Special Education

Focus Group

October 12, 2006 Meeting Notes

Representatives in attendance:

Sean Shaughnessy, Middle School Resource

Bethany Verner, High School Resource and Community Transitions

Deborah Monroe, Psychologist

Diane Delahunty, OT/PTs & VI

Jennifer Woods, EC-Preschool

Leslie Knudsen, EBD

Lucille Nollette, Assistant Director

Gordon Grissom, Secondary Admin

David Frick, Elementary Paraeducator

Sue Thomas, Meeting Facilitator – Agent

Representatives unable to attend:

Marci Anderson, Elementary Resource

Karen-Margrethe Bruun, SLP & DHH

Heidi Belmondo, Lifeskills

Teresa VanHaalen, Elementary Admin

Peter Chorney, Lifeskills

Topic:  Classified Positions

Summary: 

• Pete is gone – Position is open
• Fill or leave open?

Next Steps:

• Yes.  Fill position

Topic:  Certificated Time

Summary:

• Recommend Carl Cozier

Next steps:

• Filled.  Done

Topic:  Request Above Baseline

Summary:

• Earliest ever happened

Next steps:

• Pending

Topic:  Resource Allocation

Summary:

• Geneva over-staffed
• Northern Heights .7 over
• Larrabee understaffed
• Lowell – overstaffed
• Carl Cozier – understaffed
• Squalicum – understaffed

Next steps:

• Recommend changes
• Maybe wait until December as referrals are still in process
• Sue will look at numbers
• Look at restructuring IA time

Topic:  District Programs

Summary:

• Lifeskills very high numbers & labor intensive (lots of staffing)

Next steps:

• Need training for flow chart (change of placement)
• When to contact Sue/Lucille?
• How long to document interventions?
• When/how to introduce placement change option to parents?

Topic:  EBD

Summary:

• Are kids exiting?
• No

Next steps: 

• Need to change past trends and help staff
• Maybe keep kids in same school as EBD program, instead of moving back to neighborhood school

Topic:  Lifeskills

Summary:

• Possibility of splitting program (BHS) into separate sections
• Results in loss of IA time
• At BHS – all IT time = 2.2 FTE certificated

Priority Task List

Summary:

• Update and decide where to go this year

Next steps: 

• Sue redistributes priority task list