Dr. Dean E. Konopasek

Dean E. Konopasek received his Ph.D. in special education at Utah State University in 1976. Until his retirement in 2012, he directed the Department of Counseling and Special Education at the University of Alaska Anchorage. His professional interest in issues surrounding psychiatric medications began following graduate school when he became principal of the inpatient school at the Alaska Psychiatric Institute in Anchorage. Observing that teachers, counselors, psychologists, and other nonmedical professionals often had little knowledge regarding the uses and effects (both intended effects and side effects) of psychiatric drugs, Dr. Konopasek developed the first edition of Medication Fact Sheets in 1994. He served as senior author of Research Regarding the Use of Psychopharmacology in the Treatment of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders in the Handbook of Research in Behavioral Disorders (Guilford, 2004). Most recently, he coauthored “Issues and Criteria for the Effective Use of Psychopharmacological Interventions in Schooling,” in the Handbook of Evidence-Based Practices for Emotional and Behavioral Disorders: Applications in Schools (Guilford, 2013). In addition to authoring and contributing to many other publications, Dr. Konopasek has conducted numerous workshops and presentations throughout the United States on the topic of psychopharmacology.