SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENT ADVISORY COUNCIL
(SPEDPAC)
MEETING
MINUTES
Tuesday,
September 25, 2007
Officers Present: Nancy Bugbee, President
Sarah
Campbell, Vice President
Maryanne
Squeglia, Treasurer
Melissa
Sweeny, Secretary
Members
Present: See attached “Sign-in
Sheet”
Staff Present:
Cam Huston, GDRSD PPS Director
School
Committee: Berta Erickson
Meeting Location: High School Library, Groton, MA
President Nancy Bugbee called the
meeting to order at 7:08 PM.
I. Acceptance of minutes from June 5, 2007
meeting (see
attached)
The minutes
were reviewed. Maryanne Squeglia made a
motion to accept the minutes from the June 5, 2007 meeting, Melissa Sweeny
seconded the motion. The minutes were
unanimously approved.
This year
Superintendent Dr. Alan Genovese requested that the GD SpecPAC be present at
each of the schools’ open houses.
Presence at these events would allow parents to make contact, ask
questions and pick up handouts.
Nancy Bugbee
reported that the first-ever SpedPAC information table at the Middle School
Open House on September 17th and the accompanying speech by Sarah
Campbell were both very well received.
Feedback from attendees acknowledged happiness in seeing SpedPAC
featured. Maryanne Squeglia reported
that the first-ever SpedPAC information table was also well received at the
High School Open House on September 20th. The High School Principal, Shelley Cohen, mentioned the presence of
our information table in her opening remarks.
Nancy Bugbee reported that the SpedPAC Open House table at the first evening
(of two) at Florence Roche was also successful. SpedPAC will attend additional open houses at Florence Roche
(evening #2), Prescott, and Swallow Union on September 27th.
Maryanne Squeglia distributed copies of
the GDRSD SpedPAC portion of the PPS Survey Results from June of 2006. Nancy Bugbee reported that the results
indicated that parents want to get more information on ADD/ADHD and social
skills. Nancy Bugbee announced that a
copy of the PPS Survey Results presentation delivered to the School Committee on
June 20, 2007 by Joan Endicott and the GD SpedPAC is now available online at
the SpedPAC website (www.gdspedpac.org). Nancy Bugbee reported that the survey results
are broken down by individual schools.
The Middle School and Florence Roche were both identified as having
significant weaknesses. Nancy Bugbee also
reported that the survey results indicated “communication” and “meeting time
lines” as significant weaknesses across all the schools. Melissa Sweeny added the point that the
survey results are over a year old and many of the issues have begun to be
addressed already. The SpedPAC will be
following up with the principals at each school to check on the status of
identified problem areas.
Lisa McLauglin, SpedPAC member and
publisher of our newsletter, was unable to attend tonight’s meeting. Nancy Bugbee shared that the GDRSD SpedPAC
newsletter is distributed 3 times a year: fall, winter and spring. The deadline for admission to the fall
newsletter is this Friday, September 28th. The newsletter will be ready for distribution on October 5th. Elementary school students will bring it home
in their take home folders/backpacks; Middle School Students will take it home
in their take home folders; it will be mailed to Sped parents at the High
School. The newsletter will also be
available on the GD SpedPAC website (www.gdspedpac.org).
Nancy Bugbee reported that there will
be a mini grant cycle this fall from the Groton Ed. Foundation. The deadline is November 1st. Sarah Campbell has agreed to write the grant
request for the GD SpedPAC requesting funds to purchase additional books to add
to the Education Resource Library started last year. This library was started as an outreach program from the SpedPAC
to the teaching staff. Book choices are
therefore “teacher-oriented.” Nancy
Bugbee reported that she will be in touch with school principals next week to
solicit input from their teaching staff on book suggestions.
