This issue is near and dear to my heart. I have been involved with Special Education services for 40+ years. My brother, David, has a disability and as a family we all take part in his life as he in ours. As a Board member I meet regularly with the Chair of the Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC), I attend SEAC meetings and meet frequently with members, parents, and organizations such as Northwest Center, W.I.S.E., King County DD Dept. person, and Margaret Thompson-Lee, and I spend time with our students!

We are not spending all the money that is earmarked for our students – many who qualify for Title I funding. During a recent legislative Board session, I noticed that the District left millions of Title I funding on the table – not acceptable. We must be vigilant of these funds. Additionally, during that same legislative Board session, we were told by Mr. Kennedy that portions of the Tilt I and IDEA funding were “green” – these dollars could be spend any way we saw fit. However, I suggested to my colleagues that we not be too quick to spend these dollars until we made sure our Special Ed student’s needs were met. We must hold the Superintendent accountable to make sure that the new director and executive director make the most efficient use of resources.

Special education funding coming into our district includes everything from APP programs to severely disabled populations. I truly believe unless you are a parent of a special needs child, you can never be fully educated to the challenges presented by each individual situation. Trying to understand the entire spectrum will be a long-term education for any board member. BUT, I believe after numerous conversations and some limited research on what works, we do have the advantage of being able to access BEST PRACTICES and if we realize we do not have to reinvent the wheel every time we have a problem or issue – then we can truly become an evolved district. Whatever works best for the student is WHAT we DO and as a board member I would be committed to making sure this practicum is funded.

I will be meeting with both Ms. Campbell (new Exec. Director) and Ms. Clifford (new Director) in our special education department the week of August 11th to gain further insight about their approaches and what they see as the most pressing challenges. I am fully aware this is a pressing issue for many families district wide, and have sought out various experts to educate my self on the challenges parents face. For me this process has only begun in May of 2009. But, it is apparent to me that we as a board must demand professional presentations from the Superintendent’s staff on how we can best serve these populations.

I am aware of some of the programs we have in our schools that are working really well. Bryce (one of my sons) had an incredible interactive experience in 4th and 5th grade that truly informed his career choice. He worked 3 days per week with disabled and emotionally challenged youth at Lowell, and I honestly believe his choice to go into public service is rooted in that experience. After several in depth conversations with special education teachers who are in the trenches, it is apparent to me that many in this community feel “set aside” or ignored. If we create more of the interactive program opportunities that my son had, this kind of a program could become a vocational strand in our high schools. THEN, we are solving problems on two levels, the most important of which is increasing understanding of these special children and involving community in the solutions for educating them.

With the uptick in autism, and numerous other levels of special needs, the good news is we will have additional monies from federal sources to help create a better “menu of services” for these children. AND, we must create policy that allows for mainstreaming children who are ready and serving others in the most supportive environment possible. I am hopeful that the Superintendent’s new appointees will lead us successfully in this arena.

I would need to see a more clarified definition of the special education student population. Does it encompass learning, behavioral, physical disabilities? I have had some exposure with special education issues through family and friends work and family experiences. Clearly, there are funding and staffing issues that need to be explored around this question.

It has been my lifelong process working with kids with Special Needs in my 32 years of experience in educating children and families of the Special Education system and the laws that govern it.

School Directors are asked to learn about all areas of governance and content in public education. This is a huge challenge for volunteers and I will admit that Special Education is not one of my areas of deep expertise. I read, attend conferences and workshops, visit classrooms and speak with parents. I am following the issues over inclusion, disproportional designation of some groups- especially African American boys, the proliferation of diagnosis and drug treatment for Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity issues. We have special challenges in Seattle because of the regionally unique medical services available here which seems to increase our proportion of medically fragile and autism spectrum students. Special needs students are our responsibility, legally and morally and we should keep these students in mind when contemplating all policy and oversight issues. I believe that offering special education services closer to home and balancing programs by Middle School Service Area (part of the new SAP) is a more reasonably and family friendly approach. I look to the Special Education PTSA for better understanding of parent concerns.