the Association for Behavioral Analysis (ABA), Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC), National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), Tennessee Association for the Gifted (TAG), and Tennessee Association of Independent Schools (TAIS). Dr. Peters has been a certified scorer for the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, Figural Forms since 2013. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee, area with her husband, where she serves on the Junior League of Nashville.