Monday, February 14, 2011
Parents Basic Rights Workshop
Our apologies for needing to cancel the Parents Basic Rights Workshop, scheduled to be presented on Mar 8th. We will be featuring "The Role of the Advocate," on that date instead, which we hope all will enjoy. However, we plan to reschedule the Parents Basic Rights Workshop for November, 2011. Also, if you wish to see the slideshow, please view it at: http://www.slideshare.net/fcsn/basic-rights-in-special-education-2358516.
Monday, February 7, 2011
**NEW DATE FOR “THE ROLE OF AN ADVOCATE”
***NEW DATE DUE TO SCHOOL CLOSING FOR “THE ROLE OF AN ADVOCATE”
Georgetown SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) Meeting
Welcome to the Georgetown PAC: Please join us on Tuesday, March 8, 2011 - The Role of an Advocate – Presented by Sue Terzakis, an FCSN trained Special Education Advocate with the Andover Educational Advocacy Group. Sue’s areas of concentration include Dyslexia/language based LD's, Autism, ADHD, Anxiety Disorders and Early Intervention/turning age 3.
Learn the answers to the following questions:
• When should a parent seek the help of an advocate?
• What sort of services does an advocate perform?
• What sort of issues might a child have that would warrant the support of an advocate?
Bring your own questions to this interactive discussion-based Georgetown SEPAC meeting. Topics covered will include parents’ rights, special education processes, testing and the evaluation process, IEP development, and building positive, constructive relationships between parents and schools.
Do you have specific questions about your child’s IEP? Bring your IEP documents to inquire about statements regarding vision, measurable annual goals, current performance levels, benchmarks/objectives, service delivery, etc.
Please join us at the Penn Brook Library, 7-9pm, Tuesday evening,
March 8th, 2011.
The Georgetown PAC provides informational resources, support and networking to parents of children with special needs or school-related struggles from preschool through high school. We also work closely with the Georgetown Public School administration to advise and assist with the development of the best possible special education programs for our children. Please come, introduce yourself and share with us how the Georgetown PAC can begin to help you to work with the schools to help and assist your special needs child. For more information, please contact Pam Lundquist, 978-352-5407. Also look for the Georgetown SEPAC on Facebook or www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com.
BASIC RIGHTS WORKSHOP WILL BE RESCHEDULED.
Georgetown SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) Meeting
Welcome to the Georgetown PAC: Please join us on Tuesday, March 8, 2011 - The Role of an Advocate – Presented by Sue Terzakis, an FCSN trained Special Education Advocate with the Andover Educational Advocacy Group. Sue’s areas of concentration include Dyslexia/language based LD's, Autism, ADHD, Anxiety Disorders and Early Intervention/turning age 3.
Learn the answers to the following questions:
• When should a parent seek the help of an advocate?
• What sort of services does an advocate perform?
• What sort of issues might a child have that would warrant the support of an advocate?
Bring your own questions to this interactive discussion-based Georgetown SEPAC meeting. Topics covered will include parents’ rights, special education processes, testing and the evaluation process, IEP development, and building positive, constructive relationships between parents and schools.
Do you have specific questions about your child’s IEP? Bring your IEP documents to inquire about statements regarding vision, measurable annual goals, current performance levels, benchmarks/objectives, service delivery, etc.
Please join us at the Penn Brook Library, 7-9pm, Tuesday evening,
March 8th, 2011.
The Georgetown PAC provides informational resources, support and networking to parents of children with special needs or school-related struggles from preschool through high school. We also work closely with the Georgetown Public School administration to advise and assist with the development of the best possible special education programs for our children. Please come, introduce yourself and share with us how the Georgetown PAC can begin to help you to work with the schools to help and assist your special needs child. For more information, please contact Pam Lundquist, 978-352-5407. Also look for the Georgetown SEPAC on Facebook or www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com.
BASIC RIGHTS WORKSHOP WILL BE RESCHEDULED.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Please Join us Feb. 8th for The Role of An Advocate!
February 8, 2011 - The Role of an Advocate – Presented by Sue Terzakis,
Advocate with Andover Educational Advocacy Group. specializing in Dyslexia/language based LD's, Autism, ADHD & Anxiety Disorders. Early Intervention/ turning age 3 and grades K-12. FCSN trained….When should a parent seek the help of an advocate? What sort of services does an advocate perform? What sort of issues might a child have that would warrant the support of an advocate? Learn the answers to these questions, and bring your own questions to this interactive discussion-based Georgetown SEPAC meeting. Topics covered will include parents rights, special education processes, testing and the evaluation process, IEP development, and building positive, constructive relationships between parents and schools. Please join us at the Penn Brook Library, 7-9pm, Tuesday evening, Feb. 8th, 2011.
Advocate with Andover Educational Advocacy Group. specializing in Dyslexia/language based LD's, Autism, ADHD & Anxiety Disorders. Early Intervention/ turning age 3 and grades K-12. FCSN trained….When should a parent seek the help of an advocate? What sort of services does an advocate perform? What sort of issues might a child have that would warrant the support of an advocate? Learn the answers to these questions, and bring your own questions to this interactive discussion-based Georgetown SEPAC meeting. Topics covered will include parents rights, special education processes, testing and the evaluation process, IEP development, and building positive, constructive relationships between parents and schools. Please join us at the Penn Brook Library, 7-9pm, Tuesday evening, Feb. 8th, 2011.
