Hello,

We made it through the first month of 2022! As you are probably aware, campuses and families were hit with illness when we returned from the holidays. We hope you are all doing well now and that we can move forward into a healthy and safe next few months.

Thank you to those of you that reached out to provide suggestions for our Parent Newsletter. This is YOUR newsletter and we want it to include what YOU need. If you have a suggestion or need, you can let us know by using the Suggestion Box at the bottom of this newsletter.

We hope that you continue to enjoy the Special Education Parent Newsletter.

Better Together,

Nadine Hogan

Our SE-PLC now has its own place on our DSISD Website. You can click below to access that page or you can access it from the main website by selecting:

• Departments from the top bar on the website
• Special Services from the drop-down
• Special Education tab on the left
• Special Education Parent Leadership Committee under the Special Education section

Our website is a work in progress. We are hoping this will be the ultimate resource for our DSISD families.

Per a parent's suggestion, we would like to share some information regarding guardianship.

Guardianship is a legal process designed to protect people at risk of abuse, neglect, and exploitation. It removes rights and privileges from a person determined to be “incapacitated” under State law. The process involves the court system and an attorney. Guardianship may be full (whereby all rights and privileges are removed) or may be partial (where some rights are assigned to the person with a disability – like the right to vote, marry, or choose where they live).

Below is a link to the Texas First Project that provides more information on guardianship as well as links to documents you may find helpful.

It is often difficult for parents to imagine the day that their student will graduate high school and will no longer have the support of the school team. However, it is NEVER too early to think about the future for your child. Below is a link to The Garrett Center on Transition and Disability Studies which is an incredible resource for all things regarding transition. There are resources for parents as well as educators. We hope to provide some training or parent information nights regarding transition very soon. Start planning now!

There are two parent training opportunities coming up this month. While these pieces of training are noted as Autism Training, the information is appropriate for parents of students with other developmental disabilities. Join us!

Camp CAMP Summer camp is now open for registration. Summer Camp is a series of 6-day/5-night sessions for children and adults, aged 5 to 55 years, with mild to severe medical conditions or disabilities (including medical, physical, intellectual, and developmental). Siblings aged 5-13 years without a medical condition or disability may attend as well!

CAMP’s mission is to strengthen and inspire individuals with special needs

It's not too early to start planning for summer. Below is a link to the central texas camp guide, in English and Spanish.

I want to take the time to introduce you to our Special Education Department Leaders. This team works behind the scenes to make sure teachers, staff, students, and families have what they need to be successful.

We would love to hear from you! If you have a suggestion for a future newsletter, please click the button below to submit your suggestion.