SPecial EDition
SWEETWATER UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT - Special Services
MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR
Wow, 2016! I’m in the middle of my 10th year as Director of Special Services and cannot believe how time has flown! I must be having fun, right?
Here are some events happening around the world in 2016:
· NASA’s Juno spacecraft, launched in 2011, finally arrives on Mars.
· Switzerland opens the Gotthard Base Tunnel, the largest railway tunnel in the world
(94 miles)!
· England begins manufacturing plastic-based currency.
· Mary-Kate and Ashley turn 30.
· Cher turns 70.
· Yoko Ono releases her new album, “Yes, I’m a Witch Too.”
What will be happening in your world? Special Services is expecting:
· More precise placement recommendations for students matriculating from the elementary schools.
· Continued improvement in our IEP compliance and quality (I hope you saw that our first round results went up from 40 to 60%!).
· Increased district-wide implementation of Universal Design for Learning (UDL).
· Increased student facility with the designated supports and accommodations available on the SBAC.
· Continued collaboration between general education and special education teachers assigned to Inclusion (Co-Teach and Collaboration) sections.
· At least four new babies! (Susanne Creighton, Casey Phin, Sharon Messier, and Nadia Braun.)
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As you know, this past December Congress passed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). It takes the place of NCLB. The ESSA continues the mandate that students with disabilities have access to the general education program to as great an extent as possible, along with any essential supports and accommodations needed for success. UDL, cited above, is explicitly cited as an essential component to an accessible general education program. Further, any intervention programs adopted must be proven effective with under performing subgroups, including students with disabilities. Finally, the ESSA includes provisions to improve school conditions for learning, which includes reducing bullying and harassment, redirecting school disciple to build skills rather than punish, and significantly reduce the use of restraints and seclusion.
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You may be aware that our Transition Partnership Program resource teacher, Joe Prosapio, took an administrative position in the Chula Vista Elementary School District. We have hired Kristina Josafat, formally of Sweetwater High School, in his place. Kristina has hit the ground running, meeting her students and connecting them with community employment. Welcome, Kristina!
Family Fun Day
Submitted by Bob McKinney
On February 6, the National Stuttering Association hosted its third annual Family Fun Day in San Diego at Garfield Elementary School. The event has been growing steadily, and this year about 75 people attended, including people who stutter, their families, and SLPs. The National Stuttering Association (NSA) and the Stuttering Foundation are the two largest non-profit organizations in our country that focus on providing information and outreach related to stuttering, and the NSA is famous for its local and national events that bring people together to share their experiences. Their annual convention, which will be held in Atlanta this summer, generally attracts nearly 1,000 attendees, and the large crowds at these events provide strong support for their motto “if you stutter, you are not alone.”
This year’s event in San Diego was attended by two special guests from the Sweetwater School district, a Bonita Vista Middle schooler, and the Stuttering Support Group’s very own Aaron Ferguson. Aaron is a substitute teacher and football coach in the district, and he is a key figure in our monthly Stuttering Support Group sessions, where he counsels teens who stutter and serves as a role model for them. He attended the event with his wife and mother and joined a panel of teens and adults who stutter to answer questions from parents in the audience. The panelists shared a variety of experiences, but they tended to come back to the same point – stuttering is a part of who they are. Once they accepted this, they were able to move forward with the understanding that they had no need to fear negative reactions that are based in ignorance not superiority. Aaron was also reunited with his speech therapist from over twenty years ago, Marcelle Richardson, who lit up when she saw him and expressed pride in his efforts to guide students who may feel they have to face these challenges on their own.
For more information:
National Stuttering Association: www.westutter.org
The Stuttering Foundation: www.stutteringhelp.org
SEIS STUFF
* If you did not delete your old goals in December, please delete them now.
* If you have not done so yet, please schedule the rest of your IEP's for this year and be sure that your psych. secretary is informed of the dates.
* If a parent does not show up for an IEP meeting, or does not sign the signature page, you should still have the rest of the attendees sign the signature page and submit it to the psych. secretary. All subsequent meetings for this IEP will be done by AMENDMENT only.
CONGRATULATIONS ROSANNA SANTOS
Our very own, Rosanna Santos has been selected as Sweetwater's Outstanding Special Education Employee for 2015-16. She will be presented with her award during a ceremony at the South County SELPA Art Show on February 25 at 4:30 p.m. I hope you can join us in celebrating her award! The Art Show will be held downstairs at the South County Regional Education Center (SCREC) in National City. The entire ceremony should take no more than one hour.
Congratulations Rosanna!
Important Dates To Remember
March 4 or March 11, 2016 - District IA Training ( 12:30 - 2:30 At PDC)
Canvas Special Services
https://sweetwaterschools.instructure.com/courses/1028949/pages/growth-mindset