Updated 2011 SEPAC Meeting Schedule
All meetings run from 7-8:30pm in the Penn Brook Library, unless noted otherwise. An updated meeting schedule is as follows (topics may change if necessary, so stay tuned to our blog, the Georgetown Record, and school newsletters/emails & websites):
February 8: The Role of An Advocate, presented by Sue Terzakis, Special Education Advocate
March 8th: Basic Rights Parents Workshop
April 12th: An IEP for My Child, presented by the Federation for Children with Special Needs
6:30-8:30pm
May 10th: The Role of a School Psychologist, presented by Dr. Troy Carr
June 14th: Open Agenda, Special Education Personnel Appreciation
February 8: The Role of An Advocate, presented by Sue Terzakis, Special Education Advocate
March 8th: Basic Rights Parents Workshop
April 12th: An IEP for My Child, presented by the Federation for Children with Special Needs
6:30-8:30pm
May 10th: The Role of a School Psychologist, presented by Dr. Troy Carr
June 14th: Open Agenda, Special Education Personnel Appreciation
SEPAC Meeting Minutes, Jan 11, 2011
Georgetown SEPAC - Special Education Parent Advisory Council
Meeting Minutes, January 11, 2011 -
School Personnel Attendees: David Dempsey, Eileen Lee, Kim Leonard, Bill Adams, Karla Sciuto. Several parents were also present. Dinner served: Green Salad, Pasta Marinara, & Chocolate Cake for Dessert.
Georgetown SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) Meeting
Welcome to the Georgetown PAC: You are cordially invited to a student-prepared Spagetti Dinner, Salad & Dessert on Tuesday evening, January 11, 2011, 6pm, at the GMHS! RSVP please for dinner to Margaret O’Hare, Special Ed Admin Asst. 978-352-5790 x539. Join us afterwards for discussions regarding the pre-referral process, the District Accommodation Plan, Special Education program profiles, program-specific parent advisory committees, or other topics of general interest. The Georgetown PAC provides informational resources, support and networking to parents of children with special needs from preschool through high school. We also work closely with the Georgetown Public School administration to advise and assist with the development of the best possible special education programs for our children. School administrators, including our Director of Special Education, David Dempsey, will be present. Please come, introduce yourself and share with us how the Georgetown PAC can begin to help you to work with the schools to help and assist your special needs child. For more information, please contact Pam Lundquist, 978-352-5407. Also look for the Georgetown SEPAC on Facebook or www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com. Please also find GeorgetownCARES, a community youth substance abuse prevention coalition, at www.georgetowncares.blogspot.com.
Agenda Discussion Topics:
The Pre-Referral Process, The District Accommodation Plan/Modifications & Accommodations
Program development, Program-Specific Parent Advisory Committees, and MCAS.
A BIG THANKS to our Life Skills Class for preparing a super-delicious marinara pasta dinner for us all! Together with a salad and rich chocolate cake dessert, the meal was a special one, greatly enjoyed by everyone! All contributions were greatly appreciated! What talented students we have!
After dinner, all attending parents and special education staff participated in a lively, constructive dialog. Topics included data gathering for student histories, school-to-school breakdowns in communication, the nature of the pre-referral process, the need for coordinated and consistent efforts in the way (specialized) instruction is matched to individual student learning styles. As Mr. Dempsey noted, “The most successful districts in special education are distinguished by consistent practices, protocols, and commonly understood philosophies.”
Meeting attendees discussed ideas and observations in correspondence with the above agenda/discussion topics:
The Pre-referral process was clarified to be technically an area of regular education, comprising all of the steps that are taken before a student is determined to be eligible for an Individualized Education Plan (IEP).
The first person a parent who is concerned about their child’s in-school struggles should contact would be the child’s teacher. The teacher will discuss any difficulties the child is having with the parent. After reviewing the student’s educational strengths and weaknesses, the parent and teacher will agree on a plan of helpful action to be implemented in the classroom. The teacher will record all observations and determine whether the changes are working effectively for the child. Suggestions as to how a parent could support a child at home academically could also be made. A follow up meeting should be scheduled to discuss progress and future steps.
If the agreed upon interventions or accommodations have not helped the student achieve academic progress, a Student Assessment Team (SAT), including the regular education teacher, a special education professional, guidance counselors, or any relevant specialist instructors, will meet to gather and evaluate all student history data. They will confer and recommend classroom interventions and alternative strategies to try to help a student. If the SAT’s recommended strategies are not effective, the referral of the student for a special education evaluation should be considered.
The District Accommodation Plan is a resource in development to provide teachers and parents access to ideas for effective classroom interventions and strategies, matched to particular types of student struggles, that can be implemented by regular or special education teachers. It will serve as a helpful guide – a toolbox - to match regular education, 504, and IEP students who struggle with effective accommodations such as organizational strategies, changes in the physical environment, new instructional materials, graphic organizers, study material summaries, testing arrangements, use of peer tutoring, and so forth. Strategic classroom accommodations may also include multi-modal ways to present curricular materials or finding more appropriate ways for your child to demonstrate what he or she has learned. All of our interventions are aimed at finding ways to teach skills and strategies that will help our students be successful, independent learners in school.
When some type of classroom strategy or intervention has been made, four to six weeks is generally considered an appropriate time to determine whether an accommodation is effective for a struggling child. If a child continues to have difficulty, a referral for special education evaluation should be considered.
Typically, the steps involved in the process of identifying, evaluating & placing children in special education programs may go as follows:
• A concerned teacher or parent sounds the alarm.
• The teacher and parent discuss classroom changes, interventions or accommodations to implement to help the child. If they do not work,
• The student is referred for initial assessment by the Student Assessment Team (SAT).
• The SAT evaluates standardized test scores & classroom performance to further determine appropriate supportive intervention and accommodations. If they do not work,
• The SAT determines suitability for further testing and/or a Special Education Referral for evaluation.
• The student is referred for a comprehensive diagnostic assessment.
• The school psychologist or other specialists if appropriate, such as a speech and language specialist, administer a battery of tests.
• An Individual Educational Plan (IEP) conference is scheduled.
• The qualified child is placed in an appropriate special education program.
• A child who does not qualify as eligible for special education (including a 504 plan) will be followed and supported by the Student Assessment Team (SAT) until the struggles are resolved.
A parent, a teacher or other professional can make a referral for special education evaluation at any time. Providing instructional support cannot be used to delay the evaluation of a student. If a student is referred for an evaluation, the documentation by the teacher and/or Student Assessment Team of the student’s struggles and the classroom accommodations already documented will constitute valuable data and be part of the evaluation information reviewed by the Special Education Department.
