- Associate Professor
- Special Education
- Email: adam_moore@uri.edu
- Office Location: Chafee Hall, 7th floor
Biography
Dr. Adam M. Moore is an Associate Professor of Special Education and Program Coordinator of Special Education Graduate Programs at the University of Rhode Island (URI). His career spans over two decades in the field of special education, beginning as a National Board-Certified special education teacher in the Boston Public Schools, where he taught in inclusive, co-taught, self-contained and small-group settings prior to entering higher education. Dr. Moore has led the development and implementation of special education graduate degree programs at two different institutions of higher education, including the most recent URI Special Education Accelerated Bachelor’s to Master’s (ABM) 4+1 program.
An international leader within his profession, Dr. Moore strives to engage in outreach that bridges research, practice, and policy to advance inclusive and equitable educational experiences for all learners. He currently serves on the Board of Directors (2025-2029) of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), the largest professional organization for special education professionals. He previously served as a CEC Accreditation Commissioner, one of 7 national experts to advance accreditation in the special education profession (2023-2025). Dr. Moore also served on the advisory board of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Regional Educational Laboratory for the Northeast and the Islands Teacher Preparation Research Alliance from (2017–2022), as the past-chair of the Small Special Education Programs Caucus (SSEPC) of the Teacher Education Division of the CEC, member of the CEC Teacher Candidate Support Network Working Group, CAEP accreditation reviewer for the CEC, Rhode Island State CEC President, as a member of the Rhode Island CEEDAR Center Collaborative, and URI CEC Student Chapter faculty sponsor. In 2025, Dr. Moore mentored a doctoral student from the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany who was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to examine inclusive educational practices with the US, Germany, and Austria.
Dr. Moore has been awarded several professional honors for his research, service, and teaching, including the New England Educational Research Organization (NEERO) Schmitt Research Award (2015), the URI Kappa Delta Pi Outstanding Teaching Award (2016), the Roger Williams University (RWU) Faculty Advisor of the Year Award for advising RWU Best Buddies (2023), and the Council for Exceptional Children Teacher Education Division Nasim Dil Award for Outstanding Service to the Profession (2025).
Research
Dr. Moore’s scholarship focuses on inclusive education, family-centered partnerships in special education, the lived experiences of college students with disabilities, and advancing social justice in teacher preparation. He has published three dozen peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and conference proceedings. His book, Disability Life Stories: Unfiltered Voices on School, Family, Career, and Finding Purpose, explores a 10-year longitudinal qualitative research study of college students with disabilities (Routledge, 2026). Dr. Moore is co-PI on the Project SUSTAIN (2023-2028), a $1.1 million U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) project aimed at strengthening the special education workforce.
Education
- Ph.D., University of Rhode Island/Rhode Island College, 2013
- M.Ed., University of Massachusetts-Boston, 2007
- B.A., Manchester University (formerly College), 2004
Selected Publications
Vaccaro, A., Moore, A., Kimball, E., Newman, B., Newman, P., Carlson, A., & Doffing, E. (2026). Disability Life Stories: Unfiltered Voices on School, Family, Career, and Finding Purpose. Routledge.
Farnan, S., & Moore, A. M. (2026). Understanding students’ strengths and needs through multiple sources. In S. Farnan & R. Owiny, Special education in today’s diverse classrooms: Meeting the needs of students with exceptionalities. Plural Publishing.
Farnan, S., & Moore, A. M. (2026). Data-driven planning. In S. Farnan & R. Owiny, Special education in today’s diverse classrooms: Meeting the needs of students with exceptionalities. Plural Publishing.
Vaccaro, A., Moore, A. M., Newman, B., Newman, P., & Kimball, E. (2026). Sense of Belonging Within an Accessible Environment. In Aquino, J.C., & Lalor, A.R. (Eds.), The New Accessibility in Higher Education. Oxford University Press.
Moore, A. M., Dennis, D. V., Deeney, T., & Brown, T. (2024). Sustaining in the profession: Developing university-school partnerships to diversify the special education teacher workforce. In. D. Sargent, & K, Murphy. Transforming Teacher Preparation Through Identity, Development, and Effective Technologies. (pp. 373-404). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-1806-5.ch014
Lynn, T. G., Farnan, S., & Moore, A., & Rueter, J. A. (2024). Flourishing in academia: A collaborative writing team approach for higher education faculty. The Journal of Advancing Education Practice.
Vaccaro, A., Moore, A., Newman, B., & Toriano, P. (2024). Coping with ableism: How college students with disabilities respond to bullying, stereotypes, low expectations & discouragement. Journal of Postsecondary Education & Disability, 37(2), 99-113.
Daly-Cano, M., Cruise, B.L., Moore, A., Vaccaro, A., Newman, B.M., & Newman, P. R. (2024). Family social support for college students with disabilities. Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Science.
Moore, A. M., Vaccaro, A., Newman, B. M., Daly-Cano, M, & Ruise, B. (2024). “I shouldn’t have to rely on them anymore”: College Students with Disabilities on the Journey toward Self Advocacy. The Journal of The First-Year Experience & Students in Transition, 36(1), 93-112.
Moore, A., *Higgins, A., *Doulette, C., **Hoff, K., & **Sarbh, S. (2022). Teaching in a global pandemic: Experiences of five educators supporting students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms in the United States. In L. Meda, & J. Chitiyo (Eds.), Inclusive Pedagogical Practices Amidst a Global Pandemic: Issues and Perspectives Around the Globe. New York: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10642-2 (*RWU Graduate Student; **Pk-12 Classroom Teachers)
Moore, A., & Brand, S. T. (2021). A grand challenge: Facilitating service-learning for social justice. In Management Association, I. (Ed.). (2021). Research Anthology on Instilling Social Justice in the Classroom. (pp. 122-137). IGI Global. http://doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-7706-6 (republication of a book chapter originally published in 2018)
Moore, A., *Kern, V., *Carlson, A., Vaccaro, A., Kimball, E. W., Abbott, J. A., Troiano, P. F., & Newman, B. M. (2020). Constructing a sense of purpose and a professional teaching identity: Experiences of teacher candidates with disabilities. The Educational Forum. dio: 10.1080/00131725.2020.1738608 (*Graduate Student)
Moore, A. (2020). Disability as a social justice imperative: Historical, theoretical, and practical implications. In S. Brand, & L. Ciccomascolo (Eds.), Social Justice and Putting Theory Into Practice in Schools and Communities (pp. 210-226). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-9434-5.ch014.
Moore, A., Clapham, E., & Deeney, T. (2017). Parents’ perspectives on surf therapy for children with disabilities. International Journal of Disability, Development, & Education, 65(5), 304-317. dio: 10.1080/1034912X.2017.1400660
URI Special Education Program in the News
Spring 2026. Book Release
Spring 2026. Manchester University Book Announcement
Fall 2025. The Good 5Cent Cigar
Fall 2025. Nasim Dil Award Winner
Summer 2025. Fulbright Fellow Mentor
Spring 2025. Fulbright Fellow Mentor
Fall 2023. OSEP $1.1M Award
Fall 2019. Providence Business News- New Master’s Program
Fall 2017. Rhody Today
URI Special Education Program Newsletters