Parent Center Updates

Parent Center Years of Service Awards

Announcements & News

TA&D Center of the Month: National Center on Response to Intervention (RTI)

Get Ready for National Bullying Prevention Month!

Webinar with ODEP Assistant Secretary, Kathy Martinez

Supportive School Discipline Initiative

Let’s Move Names Dr. Judith Palfrey as Executive Director

Resources

Updated State Data on Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN)

Family Engagement in Child Protective Services (CPS) and Foster Care

CONNECT Launches FREE Web-Based Module on Dialogic Reading

“Lives Worth Living” to Air on PBS

IDEA Partnership Specialized Instructional Support Personnel (SISP) Collection

National Assessment of IDEA

Technology

Website Accessibility Resources

International Experiences with Technology in Education

Parent Center Updates

Parent Center Years of Service Awards

We are proud to honor the following Parent Training and Information Center and Community Parent Resource Center staff who have worked at a Parent Center for 15 or more years:

30+ Years

Margaret Burley, OCECD

Lee Ann Derugen, OCECD

Charlene Mayo, Parent Information Center of New Hampshire

25+ Years

Sue Folger, PACER Center

Sherry Mashburn, WA PAVE

Janice Meyer, Partners Resource Network

Michael Meyer, Partners Resource Network

Peggy Storrs, Raising Special Kids

20+ Years

Diana Autin, SPAN

Sharman Davis Barrett, PACER Center

Margaret Carr, Maine Parent Federation

Bonnie Dunham, Parent Information Center of New Hampshire

Mary Eaddy, PRO-Parents of South Carolina

JoAnn Kjelshus, Pathfinder

Joanne McKeown , SPAN

Brenda Morales, APNI

Diana Page, Pathfinder

Maria Rodriguez, SPAN

Debbie Snyder, WA PAVE

Nora Thompson, Matrix Parent Network and Resource Center

15+ Years

Teresa Beaudry, Families Together, Inc.

Jeanene Christie, Families Together, Inc.

Austin Hanson, Families Together, Inc.

Karen Harrison, Tennessee STEP

Cheryl Huckaba, OCECD

Mary Jacob, Louisiana Parent Training and Information Center

Lynnea Laing, Families Together, Inc.

Martha Lause, OCECD

Vanessa Lewis, WA PAVE

Colleen Miller, OCECD

Darla Nelson-Metzger, Families Together, Inc.

Jeanith Ryle, OCECD

Tami Schwindt, Families Together, Inc.

Karen Taycher, Nevada PEP

Jesús Villaseñor, PACER Center

Dao Xiong, PACER Center

Connie Zienkewicz, Families Together, Inc.

Announcements & News

TA&D Center of the Month: National Center on Response to Intervention (RTI)

The National Center on Response to Intervention (RTI) provides technical assistance to states and school districts to promote effective implementation of research-based RTI models. The Center’s website contains a wide variety of resources and tools that are useful not just to state and local education agencies, but to other professionals and families as well. For instance, they recently released Part 3 in a webinar series on RTI and Learning Disability Identification. The National Center on Response to Intervention is a joint project of American Institutes for Research, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Kansas and is directed by Stephanie Jackson. More>>>

Get Ready for National Bullying Prevention Month!

October is the sixth annual National Bullying Prevention Month sponsored by PACER Center’s National Bullying Prevention Center. Your organization can participate by becoming a partner in a variety of activities, such as hosting a Run, Walk, Roll awareness event, joining “Unity Day” and wearing orange on October 12^th, or participating in “Unity Dance Day” on October 26^th. More>>>

Webinar with ODEP Assistant Secretary, Kathy Martinez

The ILR School at Cornell University is hosting a free policy discussion webinar with Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy Kathy Martinez. In honor of October being National Disability Employment Awareness Month, Assistant Secretary Martinez will discuss the current state of employment for people with disabilities, current Administration programs and policies to promote employment of people with disabilities, and what organizations can do to further those efforts. The webinar will take place October 12 from 12-1 Eastern time, and pre-registration is requested. More>>>

Supportive School Discipline Initiative

In July, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and Attorney General Eric Holder announced a new collaboration to prevent policies that push youth out of school and into the justice system. The Supportive School Discipline Initiative will coordinate with community programs to reduce the rate of suspension and expulsion and increase positive discipline policies that improve school climate. More>>>

Let’s Move Names Dr. Judith Palfrey as Executive Director

Let’s Move!, a national childhood obesity campaign led by First Lady Michelle Obama, recently named Dr. Judith Palfrey as its executive director. Dr. Palfrey is a former president of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and has been involved in initiatives for children and youth with special health care needs. More>>>

Resources

Updated State Data on Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN)

The Catalyst Center has updated its State-at-a-Glance Chartbook on Coverage and Financing for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSCHN). The online publication includes demographic, economic, services, and coverage data, as well as information related to the Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s six core outcomes for CYSHCN. More>>>

Family Engagement in Child Protective Services (CPS) and Foster Care

The Fall Issue of the Virginia Child Protection Newsletter focuses on parent leadership and family engagement within the context of the child welfare system. Family support principles are described, and best practice resources and references are provided. More>>> 

CONNECT Launches FREE Web-Based Module on Dialogic Reading

A new CONNECT Module on dialogic reading is now available. In this module, users can learn about how to use dialogic reading practices to engage children and help them develop early language and literacy skills.  CONNECT: The Center to Mobilize Early Childhood Knowledge is a TA&D project funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). This module was partially funded by Doing What Works. More>>>

“Lives Worth Living” to Air on PBS

Lives Worth Living, a documentary about the history of the disability rights movement in the United States, will air on PBS beginning on October 27, 2011. The film includes interviews with influential activists and legislators. Check local listings for viewing times. More>>>

IDEA Partnership Specialized Instructional Support Personnel (SISP) Collection

The IDEA Partnership recently released a new collection of tools, PowerPoint workshop, dialogue guides, and glossary about the important role of Specialized Instructional Support Personnel (SISP). SISP play an important role as related service providers under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and in pupil services under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). More>>>

National Assessment of IDEA

The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, a program of the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, released a National Assessment of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in July 2011. The report describes the key purposes of the Act and describes implementation effectiveness in key areas, including service provision, response to intervention, coordinated early intervening services, and promoting parent participation and dispute resolution. More>>>

Technology

Website Accessibility Resources

WebAIM has developed a one page infographic that highlights a few important principles of accessible website designs. More>>>

WebAIM also has two checklists that are excellent resources for evaluating a website’s accessibility: Section 508 Checklist and WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) 2.0 Checklist.

International Experiences with Technology in Education

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology recently published a new report, International Experiences with Technology in Education. The study describes how 21 other countries have utilized information and communication technologies to improve student learning, teacher quality, and continuous improvement. Read the executive summary or full report. More>>>