Referrals are made by contacting the principal or the school's administrator of special education and asking for an evaluation for special education services eligibility. No matter who makes a referral, the parent must give consent in writing before a special education evaluation can begin. Federal Law requires eligibility be determined within 60 days of the parental consent. The school must contact you within five school days of receiving the referral asking for your written permission to begin the evaluation.
To be eligible for special education, 1) a child must have a disability (in one of ten areas as defined by the US Department of Education), 2) must not be making effective progress as a result of his/her disability, and 3) must need special education services and related services in order to make effective progress. If a child has a disability but is not eligible for special education under IDEA, he or she may be eligible for protections under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The student evaluation should examine all areas of suspected disability and provide a detailed description of your child's educational needs. Not every child with a difficulty or disability qualifies or would benefit from an IEP. And not every difficulty is caused by a disability.
The DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) Program Review was very helpful, all school staff agreed. “We need to know what to fix before we can fix it, now we have a clear plan,” said David Dempsey. Kim Leonard added, “The reviewers shared with us several best practices that we have incorporated into the way we do things, such as how we record data, that have been helpful.” David Dempsey observed, “We have a lot of very good protocols and practices in place already, and we are striving to use them consistently throughout the district, so that everyone shares a common language and understanding. The DESE confirmed for us the importance of several initiatives which we had been and are currently working hard on. We know that failure is not an option on our follow-through. All of our children deserve the best in support and services, and that is what we will provide.”
Bill Adams noted, “Understanding our special-needs students requires looking beneath the surface. Kids who struggle develop amazing coping strategies, some of them constructive, some of them self-defeating. Students will try to hide their struggles, deny their struggles, or manifest behavior designed to take the focus off their difficulties that confuse some adults. We have to help them to feel safe with us, to let them know that we care and we accept their struggles as something all people have in common, in one form or another. When we meet their defensive behavior with support for the student as a person, let them know that we are here to help them, great progress can be made. But not everyone who deals directly with students has had the training to recognize the best response to these kids, how to relate to them in a way that will make a helpful difference.”
Bill Adams further commented, “The learning that can take place with word association and mathematical games is enormous. When you provide for students a fun experience that makes them want to be involved while at the same time compelling them to use challenging strategies around language and numbers, even historical and scientific information, they make so much progress. Encouraging quick fast responses – in an environment where students feel safe and accepted and not alone in their challenge – helps advance their thinking processes. Incorporating such games into a curriculum to more effectively teach the material is not so simple though, it requires much thoughtful advance planning. Learning to do that is part of special education training, but integrating such appropriate games can also work as effective regular education. See how eager kids are to play screen games, add the educational component, and bingo! Kids win! Using games is one example of an area where general and special educators can learn much from each other, and need to learn to be on the same page about.”
David Dempsey explained, “Teachers need support and guidance – more tools - to better understand how to implement accommodations and differentiated instruction (based on students’ unique learning needs) with the goals of expanding a child’s mind, building inner strength and confidence in their abilities, and including the socialization piece. Mr. Pittella’s U2 game is an excellent example of a multi-modal way of teaching that kids really respond to – it builds skills, knowledge, and expands his students’ understanding of the world considerably. Our District Accommodation Plan will be able to help teachers develop their own successful strategies and lesson plans like that.”
“One research-based method to support all teachers in their ability to help students is called Response to Intervention (RTI) Plan. It structures two continuing processes – those of assessment and intervention - into a coordinated multi-level prevention system. Schools that implement this in a coordinated way are able to maximize student achievement and, incidentally, reduce behavior problems. With RTI protocols, schools identify students at risk for poor learning outcomes, monitor student progress, provide evidence-based interventions and adjust the intensity and nature of those interventions depending on a student’s responsiveness. It provides real support for the identification of students with learning disabilities or other disabilities. I would like to get an RTI Plan into the Georgetown District at some point. An RTI plan could directly bolster student achievement by promoting data-based instructional decisions considerably.” More information on RTI can be found at http://www.rti4success.org.
“Basically, we already have most of the pieces of a Response to Intervention (RTI) Plan in place, with our student assessment teams, our district accommodation plan, and our special education protocols and programs. At this point, it is a matter of looking carefully at how best such a program could be put in place and understood within in our particular school district. For example, I believe the school-to-school breakdowns in communication, when not all of a students’ data, particularly with regards to special education, is passed on to where it should go at the child’s next grade level, could be resolved, with protocols clearly defined, within an RTI Plan.”
“With regards to our Special Education Programs, we do want to reach out to parents and involve them with program development. If parents are interested in program-specific parent advisory committees, to advise us on continuous improvement of our programs and how they can best meet student needs, we would certainly support and facilitate that.” Mr. Dempsey noted.
Parents also wanted to discuss MCAS with regard to special education students, and were wondering , “Why is it required that we measure all kids the same with this test? Because ultimately, it results in the fact that a 10th grader who scores in the Needs Improvement category (there are four categories, scored 200-280, which are Warning, Needs Improvement, Proficient, and Advanced), will be required to take the MCAS again in 11th grade to try to achieve a Proficient score. Which can be really demoralizing to the student. He or she has passed the MCAS, they have achieved what they needed to to graduate, but it’s not over for them!”
According to Massachusetts law at present, passing the 10th grade MCAS with a score of 240 or higher in ELA and Mathematics is one requirement for earning a high school diploma. Alternatively, a student who scores a 220-238 (Needs Improvement) and who successfully completes an Educational Proficiency Plan (EPP’s) for ELA or Math, and then retakes the ELA or Math MACS in 11th grade also meets the requirement. Students must also earn a score of 220 or higher on a Science test to meet the graduation requirements; those who don’t need to complete the EPP and retake the Science test in 11th grade as well to graduate.
Mr. Dempsey responded, “The MCAS were first designed to identify poor performing schools to give them the resources to improve. Over time, the tests have evolved and become a tool to measure student performance as well. In a sense, for some students they do encourage using a bigger hammer to get a round peg into a square hole, which often results in damaging the peg. MCAS can become a negative pressure cooker, especially for special education students. It is fundamentally unfair to hold up uniform expectations for a diverse population of students. However, this is the system we have. I would, as a coach, tell a discouraged 10th grader that the benefit of trying again for a 240 is that they will be able to walk out of the process being proud of having worked to achieve their personal best level of performance, and they will gain valuable knowledge in the process that will serve them later on. Tell them that continuously striving for excellence is important, an essential life-skill. That this is what they need to do, but that the pressure is off. They will graduate. It is now about improving their knowledge base and growing as person, to keep on building their strengths.”