Cyndy Premru, SpedPAC member, asked
about the possibility of donating “gently used books” from her personal
library. Nancy Bugbee shared that the
books for the Education Resource Library are not typically “parent” books. Sarah Campbell suggested contacting local
disability-specific groups to see if they are interested in parent’s gently-used
books. Nancy Bugbee added that the
Groton Public Library typically only accepts new books on specialized
topics. MassPAC resource materials sent
to the GD SpedPAC (we are members thanks to PPS Director paying membership
dues) are usually donated to the Groton Public Library. The Children’s Room at the GPL currently has
a large resource of SpedPAC donated resources.
Maryanne Squeglia, Treasurer, reported that there is $ 1,706.83
in the GDRSD SpedPAC checking account. She
reports that there are no bills due and no need for fundraising this year.
Maryanne is in the process of filing our status as a
non-profit group. This would incur a
cost to SpedPAC, specifically a fee for an account’s services and filing/form
fees. Maryanne noted that each year,
from now on, SpedPAC would incur costs for tax filings and form amendment fees
(i.e. whenever there is a change in officers). Officers of the SpedPAC will be asked annually to sign a “Conflict
of Interest” clause. All officers
present at this evening’s meeting signed this year’s form.
Maryanne reports that taxes are due November 1, 2007 and the
Annual Report is due November 15, 2007.
She also reported that each year SpedPAC would incur a cost
for maintaining the current website (provider fee, which is usually around
$200-$300).
Maryanne Squeglia introduced a proposal to the GD SpedPAC to donate $100
each to Prescott, Swallow Union, Florence Roche and the Middle School for the
specific purpose of purchasing “inclusion resources for outside play at
recess.” Specifically, this includes
items such as chalk, jump ropes and balls for use in parallel play. Maryanne Squeglia made a motion to donate
$100.00 each to Prescott, Swallow Union, Florence Roche and the Middle School for
the specific purpose of purchasing “inclusion resources for outside play at
recess.” Cyndy Premru seconded the
motion. The proposal was unanimously
approved. The
SpedPAC will request the schools to report back to us what they purchased. Nancy Bugbee stated that she will contact
Russ Hoyt to confirm Boutwell’s need for inclusion resources for recess, and
subsequently, an additional $100 donation would be presented to that school as
well.
VII.
2007-2008 Lecture Series (see attached)
The
scheduled-to-date list of lectures was distributed at tonight’s meeting. Nancy Bugbee noted that the lecture list is
not complete and recommended checking the GD SpedPAC website (www.gdspedpac.org) throughout the year for an updated listing. Notices will also be sent home and sent by
email to the SpedPAC mailing list.
Nancy Bugbee shared that the GD SpedPAC chose to focus on lectures for
Middle and High School students/parents this year. Previous years have focused on younger age groups. Maryanne Squeglia reported that the High
School Principal, Shelley Cohen, would like to work with the GD SpedPAC to
sponsor an open house for colleges that specialize in offering academic support
and Sped services. Shelley Cohen has
also made it known that she could share her expertise in “visible thinking”
with the GDRSD community.
For definition/description of “visible thinking” visit the
following website: http://www.pz.harvard.edu/vt/VisibleThinking_html_files/VisibleThinking1.html
Nancy
Bugbee shared the GD SpedPAC goals for this year:
§
Continue to build
relationships and collaboration with District administration personnel (i.e.
new and existing principals, Cam Huston, Dr. Genovese)
§
Discussion with Dir. of
Curriculum regarding District reading programs (K-8 and High School)
§
Additional lectures to
be added to the SpedPAC Lecture Series
Nancy
Bugbee reported that the SpedPAC Officers will continue to meet every 1-2
months with District Administration to discuss open issues and concerns. She also shared that Ruthann Goguen, new Principal
at Florence Roche, has offered to jointly host with the SpedPAC a Parent
Roundtable to answer questions and hear concerns. This has already been scheduled for October 4th.
Additional Items/issues/Concerns Raised:
A
SpedPAC parent, raised the question of the DOE Audit – How is GD SpedPAC
involved, what exactly does it involve, and what was Dr. Genovese discussing in
the newspaper?
