OAPCS President and CEO RaShaun Holliman is holding a series of regional meetings in October across Ohio to meet with the charter school community.
More than 150 special education professionals, teachers, school directors, administrators and staff attended the OAPCS 2016 Special Education Summit: Strategies for Success on February 25 at the OCLC Conference Center in Dublin, Ohio.
Opening keynote speaker Paul O’Neill, Esq.,Co-founder of the National Center for Special Education, addressed the talent pipeline shortages in practitioners and professionals and urged the audience to think strategically about how to recruit and engage current students into the special education field.
The Summit also featured nine breakout sessions that covered topics such as instructional strategies for struggling readers, special education documentation and compliance, Ohio’s initiatives to promote mental and behavioral wellness and therapeutic responses in the classroom.
Dr. William DeMeo, a developmental psychologist and consultant based in Cincinnati, presented the closing keynote on managing SPED practitioner stress. Burnout is a common challenge for those in the helping professions, he noted in his presentation, which requires practitioners to be vigilant about self-care and active stress management routines to stay productive and healthy.
The Summit sponsors were the Ohio Council of Community Schools (OCCS), Summit Academy Schools and Partners for Success and Innovation (PSI).
Click here to view the speaker biographies and full descriptions of sessions presented.
Summit Sponsors
Paul O’Neill presented the opening keynote on National Best Practices for Servicing Students with Disabilities.
Dr. William J. DeMeo presented the closing keynote on Managing SPED Practitioner Stress.
Jill J. Jackson, M.Ed and Cricket Meehan, Ph.D. presented a session on Ohio’s Initiatives to Promote Mental and Behavioral Wellness.
Karen McKelvey, Ed.S. presented a session on the Importance of Suicide Prevention for Special Education Students.