The Georgetown PAC plans to meet every first Tuesday evening of the month for the rest of the year. We welcome all parents, whether your child is in regular education, on a 504 or an IEP, and invite you to join us and learn more about how we work together to help our struggling students. All meetings run from 7-8:30pm in the Penn Brook Library, unless noted otherwise, and we aim to end by 8:30. An updated meeting schedule is as follows (topics may change if necessary, so stay tuned to our blog, the Georgetown Record, and school newsletters/emails & websites):
February 8: The Role of An Advocate, presented by Sue Terzakis, Special Education Advocate
March 8th: Basic Rights Parents Workshop
April 12th: An IEP for My Child, presented by the Federation for Children with Special Needs
6:30-8:30pm
May 10th: The Role of a School Psychologist, presented by Dr. Troy Carr
June 14th: Open Agenda, Special Education Personnel Appreciation
Parents, please come to our meeting next month on February 8th and see how much you can learn about advocate services and how to help your children thrive and succeed in our schools. More specific information about future events will be coming out, but you can always find it at www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com.
Respectfully submitted, Pam Lundquist, Georgetown SEPAC Chairperson 1/17/2010
Meeting Minutes, January 11, 2011 -
School Personnel Attendees: David Dempsey, Eileen Lee, Kim Leonard, Bill Adams, Karla Sciuto. Several parents were also present. Dinner served: Green Salad, Pasta Marinara, & Chocolate Cake for Dessert.
Georgetown SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) Meeting
Welcome to the Georgetown PAC: You are cordially invited to a student-prepared Spagetti Dinner, Salad & Dessert on Tuesday evening, January 11, 2011, 6pm, at the GMHS! RSVP please for dinner to Margaret O’Hare, Special Ed Admin Asst. 978-352-5790 x539. Join us afterwards for discussions regarding the pre-referral process, the District Accommodation Plan, Special Education program profiles, program-specific parent advisory committees, or other topics of general interest. The Georgetown PAC provides informational resources, support and networking to parents of children with special needs from preschool through high school. We also work closely with the Georgetown Public School administration to advise and assist with the development of the best possible special education programs for our children. School administrators, including our Director of Special Education, David Dempsey, will be present. Please come, introduce yourself and share with us how the Georgetown PAC can begin to help you to work with the schools to help and assist your special needs child. For more information, please contact Pam Lundquist, 978-352-5407. Also look for the Georgetown SEPAC on Facebook or www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com. Please also find GeorgetownCARES, a community youth substance abuse prevention coalition, at www.georgetowncares.blogspot.com.
Agenda Discussion Topics:
The Pre-Referral Process, The District Accommodation Plan/Modifications & Accommodations
Program development, Program-Specific Parent Advisory Committees, and MCAS.
A BIG THANKS to our Life Skills Class for preparing a super-delicious marinara pasta dinner for us all! Together with a salad and rich chocolate cake dessert, the meal was a special one, greatly enjoyed by everyone! All contributions were greatly appreciated! What talented students we have!
After dinner, all attending parents and special education staff participated in a lively, constructive dialog. Topics included data gathering for student histories, school-to-school breakdowns in communication, the nature of the pre-referral process, the need for coordinated and consistent efforts in the way (specialized) instruction is matched to individual student learning styles. As Mr. Dempsey noted, “The most successful districts in special education are distinguished by consistent practices, protocols, and commonly understood philosophies.”
Meeting attendees discussed ideas and observations in correspondence with the above agenda/discussion topics:
The Pre-referral process was clarified to be technically an area of regular education, comprising all of the steps that are taken before a student is determined to be eligible for an Individualized Education Plan (IEP).
The first person a parent who is concerned about their child’s in-school struggles should contact would be the child’s teacher. The teacher will discuss any difficulties the child is having with the parent. After reviewing the student’s educational strengths and weaknesses, the parent and teacher will agree on a plan of helpful action to be implemented in the classroom. The teacher will record all observations and determine whether the changes are working effectively for the child. Suggestions as to how a parent could support a child at home academically could also be made. A follow up meeting should be scheduled to discuss progress and future steps.
If the agreed upon interventions or accommodations have not helped the student achieve academic progress, a Student Assessment Team (SAT), including the regular education teacher, a special education professional, guidance counselors, or any relevant specialist instructors, will meet to gather and evaluate all student history data. They will confer and recommend classroom interventions and alternative strategies to try to help a student. If the SAT’s recommended strategies are not effective, the referral of the student for a special education evaluation should be considered.
The District Accommodation Plan is a resource in development to provide teachers and parents access to ideas for effective classroom interventions and strategies, matched to particular types of student struggles, that can be implemented by regular or special education teachers. It will serve as a helpful guide – a toolbox - to match regular education, 504, and IEP students who struggle with effective accommodations such as organizational strategies, changes in the physical environment, new instructional materials, graphic organizers, study material summaries, testing arrangements, use of peer tutoring, and so forth. Strategic classroom accommodations may also include multi-modal ways to present curricular materials or finding more appropriate ways for your child to demonstrate what he or she has learned. All of our interventions are aimed at finding ways to teach skills and strategies that will help our students be successful, independent learners in school.
When some type of classroom strategy or intervention has been made, four to six weeks is generally considered an appropriate time to determine whether an accommodation is effective for a struggling child. If a child continues to have difficulty, a referral for special education evaluation should be considered.
Typically, the steps involved in the process of identifying, evaluating & placing children in special education programs may go as follows:
• A concerned teacher or parent sounds the alarm.
• The teacher and parent discuss classroom changes, interventions or accommodations to implement to help the child. If they do not work,
• The student is referred for initial assessment by the Student Assessment Team (SAT).
