Linda Sharpe, M.S. - Director and Founder of Testing To Grow

Linda Sharpe is an educational diagnostician certified by the Texas Education Agency. Her undergraduate studies were conducted at the University of Washington in Seattle and the University of Texas at Austin. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education with Honors from the University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Science degree in Special Education from Texas A&M University, Commerce. Professional certifications include Elementary Education, Learning Disabilities, Educational Diagnostician, and Supervision. Post Master’s work was conducted in the doctoral program in the Department of Communication Disorders at the University of Texas at Dallas.

Linda’s career in education spans three decades, including one year as a teacher in Dallas ISD and twenty–nine years in Highland Park ISD in Dallas. Her positions included elementary education teacher, special education teacher, and educational diagnostician (kindergarten through 12th grade). Linda is a trained academic language therapist in phonics–based, multisensory reading programs. For twenty years, she practiced remedial Dyslexia therapy in classrooms, small groups, and individual sessions.

After retirement from public school service, Linda was named Assistant Director of Shelton Evaluation Center in Dallas. She served on a research team conducting dyslexia research for the Luke Waites Child Development Center of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital. She served on the Accreditation Committee for the International Multisensory Structured Language Education Council (IMSLEC). Linda has been an active memory of the International Dyslexia Association (IDA) for over twenty years, serving as Vice President and President of the Dallas Branch.

Testing to Grow, Linda’s private diagnostic practice, was established over twenty years ago. Psychoeducational evaluations are conducted for ages five through adulthood. In addition to a private office, Testing to Grow is an affiliate of Girls to Women/Young Men’s Health and Wellness medical practice.

Cristen Parks, M.S., LPA, LSSP, Licensed Psychological Associate, Licensed Specialist in School Psychology

Cristen Parks is a Licensed Psychological Associate with Independent Practice, as well as a Licensed Specialist in School Psychology. She is licensed by the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychology. Her undergraduate studies were conducted at Texas A&M University, College Station, from which she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She holds a Master of Science degree of School Psychology from Texas A&M University, Commerce.

Cristen has over fifteen years of experience conducting psychoeducational evaluations for special education in the public school setting, specializing in Autism and Early Childhood. She served as a Licensed Specialist in School Psychology for Dallas ISD (2006–2015), where she conducted emotional/behavioral evaluations, provided behavioral consultation, and facilitated individualized educational planning for a culturally and economically diverse student population.

Since 2015, Cristen has served as a Licensed Specialist in School Psychology for Frisco ISD. She works with the district’s preschool evaluation team that conducts hundreds of evaluations each year for the district–wide Early Childhood School. Cristen represents Frisco ISD as an expert in the early identification of Autism, as well as other learning, emotional, and behavioral disabilities with the potential to negatively impact a child’s learning.

Cristen is excited to broaden her diagnostic experiences in the private sector as a part of Testing to Grow.

"A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions."
– Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.