About Dan

ME

Before attending law school, I was a teacher.  That's why education is so important to me and why I care so deeply about fighting for every child's right to be placed in the right educational setting.  

During law school, I interned with the Seattle Public Schools, and worked closely with special education supervisors to help ensure that students received the “appropriate education” to which they were entitled.


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 For three years during and after college, I worked as a Tutor-Counselor in the Upward Bound program, which provides academic and emotional support for at-risk youth.  I began my teaching career in under-resourced Los Angeles and rural Louisiana public schools as a Teach for America corps member. 

Dan Stands Out

Those experiences made me passionate about education and the need for educational reform.  Later, I was able to put some of my ideas into practice when I helped develop an innovative curriculum for a middle school my friends and I founded in Austin, Texas.   

The time I spent in a classroom and helping run a school developed skills that make me a better lawyer.  I am resourceful, highly motivated, and absolutely dedicated to getting the best possible result for my clients.



Experience

  • Taught students with learning disabilities - dyslexic, dysgraphic, and ADD/ADHD - in public and private school settings. 
  • Evaluated students and wrote individual educational plans (IEP) as part of IEP Teams
  • Worked with parents, students and special education teachers to implement plans to have learning disabled and emotionally disturbed students participate successfully in the regular education classroom
  • Tutored at-risk high school students for two years.
  • Completed Special Ed Law and Advocacy Training


Employers and Internships

  • Pierce County Department of Assigned Counsel
  • Washington State School Directors’ Association
  • Seattle Public Schools
  • Teacher and Co-Founder - Paragon Prep Middle School, Austin, Texas
  • Middle School Teacher - Southfield School, Shreveport, Louisiana
  • Elementary Teacher, Teach For America - Fort Polk, Louisiana


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Education

  • Seattle University School of Law, JD
  • Seattle Journal for Social Justice, Content Development Editor
  • Binghamton University, BA


Awards

  • 2009 Seattle University School of Law Commencement Speaker
  • Mock Trial - American Trial Lawyers Association’s Regional Competition finalist.


Publications

  • High Court Rules “Class of One” Theory Does Not Apply in Public Employment, , Vol. XXXI, No. 6 (August, 2008).School Law Digest
  • How to Prevent the Next Virginia Tech: Well-Intentioned Laws Misunderstood and Misapplied. 


Affiliations

  • Washington Bar Association
  • Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates
  • Council of School Attorneys
  • Pierce County Bar Association
  • King County Bar Association
  • WSBA Juvenile Law Section


Community Service and Hobbies

  • Advisory Council - Tacoma Center YMCA
  • Seattle University Recent Alumni Committee
  • Pro Bono work for Lawyers Fostering Independence, helping youth who have aged out of foster care.
  • Pro Bono work with TeamChild, helping youth gain re-entry to Pierce County school districts.
  • Avid Runner - finished Tacoma City, North Olympic Discovery, and Light at the End of the Tunnel Marathons in 2011.



Email: law@danbarkley.com            Call: (206) 403-8177