PArticipants will become familiar with the START initiative. Individuals will learn about the four components of START and how these four compnents impact outcomes for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Registration reserved for all Community Transition Council of St. Joseph County Committee members.

This workshop will help you towards certification or recertification requirements for CPI. The vision is for all staff and locals (in the future) to be using the same vocabulary, techniques and philosophy when working with students at critical times.

Learn about best practices for use when instructing students with ASD. This informative workshop will explore the revision of IDEA ´97 and explain the 7 principles of how to "Appropriately Support" a student with ASD in the classroom. This collaborative team approach stresses the importance of visual strategies, functional communication, peer to peer support programming and how to creatively make appropriate modifications and accommodations for supporting students in the inclusive setting.

Participants will take a closer look at the 7 principles of how to appropriately support a student with ASD across environments. Individuals will have hands on opportunities to develop accommodations and modifications, visual strategies and functional communication systems. Teams will also develop plans to utilize paraprofessional support and ancillary staff to increase socialization opportunities and create independence for the student with ASD.

Upon completion of the course, students (First Responders, Teachers, and Teachers Assistants) will have knowledge regarding adult, child, and infant CPR, and use of the AED for adult and child victims

Upon completion of the course, students (First Responders, Teachers, and Teachers Assistants) will have knowledge regarding first aid basics (hand washing, use of personal protective equipment); as well as how to respond to medical, injury, and environmental emergencies according to the American Heart Association guidelines. Registration is pre-assigned for this training.

This module will provide teams with the opportunity to get answers to any unanswered questions, as well as crate a team plan to assist them with maintaining implementation of the strategies that have been learned additional resources will also be provided at this time for continued support to teams.

Meeting Mechanics is a team based problem solving process that allows educational teams to effectively and efficiently develop and implement behavioral supports for students. Participants will obtain skills that can be universally adapted to many problems and readily applied to caseload teams. Teams will also learn the basics of the Boardmaker Plus software for creating effective visual supports and functional communication systems for students with ASD. Participants will take a close look at the possibilities for using the Boardmaker program. Teams will create visuals for their target student based on individual student needs. Teams will be provided with a CD containing numerous visual supports and strategies created in Boardmaker.

The theme for this year’s conference is “Re-Imagining Transition”. It is a theme of re-thinking the way we deliver and manage transition within the public school system in Michigan. Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in sessions where presenters will share ideas to improve student achievement and develop a culture of achievement and develop a culture of achievement within their school districts. The target audience for the conference is those person interested in assisting students who receive special education services, to transition from school setting to their post-school vision. The conference will run for two and one half days. During that time there will be 50+ presenters speaking on various topics. These topics will include updates from the Department of Education on current happenings and trends, best practices from various school districts, updates from agency partners, post-school opportunities for students, and others. It will also feature a welcome reception with educational displays, two keynote presentations, and an exhibit hall featuring displays by community partners.

Learn how a structured peer to peer support program can benefit students with ASD as well as other disabilities. Hear how these programs have successfully taken shape in various settings and with different age groups, positively affecting not just the child with the disability, but also the typical peers who provide the friendship and support. Learn how you can start a peer to peer support program in your building and begin changing not only the lives of a few individuals, but an entire school culture.

This module will focus on providing behavioral support for students with ASD in the general and special education settings, with the goal of optimizing the amount of time a student can effectively participate in the general education setting. This module emphasizes a team based approach to providing support for students with ASD. Topics covered include a brief overview of ASD, using the ABC paradigm, meeting mechanics, effective behavior strategies and data collection.

The Quill PD will include three separate sessions: Session I (half day) – pre-workshop for Administration (a.m.) and Ancillary Staff (p.m.); Session II – teacher’s workshop (SBCEUs will be offered for this session.); Session III (half day) will be a review session for the teachers. The following information will be shared: Introduction to the application of the Grade Level Content Expectations (GLCE)and/or High School Content Expectations (HSCE) to special education teaching practices; instruction in writing GLCE-based and/or HSCE-based IEP Goals and Objectives; instruction in rubric design and assessment practices and instruction in GLCE-based and/or HSCE-based lesson plan creation. Materials will be provided for each session including Administrator’s or Ancillary Staff Manual(s), Teacher’s manuals, Card Sets and Card Sets Box. The Review session will include a refresher of Events One and Two and website training.

Participants in this course will gain valuable insight to the following topics: The ISD Plan, Medicaid Billing, Using Easy IEP, Preparing your IEP, MEAP/Mi-Access, Transition.

Jay Raycraft will be kicking the new year off by presenting updates and changes in Special Education. Registration for this workshop is restricted to St. Joseph County ISD employees only. All special education professional staff are required to attend this workshop.