Voyages

Keeping with our system's nautical theme, the St. Mary's County Public Schools (SMCPS) Department of Special Education hopes that this newsletter provides helpful information and tips to guide us all in our voyage!

Welcome to the new school year! In the Department of Special Education (DSE), we are happy to continue our work, supporting your children! Working with our community partners, we are excited about the many parent engagement events that will be offered. See below for our start of the year Special Education Community Night.

We look forward to the year, working with families, the community, and school teams to support our students. Thank you for your ongoing support!

This Fall, the DSE, Partners for Success (PFS), and Citizens Advisory's Committee for Special Education (CACSE) will be hosting a Special Education Community Night to kick off the 2023-2024 school year. Stop by to meet others, receive information, and connect with our special education community!

Please stay tuned for the finalized date for this event!

Please view the link below to access a flier that outlines family engagement events and activities to add to your calendar!

Ms. Ellis joined the DSE team in October of 2022 as Acting Director and was appointed Director in April of 2023. She holds a Master’s Degree from McDaniel College and a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Hartford. Prior to her current position, Mrs. Ellis was the Principal at Benjamin Banneker Elementary School and Piney Point Elementary School prior to that. She served as a building administrator in a middle school in Texas and her teaching experience includes a variety of content areas and age groups. She is looking forward to continuing her support for the SMCPS community.

We are delighted to introduce the Special Education Supervisors who support students, programs, and schools within SMCPS.

The IEP process can be tricky to navigate for parents at times and SMCPS has many people in place to support you in answering questions. When you are seeking support, please reach out to the following people:

At your Child's School

This is the place to start as the school staff has the most knowledge about your child.

1. Teacher - Your child's general education teacher and/or special education teacher have knowledge of your student, his/her goals, and progress in class.
2. IEP Chair - Each school has an IEP Chair that has a wealth of knowledge about special education.
3. Assistant Principal and/or Principal - The school principals have oversight of student instruction and support. They also know the staff and supervise all school-based decisions.
   

Central Office Support, DSE

When needed, the DSE team offers support to teams and families.

• Specialists - DSE has several specialists who can provide support in areas such as transition, assistive technology, and behaviors.
• Supervisor - Each school has a DSE supervisor assigned to support the department at your child's school.
• Director - The DSE director works with all teams to ensure appropriate supports are in place to serve our community.

Community Support Groups

We also have parent groups, Partners for Success and CACSE, that work closely with SMCPS to communicate and support our families. See more information in the sections below.

We are all here to help you!

Thank you to all of our parents who completed the MSDE Special Education Parent Survey!

The feedback is very helpful in our efforts for continued improvement. At this time, we have feedback from the 2022 survey; I look forward to updated data.

In 2022:

• 77% of our families reported that they were comfortable asking questions and expressing concerns to school staff.
• 77% of our families reported that they were given all pertinent reports and evaluations related to their child prior to the IEP meeting.
• 76% of our families reported that the written information they receive is in words they understand.

These were just three scores that provided information regarding our families' experiences with our special education teams. Thank you once again as this supports our efforts for continued improvement.

Partner for Success offers many services to our families, including individual family support, a learning library, and informational sessions.

Please click on the website link above for more information!

https://www.smcps.org/offices/special-education/partners-for-success

CACSE holds monthly peer-to-peer and CACSE Committee meetings. They collaborate with SMCPS and community groups to improve the education of all students with special needs. Learn more about CACSE by clicking on the link below.

http://smccacse.org/

Website: https://www.smcps.org/offices/special-education
Location: 23160 Moakley Street, Leonardtown, MD 20650, USA
Phone: 301-475-5511 32206
Twitter: @DSE_SMCPS