Cathy Collins Block, Ph.D., is a Professor of Education at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. She is a member of the Board of Directors and/or Editorial Boards for the American Psychological Association, International Reading Association, and National Reading Conference. Cathy was the recipient of the prestigious Paul A. Witty Award for Meritorious Service from International Reading Association (1998), received the Texas Christian University Chancellor’s Award for Distinguished Research (2005), the highest award the University affords faculty, elected to the Board of Directors for the International Reading Association (2002-2005), and has been honored as one of the Outstanding People of the 20th Century, 2000 Outstanding Intellectuals of the 20th Century, Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers, and Who’s Who in the World.
Cathy has written 29 research-based books for educators’ professional development and college textbooks. She is an author of the Stanford Early School Achievement Test (The Psychological Corporation), and has written more than 90 research articles. She has served on the National Faculty for the University of Notre Dame, University of Oklahoma, University of Nebraska, and Monmouth University. She was the Chairperson of the National Commission to Infuse Thinking Development into the Curriculum (Washington, DC., 1991–92). Cathy has also served as a consultant to numerous school districts in the United States, Canada, Germany, Hungary, Russia, Finland, as well as several corporations and government agencies including the U.S. Department of Commerce, Wishbone, PBS Series, Walt Disney, and IBM.
She is the coauthor with John Mangieri of The Vocabulary-Enriched Classroom: Practices for Improving the Reading Performance of All Students in Grades 3 and Up (Scholastic 2006) and Powerful Vocabulary for Reading Success (Scholastic, 2005)