Debra Costley

Debra Costley

Debra is a special educator with almost thirty years of experience in special education teaching and research. Her Ph.D. was a policy analysis and evaluation of the introduction of a national curriculum in England and Wales and the impact of that intervention on children with learning difficulties.

Debra has worked in special schools, further and higher education in the UK, USA, and in Australia. Before joining Aspect she was a Senior Lecturer at the University of Western Sydney and a Principal Research Fellow at the University of Warwick in the UK and has been involved in the management of a range of research projects with a focus on education and employment.

In her role as National Director, Aspect Practice at Aspect, Debra has responsibility for applied research across Aspect and the development of models of service delivery for young people and adults with an autism spectrum disorder. Aspect is currently supporting sixteen CRC projects across three programs from early identification to transition to adulthood. Debra is also a conjoint Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales.