A Resource Guide for Children and Adults With Developmental Disabilities Living in King County

January 22nd
 “Parent Resilience” by speaker James May from the Father’s Network. It is crucial that parents have the necessary supports and skills to maintain family stability, to be "resilient" -- to "bounce back, be flexible and keep going" even when life experiences seems overwhelming. This workshop examines key components for heightening the resiliency and capacity of all family members, and how providers can be key players in making this happen. Humor plays a major role in this presentation.

February 26th
Three-part meeting: Short presentations by a) June Evanson and Linda Dauer, LWSD special ed teachers on Extended School Year (ESY) and b) Paul Vine, LWSD Special Education Director on district WASL information. Main speaker: OSPI (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction) Special Ed Ombudsman, Kristin Hennessey. Kristin will talk about her role and how she helps families understand special education law, access trainings and mediation services and supports families. This is valuable information for all of us as well as a great opportunity to hear more about this wonderful, free service.

March 25th
Guardianship information presented by Annika Pollock from the Dussault Law firm. She did a super job speaking to our group at the March 2007 meeting about IDEA 2004 and we’re excited to have her come back guide us through this very important topic.

April 22nd
Person Centered Planning presented by Jodi Reimer from the Arc of King County. This is a process that helps families and those with disabilities identify their dreams, fears and talents. The end result is a book about the person with the disability and an action plan to help them accomplish their goals. This is a free service of the Arc.

May 27th  updated 03/30/08
Transition Planning for LWSD presented by Paul Vine, LWSD Director of Special Education, Richard Haines, LWSD Transition Academy and Vickie Fitzpatrick, LWSD Program Specialist. Help your child plan for a successful transition based on their strengths, preferences and interests. Learn more about the pathways that your child might follow, things you can do now to prepare, how you can incorporate transition planning into your child’s IEP and more. By law, transition planning must begin by age 16, but it can start any time and should be at the core of planning for junior and senior high students. Even if you have a younger child, you can still benefit from hearing this information as it can shape your elementary school plans and help you to think about your child’s future.

No June or Summer Meetings

For questions and/or to be added to the email list, contact Beth Angelo
Chairperson of the PTSA Special Needs Group 4bangelo3@verizon.net 

Childcare is not provided at these meetings.