• The SAT evaluates standardized test scores & classroom performance to further determine appropriate supportive intervention and accommodations. If they do not work,
• The SAT determines suitability for further testing and/or a Special Education Referral for evaluation.
• The student is referred for a comprehensive diagnostic assessment.
• The school psychologist or other specialists if appropriate, such as a speech and language specialist, administer a battery of tests.
• An Individual Educational Plan (IEP) conference is scheduled.
• The qualified child is placed in an appropriate special education program.
• A child who does not qualify as eligible for special education (including a 504 plan) will be followed and supported by the Student Assessment Team (SAT) until the struggles are resolved.
A parent, a teacher or other professional can make a referral for special education evaluation at any time. Providing instructional support cannot be used to delay the evaluation of a student. If a student is referred for an evaluation, the documentation by the teacher and/or Student Assessment Team of the student’s struggles and the classroom accommodations already documented will constitute valuable data and be part of the evaluation information reviewed by the Special Education Department.
Referrals are made by contacting the principal or the school's administrator of special education and asking for an evaluation for special education services eligibility. No matter who makes a referral, the parent must give consent in writing before a special education evaluation can begin. Federal Law requires eligibility be determined within 60 days of the parental consent. The school must contact you within five school days of receiving the referral asking for your written permission to begin the evaluation.
To be eligible for special education, 1) a child must have a disability (in one of ten areas as defined by the US Department of Education), 2) must not be making effective progress as a result of his/her disability, and 3) must need special education services and related services in order to make effective progress. If a child has a disability but is not eligible for special education under IDEA, he or she may be eligible for protections under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The student evaluation should examine all areas of suspected disability and provide a detailed description of your child's educational needs. Not every child with a difficulty or disability qualifies or would benefit from an IEP. And not every difficulty is caused by a disability.
The DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) Program Review was very helpful, all school staff agreed. “We need to know what to fix before we can fix it, now we have a clear plan,” said David Dempsey. Kim Leonard added, “The reviewers shared with us several best practices that we have incorporated into the way we do things, such as how we record data, that have been helpful.” David Dempsey observed, “We have a lot of very good protocols and practices in place already, and we are striving to use them consistently throughout the district, so that everyone shares a common language and understanding. The DESE confirmed for us the importance of several initiatives which we had been and are currently working hard on. We know that failure is not an option on our follow-through. All of our children deserve the best in support and services, and that is what we will provide.”
Bill Adams noted, “Understanding our special-needs students requires looking beneath the surface. Kids who struggle develop amazing coping strategies, some of them constructive, some of them self-defeating. Students will try to hide their struggles, deny their struggles, or manifest behavior designed to take the focus off their difficulties that confuse some adults. We have to help them to feel safe with us, to let them know that we care and we accept their struggles as something all people have in common, in one form or another. When we meet their defensive behavior with support for the student as a person, let them know that we are here to help them, great progress can be made. But not everyone who deals directly with students has had the training to recognize the best response to these kids, how to relate to them in a way that will make a helpful difference.”
Bill Adams further commented, “The learning that can take place with word association and mathematical games is enormous. When you provide for students a fun experience that makes them want to be involved while at the same time compelling them to use challenging strategies around language and numbers, even historical and scientific information, they make so much progress. Encouraging quick fast responses – in an environment where students feel safe and accepted and not alone in their challenge – helps advance their thinking processes. Incorporating such games into a curriculum to more effectively teach the material is not so simple though, it requires much thoughtful advance planning. Learning to do that is part of special education training, but integrating such appropriate games can also work as effective regular education. See how eager kids are to play screen games, add the educational component, and bingo! Kids win! Using games is one example of an area where general and special educators can learn much from each other, and need to learn to be on the same page about.”
David Dempsey explained, “Teachers need support and guidance – more tools - to better understand how to implement accommodations and differentiated instruction (based on students’ unique learning needs) with the goals of expanding a child’s mind, building inner strength and confidence in their abilities, and including the socialization piece. Mr. Pittella’s U2 game is an excellent example of a multi-modal way of teaching that kids really respond to – it builds skills, knowledge, and expands his students’ understanding of the world considerably. Our District Accommodation Plan will be able to help teachers develop their own successful strategies and lesson plans like that.”
“One research-based method to support all teachers in their ability to help students is called Response to Intervention (RTI) Plan. It structures two continuing processes – those of assessment and intervention - into a coordinated multi-level prevention system. Schools that implement this in a coordinated way are able to maximize student achievement and, incidentally, reduce behavior problems. With RTI protocols, schools identify students at risk for poor learning outcomes, monitor student progress, provide evidence-based interventions and adjust the intensity and nature of those interventions depending on a student’s responsiveness. It provides real support for the identification of students with learning disabilities or other disabilities. I would like to get an RTI Plan into the Georgetown District at some point. An RTI plan could directly bolster student achievement by promoting data-based instructional decisions considerably.” More information on RTI can be found at http://www.rti4success.org.
“Basically, we already have most of the pieces of a Response to Intervention (RTI) Plan in place, with our student assessment teams, our district accommodation plan, and our special education protocols and programs. At this point, it is a matter of looking carefully at how best such a program could be put in place and understood within in our particular school district. For example, I believe the school-to-school breakdowns in communication, when not all of a students’ data, particularly with regards to special education, is passed on to where it should go at the child’s next grade level, could be resolved, with protocols clearly defined, within an RTI Plan.”
“With regards to our Special Education Programs, we do want to reach out to parents and involve them with program development. If parents are interested in program-specific parent advisory committees, to advise us on continuous improvement of our programs and how they can best meet student needs, we would certainly support and facilitate that.” Mr. Dempsey noted.
Parents also wanted to discuss MCAS with regard to special education students, and were wondering , “Why is it required that we measure all kids the same with this test? Because ultimately, it results in the fact that a 10th grader who scores in the Needs Improvement category (there are four categories, scored 200-280, which are Warning, Needs Improvement, Proficient, and Advanced), will be required to take the MCAS again in 11th grade to try to achieve a Proficient score. Which can be really demoralizing to the student. He or she has passed the MCAS, they have achieved what they needed to to graduate, but it’s not over for them!”
