Professor, Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special Education
Department of Special Education and Multiple Abilities
Founding Director
Evidence-Based International Early Intervention Office (EIEIO), UA College of Education
Executive Director
EI@UA (Early Intervention at UA)
Purveyor and President
The RAM Group (International Experts in the Routines-Based Model)
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- Families of children with disabilities
- Research design in special education
- International implementation of EI/ECSE
- The Routines-Based Model of Early Intervention Birth to Five
INTERESTS
- Equity and inclusion in professionals’ work with families
- Implementation planning
- Writing, language, and linguistics
- Technical assistance and training
EDUCATION
- Ph.D., Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- M.A., Education of Individuals With Severe & Profound Disabilities, Appalachian State University
- A.B., Interdisciplinary Studies (Education of the Blind, Creative Writing), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
HONORS
- Morehead Scholar, UNC-CH
- Mary McEvoy Service to the Field Award, Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children
BIOGRAPHY
Robert A. (“Robin”) McWilliam is a professor of early intervention and early childhood special education at The University of Alabama, where he founded the Evidence-Based International Early Intervention Office—EIEIO. He is the executive director of an early intervention program under the auspices of the EIEIO. He is the president of the RAM Group—international experts in the Routines-Based Model, which he and his colleagues have developed.
Dr. McWilliam has been awarded almost $8 million in grants, has published over 90 scholarly articles, and has published 10 books. He is currently writing, with Cami Stevenson, the second edition of his bestselling book, Routines-Based Early Intervention. His books have been translated into Portuguese, Mandarin, and Korean. He has created many free, online resources related to the Routines-Based Model, which can be found at eieio.ua.edu. Many of these checklists, forms, and so on have been translated into a dozen languages.
Dr. McWilliam has traveled extensively, helping with implementation of the RBM in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, and the United States. He has been to all 50 U.S. states as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He grew up in Central and South America and the U.K., before coming to the U.S. for college. Before he began at The University of Alabama, he worked in early intervention programs, then on the faculties of the University of North Carolina, where he rose to full professor, and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. He also worked at a nonprofit organization for young children and their families, in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Dr. McWilliam has served on 37 doctoral committees including those of four students in Portuguese universities and three students in Spanish universities. He enjoys (a) mentoring and learning from doctoral students, emerging scholars, and professionals in the field; and (b) getting to know families of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with disabilities.