Dr. Jon D. Sand brings more than 35 years of direct experience in pre-K through 12 education to his work as an independent educational expert and consultant. He earned his Doctor of Education in K-12 Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California (USC), a Master of Science in Special Education from California Lutheran University (CLU), and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He holds the full complement of teaching and administrative credentials for his field and has earned advanced certifications in district operations. His expertise spans general and special education practice; due process; special needs eligibility and case management; human resources; school site safety and student supervision; personnel evaluation; and district governance and operations.

Dr. Sand is recognized for his depth in curriculum, instruction, and assessment and for an exemplary record at every level of the profession. He has served with distinction as a classroom teacher -- earning selection as a National Teacher of the Year by the Amgen Foundation -- master and mentor teacher, school site administrator, and district leader, and continues to mentor sitting and aspiring school specialists and leaders. That combination of practitioner experience and ongoing mentorship informs how he evaluates cases at the intersection of policy, law, and daily school operations.

Litigation and Expert Witness Services
Dr. Sand serves as an independent educational expert in civil litigation nationwide involving public, charter, and private schools. He maintains a deliberate balance between plaintiff and defense retentions and has been engaged in more than 130 cases across the country. He has testified in depositions, trial proceedings, and declarations in lieu of testimony, and is recognized by retaining counsel for opinions that are thorough, well-reasoned, and defensible. His forensic reviews address standard of care, student support services, safety and supervision, district operations, and matters involving incidents or allegations of student-on-student and student-versus-adult conduct, including those of a sexual nature. Counsel on both sides of the bar value his ability to examine these sensitive cases with rigor, objectivity, and professional care.

Effective analysis in educational litigation requires extensive working knowledge of how schools actually operate, regardless of sector. Dr. Sand brings that depth across public, charter, and private settings, grounded in a career spent assessing student achievement and needs, evaluating instructional and operational programs, and delivering staff development. His reviews account for the statutory compliance obligations, governance principles, and local, state, and federal standards every school is accountable to, along with the collaboration practices that distinguish well-run institutions.

Dr. Sand contracts exclusively through attorneys on behalf of their clients. On a select basis, retaining counsel also engage him to conduct in-depth school reviews and advise on appropriate pre-K through 12 placements where such analysis is central to a matter. Given the scope of that work, he accepts only a limited number of such engagements each year.

Leadership Experience
Dr. Sand brings classroom, site-level, and district leadership experience in both general and special education. He has served as a K-8 classroom and mentor teacher, teacher on special assignment, dean, principal, director, and assistant superintendent. He has led curriculum, instruction, and assessment at the district level, and as a certified Chief Business Official he has been responsible for budgets, operations, risk management, and health and safety programs. He has also held local, county, and statewide roles with professional organizations and public agencies.

Clients describe Dr. Sand as fair, detailed, highly-skilled, understanding, and succinct, qualities that matter in an age of collective accountability across public and private educational settings. He accepts engagements throughout the country.