According to Massachusetts law at present, passing the 10th grade MCAS with a score of 240 or higher in ELA and Mathematics is one requirement for earning a high school diploma. Alternatively, a student who scores a 220-238 (Needs Improvement) and who successfully completes an Educational Proficiency Plan (EPP’s) for ELA or Math, and then retakes the ELA or Math MACS in 11th grade also meets the requirement. Students must also earn a score of 220 or higher on a Science test to meet the graduation requirements; those who don’t need to complete the EPP and retake the Science test in 11th grade as well to graduate.
Mr. Dempsey responded, “The MCAS were first designed to identify poor performing schools to give them the resources to improve. Over time, the tests have evolved and become a tool to measure student performance as well. In a sense, for some students they do encourage using a bigger hammer to get a round peg into a square hole, which often results in damaging the peg. MCAS can become a negative pressure cooker, especially for special education students. It is fundamentally unfair to hold up uniform expectations for a diverse population of students. However, this is the system we have. I would, as a coach, tell a discouraged 10th grader that the benefit of trying again for a 240 is that they will be able to walk out of the process being proud of having worked to achieve their personal best level of performance, and they will gain valuable knowledge in the process that will serve them later on. Tell them that continuously striving for excellence is important, an essential life-skill. That this is what they need to do, but that the pressure is off. They will graduate. It is now about improving their knowledge base and growing as person, to keep on building their strengths.”
The Georgetown PAC plans to meet every first Tuesday evening of the month for the rest of the year. We welcome all parents, whether your child is in regular education, on a 504 or an IEP, and invite you to join us and learn more about how we work together to help our struggling students. All meetings run from 7-8:30pm in the Penn Brook Library, unless noted otherwise, and we aim to end by 8:30. An updated meeting schedule is as follows (topics may change if necessary, so stay tuned to our blog, the Georgetown Record, and school newsletters/emails & websites):
February 8: The Role of An Advocate, presented by Sue Terzakis, Special Education Advocate
March 8th: Basic Rights Parents Workshop
April 12th: An IEP for My Child, presented by the Federation for Children with Special Needs
6:30-8:30pm
May 10th: The Role of a School Psychologist, presented by Dr. Troy Carr
June 14th: Open Agenda, Special Education Personnel Appreciation
Parents, please come to our meeting next month on February 8th and see how much you can learn about advocate services and how to help your children thrive and succeed in our schools. More specific information about future events will be coming out, but you can always find it at www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com.
Respectfully submitted, Pam Lundquist, Georgetown SEPAC Chairperson 1/17/2010
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Georgetown SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) Meeting
Welcome to the Georgetown PAC: You are cordially invited to a student-prepared Spagetti Dinner, Salad & Dessert on Tuesday evening, January 11, 2011, 6pm, at the GMHS! RSVP please for dinner to Margaret O’Hare, Special Ed Admin Asst. 978-352-5790 x539. Join us afterwards for discussions regarding the pre-referral process, Special Education program profiles, modifications and accommodations, program-specific parent advisory committees, or other topics of general interest. The Georgetown PAC provides informational resources, support and networking to parents of children with special needs from preschool through high school. We also work closely with the Georgetown Public School administration to advise and assist with the development of the best possible special education programs for our children. School administrators, including our Director of Special Education, David Dempsey, will be present. Please come, introduce yourself and share with us how the Georgetown PAC can begin to help you to work with the schools to help and assist your special needs child. For more information, please contact Pam Lundquist, 978-352-5407. Also look for the Georgetown SEPAC on Facebook or www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Dec. 7th Meeting Minutes
Georgetown SEPAC - Special Education Parent Advisory Council
Meeting Minutes, December 7, 2010
Welcome to the PAC: An informal Meet & Greet between parents and special education school personnel. Key Speaker: Mr. David Dempsey, Director of Special Education.
School Personnel Attendees: David Dempsey, Eileen Lee, Kim Leonard, Jan Downing, Amy Gusso, Jamie Hansen, Audrey Proctor, Beth Greenhagen, Donna Tanner, Carol Jacobs. Several parents were also present.
Agenda topics included staff and parent introductions, the school district’s philosophy for special education, new program development, DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) Program Review – results and recommendations, parent questions and ideas for future PAC activity.
Pam Lundquist opened the meeting by welcoming everyone and introduced herself as the new SEPAC Chairperson. “I’m excited about the opportunities our organization has to reach out to special education parents, to get to know them and their children, and to serve as supportive network. Parents are the most powerful advocates our children with special needs have, and we can be more effective working together, with each other, with the schools, than alone.” Mrs. Lundquist offered to assume the chairperson position when the previous chairperson, Lisa Woodford, found her career successfully growing in a way that prevented her from devoting as much time as she wanted to the Georgetown SEPAC.
“I have been involved with the Georgetown SEPAC for several years, and especially enjoy getting to know other member parents. The children in particular benefit when parents reach out to each other, sharing their experience and hope. We plan to produce a collaborative SEPAC/Special Education newsletter to give parents tools and strategies to effectively support their children. Also, this is a great time to get involved in SEPAC because special education programs are now being improved and developed by our schools. Some programs are new, some have been in existence for a while, but all can benefit from parental input, ideas and feedback through the Georgetown SEPAC. With greater open dialog between the SEPAC, the school district and all parents, special education program quality is sure to grow. Stronger connections and relationships among all concerned can result in powerful improvements.” Mrs. Lundquist said.
Mr. David Dempsey, Georgetown’s Director of Special Education, agrees. “This is an exciting time for Special Education in Georgetown, because we have been developing several new programs, improving others, and bringing greater consistency to our best practices and comprehensive approaches district-wide. Our programs strive to incorporate cutting-edge components used by well-respected schools in special education, such as Melmark and Landmark. We hope that our new in-house programs will bring a higher level of specialized design instruction to all of our Georgetown students who need it, and share effective teaching practices and accommodations throughout our regular education system to help all students.