The
SpedPAC was not able to provide much information at the meeting, but Nancy
Bugbee was able to provide the following for the distribution of these meeting
minutes:
The School District will be undergoing an EQA –
Educational Quality Accountability audit during the first
week in December (4 days worth). (The Office of EQA falls under the
DOE. To get more detailed info, go to www.eqa.mass.edu).
It is a comprehensive audit, encompassing all areas of the
District administration and education: Finance, Curriculum, Principal
leadership, Sped, Facilities, etc. Dr. Genovese stated that
the Administrative Council (principals included), has been working on preparing
for this. Although it is not costing the District anything “monetarily” (except
for the postage in sending off all of the documents that are collected by the
District and shipped off to the DOE). It is taking up a lot of the
District Administrators’ professional time, taking them away from
many other important things on their ‘to do’ lists.
The EQA Audit of GDRSD is a result of a Dunstable
Selectman’s inquiry, requesting a member of the EQA (who is no longer a member)
to look at GDRSD. It was NOT
a town/Selectman-wide decision.
The following is an
excerpt from the www.eqa.mass.edu
website:
EQA Examination Process
We call our process an ‘examination’ because we closely review six essential components of educational management to determine the quality of our schools and school systems. Our determinations of a district’s success at improving student performance are based on the standards of effective management and efficient financial control. These are the six accountability standards:
· Leadership;
· Curriculum and Instruction;
· Assessment and Evaluation systems;
· Student Academic Support Systems;
· Human Resource management and professional development; and
· Financial systems and efficient asset management.
Our state standards for student achievement are some of the highest and most visionary in the nation. As you know, the Commonwealth uses the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test (MCAS), to measure student progress in the critical areas of English language arts, mathematics, and science and technology. Using the results of the MCAS, the EQA has developed standards for the school systems that serve our children. We are data driven, and standards based.
We invite you to enter our website and explore the people, processes, standards, and products we have developed that have resulted in one of the most respected educational accountability agencies in the United States. Whether you are an educator, parent, business person, or citizen, we hope you will find our work and reports to be of interest. If you have any questions about educational quality and accountability for school districts, please contact us.
The
business portion of the meeting concluded at 7:45 pm. Nancy Bugbee then introduced Cam Huston, new Director of Pupil
Personnel Services (Director of Special Education). She introduced herself to the group and fielded questions and
concerns.
Cam
Huston shared that she:
§
Plans to spend more
time in the schools
§
Will be going to visit
outplacements
§
Is happy to see PAC
interest in reading programs – she is aware of the latest research and how it
can be implemented in the classroom – she is interested in learning how reading
is taught in our District
§
Has a desire to work
with parents
§
Goal for spring 2008:
transition meetings will take place in the spring so the kids can ‘hit the
ground running’
§
Teachers must
read student’s IEP prior to school starting
§
High School Freshman
Liaison/Principal must be made aware that first few days/weeks of school need
to be more flexible for the kids on IEPs
§
Parents in attendance
raised the following concerns:
§
Large number of parents
attended the meeting tonight with children at the High School in ‘Life Skills’
and with reading disabilities (dyslexia)
§
Many of the parents in
attendance shared that they have unsigned IEPs, IEPs not acted on, and no
meetings as of yet
§
Huge disconnect in the
transition from Middle School to High School this year – Parents request/state
that:
§
High School guidance is
overloaded
§
Issue that in the
summer everything comes to a halt – the District does nothing to ‘keep the ball
rolling’ – September becomes a ‘crash and burn’ for some kids
§
Paraprofessionals &
‘specials’ teachers need to be made of aware of kids on IEPs and not be so
inflexible at the beginning of the school year
§
There is a wave of kids
with autism spectrum disorders coming from elementary school into the Middle
School and High School. There needs to
be more staff training and support provided for adolescents on the spectrum.