Our Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Program includes pre-K-12th, with Lifeskills at the High School, and the Compass Program at the Middle School. Program components include highly structured, individualized programming, intensive communication and language training, social skills training. Instructional strategies are based on direct data and positive reinforcement, as part of our Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) approach, a renowned and effective system of autism treatment. This summer 14 of our staff members were trained at Melmark, one of the leading schools in Autism. Beth Greenhagen, our (board-certified) Behavioral Analyst, helps to write our program curriculum. Other communities are taking notice of this program and we have had inquiries about choicing in students.
Our Language Based Program (LBP), which is also a comprehensive Pre-K through 12th grade program, is a new initiative this year. This program addresses the needs of students with moderate to severe language learning disabilities. Thirteen of our staff members were trained for the program at The Landmark School this summer. Our LBP is primarily an inclusion program built around Special Designed Instruction (SDI). We are adopting best practices for this program which have already been very successful in other districts. A self-esteem and self-advocacy component is also an integral part of the program. Curriculum is designed to parallel the regular education curriculum but is modified to meet the individual needs of the students. A big push is encouraging the use of language-based strategies that will help all students in regular education classes.
A new Social-Emotional Program has been implemented at both the middle school and the high school, to serve those special education students exhibiting high anxiety, depression, social adjustment difficulties, or other social-emotional problems that impede their learning. It attempts to create a safe environment so that students can experience success both academically and social-emotionally, with the goal of becoming integrated, responsible members of the school community. Our new school psychologist, Dr. Troy Carr, has been instrumental in developing this program, and he does work directly with students as part of it.
Each school district and charter school in the Commonwealth is scheduled to receive a Coordinated Program Review every six years and a mid-cycle special education follow-up visit three years after the Coordinated Program Review. Georgetown’s 2010 DESE Program Review yielded interesting results that will greatly help us with our new program development. Out of 59 criterion, we were cited on 15, all of which were “partially implemented.” Both staff members and parents were interviewed for the review, and files and practices were looked at going back for six years.
DESE Program Review reports are available for every public school district, including Georgetown, on www.doe.mass.edu/pqa/review/cpr/reports/ .
One of our biggest issues cited was that in some cases we were using “cookie-cutter” student assessments. This occurred at times because the outside consultants we used were not able to access student history in such way as to be able to select the most appropriate assessments for our students. It was partly in response to this that our schools have brought in Dr. Troy Carr as our district Psychologist, as he is very experienced at selecting, conducting and interpreting student assessment instruments.
Another issue we were cited on was a deficiency in presenting student history. Up until recently, every school was recording student data in their own way, some more completely than others. We are now working hard to develop a district-wide process, using teacher data teams to collaborate on new methods of student data collection.
We are also looking to bring together a district-wide pre-referral process, which all of our schools will have in common. Much of this is already in place, utilizing Student Assessment Teams (SATs) that come together when a student is observed as seriously struggling with something. The team will consist of all relevant staff members, including the student’s regular education teachers, guidance counselors and any relevant specialists. Parents are notified, or perhaps parents may call for a team to come together. The SAT evaluates the student’s difficulties with data and observations, and then works to come up with strategies, accommodations, and interventions to help. The SAT will make use of our District Accommodation Plan (DAP), which helps administrators identify appropriate accommodations or classroom strategies to solve the problem. Ultimately, whether or not the child ends up with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), we will have strengthened our understanding and assessment of the child’s educational needs. Not every child with a difficulty or disability qualifies or would benefit from an IEP. And not every difficulty is caused by a disability.
We want every child to succeed. All of our programs and interventions are aimed at finding ways to teach skills and strategies that will help our students be successful,
independent learners in school. Our goal is to teach students strategies that will help them to learn, to understand what academic tools and skills work best for them, and to advocate for themselves. All of the students, regular and special education students are our children, and we are here to help and support them all,” noted Mr. Dempsey.
A schedule of Georgetown PAC meetings over the coming year was distributed; it includes one meeting each month, featuring an Advocate Roundtable, a meeting focused in-depth on special education programs and procedures of interest within our schools, An IEP for my child, a Parents Rights Workshop and IDEA 2004, and a workshop held by our school psychologist, Dr. Troy Carr, to explain his role, various assessments, how data drives educational focus, and our new social-emotional programs for special education.
Future 2011 dates include the 2nd Tuesday nights of each month: January 11th, Feb 8th, March 8th, April 12th, May 10th, June 14th.
The SEPAC’s next meeting is scheduled for January 11, 2011, and, depending on attendance, will include spagetti dinner made by Georgetown students. A more in-depth look at programs and services of specific interest to attendees, such as district accommodation plans, parent advisory committees for specific programs, and pre-referral procedures will be featured. “We hope to include all parents looking to become powerful advocates for their children at SEPAC meetings in the future. Please come next month and see how much you can learn about how to help your children thrive and succeed in our schools. More specific information about future events will be coming out, but you can always find it at www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com., said Mrs. Lundquist.
Meeting Minutes, December 7, 2010
Welcome to the PAC: An informal Meet & Greet between parents and special education school personnel. Key Speaker: Mr. David Dempsey, Director of Special Education.
School Personnel Attendees: David Dempsey, Eileen Lee, Kim Leonard, Jan Downing, Amy Gusso, Jamie Hansen, Audrey Proctor, Beth Greenhagen, Donna Tanner, Carol Jacobs. Several parents were also present.
Agenda topics included staff and parent introductions, the school district’s philosophy for special education, new program development, DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) Program Review – results and recommendations, parent questions and ideas for future PAC activity.
Pam Lundquist opened the meeting by welcoming everyone and introduced herself as the new SEPAC Chairperson. “I’m excited about the opportunities our organization has to reach out to special education parents, to get to know them and their children, and to serve as supportive network. Parents are the most powerful advocates our children with special needs have, and we can be more effective working together, with each other, with the schools, than alone.” Mrs. Lundquist offered to assume the chairperson position when the previous chairperson, Lisa Woodford, found her career successfully growing in a way that prevented her from devoting as much time as she wanted to the Georgetown SEPAC.
“I have been involved with the Georgetown SEPAC for several years, and especially enjoy getting to know other member parents. The children in particular benefit when parents reach out to each other, sharing their experience and hope. We plan to produce a collaborative SEPAC/Special Education newsletter to give parents tools and strategies to effectively support their children. Also, this is a great time to get involved in SEPAC because special education programs are now being improved and developed by our schools. Some programs are new, some have been in existence for a while, but all can benefit from parental input, ideas and feedback through the Georgetown SEPAC. With greater open dialog between the SEPAC, the school district and all parents, special education program quality is sure to grow. Stronger connections and relationships among all concerned can result in powerful improvements.” Mrs. Lundquist said.
Mr. David Dempsey, Georgetown’s Director of Special Education, agrees. “This is an exciting time for Special Education in Georgetown, because we have been developing several new programs, improving others, and bringing greater consistency to our best practices and comprehensive approaches district-wide. Our programs strive to incorporate cutting-edge components used by well-respected schools in special education, such as Melmark and Landmark. We hope that our new in-house programs will bring a higher level of specialized design instruction to all of our Georgetown students who need it, and share effective teaching practices and accommodations throughout our regular education system to help all students.
Our Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Program includes pre-K-12th, with Lifeskills at the High School, and the Compass Program at the Middle School. Program components include highly structured, individualized programming, intensive communication and language training, social skills training. Instructional strategies are based on direct data and positive reinforcement, as part of our Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) approach, a renowned and effective system of autism treatment. This summer 14 of our staff members were trained at Melmark, one of the leading schools in Autism. Beth Greenhagen, our (board-certified) Behavioral Analyst, helps to write our program curriculum. Other communities are taking notice of this program and we have had inquiries about choicing in students.
Our Language Based Program (LBP), which is also a comprehensive Pre-K through 12th grade program, is a new initiative this year. This program addresses the needs of students with moderate to severe language learning disabilities. Thirteen of our staff members were trained for the program at The Landmark School this summer. Our LBP is primarily an inclusion program built around Special Designed Instruction (SDI). We are adopting best practices for this program which have already been very successful in other districts. A self-esteem and self-advocacy component is also an integral part of the program. Curriculum is designed to parallel the regular education curriculum but is modified to meet the individual needs of the students. A big push is encouraging the use of language-based strategies that will help all students in regular education classes.
A new Social-Emotional Program has been implemented at both the middle school and the high school, to serve those special education students exhibiting high anxiety, depression, social adjustment difficulties, or other social-emotional problems that impede their learning. It attempts to create a safe environment so that students can experience success both academically and social-emotionally, with the goal of becoming integrated, responsible members of the school community. Our new school psychologist, Dr. Troy Carr, has been instrumental in developing this program, and he does work directly with students as part of it.
Each school district and charter school in the Commonwealth is scheduled to receive a Coordinated Program Review every six years and a mid-cycle special education follow-up visit three years after the Coordinated Program Review. Georgetown’s 2010 DESE Program Review yielded interesting results that will greatly help us with our new program development. Out of 59 criterion, we were cited on 15, all of which were “partially implemented.” Both staff members and parents were interviewed for the review, and files and practices were looked at going back for six years.
DESE Program Review reports are available for every public school district, including Georgetown, on www.doe.mass.edu/pqa/review/cpr/reports/ .
One of our biggest issues cited was that in some cases we were using “cookie-cutter” student assessments. This occurred at times because the outside consultants we used were not able to access student history in such way as to be able to select the most appropriate assessments for our students. It was partly in response to this that our schools have brought in Dr. Troy Carr as our district Psychologist, as he is very experienced at selecting, conducting and interpreting student assessment instruments.
Another issue we were cited on was a deficiency in presenting student history. Up until recently, every school was recording student data in their own way, some more completely than others. We are now working hard to develop a district-wide process, using teacher data teams to collaborate on new methods of student data collection.
We are also looking to bring together a district-wide pre-referral process, which all of our schools will have in common. Much of this is already in place, utilizing Student Assessment Teams (SATs) that come together when a student is observed as seriously struggling with something. The team will consist of all relevant staff members, including the student’s regular education teachers, guidance counselors and any relevant specialists. Parents are notified, or perhaps parents may call for a team to come together. The SAT evaluates the student’s difficulties with data and observations, and then works to come up with strategies, accommodations, and interventions to help. The SAT will make use of our District Accommodation Plan (DAP), which helps administrators identify appropriate accommodations or classroom strategies to solve the problem. Ultimately, whether or not the child ends up with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), we will have strengthened our understanding and assessment of the child’s educational needs. Not every child with a difficulty or disability qualifies or would benefit from an IEP. And not every difficulty is caused by a disability.
We want every child to succeed. All of our programs and interventions are aimed at finding ways to teach skills and strategies that will help our students be successful,
independent learners in school. Our goal is to teach students strategies that will help them to learn, to understand what academic tools and skills work best for them, and to advocate for themselves. All of the students, regular and special education students are our children, and we are here to help and support them all,” noted Mr. Dempsey.
A schedule of Georgetown PAC meetings over the coming year was distributed; it includes one meeting each month, featuring an Advocate Roundtable, a meeting focused in-depth on special education programs and procedures of interest within our schools, An IEP for my child, a Parents Rights Workshop and IDEA 2004, and a workshop held by our school psychologist, Dr. Troy Carr, to explain his role, various assessments, how data drives educational focus, and our new social-emotional programs for special education.
Future 2011 dates include the 2nd Tuesday nights of each month: January 11th, Feb 8th, March 8th, April 12th, May 10th, June 14th.
The SEPAC’s next meeting is scheduled for January 11, 2011, and, depending on attendance, will include spagetti dinner made by Georgetown students. A more in-depth look at programs and services of specific interest to attendees, such as district accommodation plans, parent advisory committees for specific programs, and pre-referral procedures will be featured. “We hope to include all parents looking to become powerful advocates for their children at SEPAC meetings in the future. Please come next month and see how much you can learn about how to help your children thrive and succeed in our schools. More specific information about future events will be coming out, but you can always find it at www.georgetownsepac.blogspot.com., said Mrs. Lundquist.
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