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SEPAC FORUM

S P E C I A L E D U C A T I O N Q & A W E D N E S D A Y , A U G U S T 2 6 T H

5 : 0 0 P . M . – 6 : 1 5 P . M .

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Agenda

Introductions Regulate/Relate/Reason District Updates and Special Education Priorities DESE Guidance - Special Education and Health &

Safety Special Education within the Different Learning

Models Parent Q & A/ Opportunity for Feedback

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Introductions

SEPAC Chair, Inae Hwang Director of Special Education, Alison Elmer Assistant Superintendent, Roderick MacNeal, Ed.D Special Education Coordinators Team Chairpersons Building Principals School Staff

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District Updates

August 10th the School Committee voted to reopen school in a Hybrid Model.

The District submitted its final plans to DESE on Friday, August 14th.

Students who are prioritized for in-person services: Notifications were sent to families of “moderate” & “high” needs (as indicated by the DOE38 code on the PL3 page of the IEP) students sent last week.

Students who will be Fully Remote by Family Preference:Parents completed the Family Survey and we are reviewing the information.

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Special Education Priorities

Maintain the health and safety of Arlington students and staff

Meet the needs of students and implement IEP services

Flexibility in scheduling and IEP service delivery

Family Engagement

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DESE Guidance

Students must receive services documented in their IEPs through in-person instruction, remote instruction, or a combination of both, with a strong emphasis onproviding in-person instruction to the greatest extent possible, while abiding by the current necessary healthand safety requirements.

Prioritize in-person instruction for preschool-aged students, and students with significant and complexneeds for whom remote instruction is a challenge

Special education services may need to be delivereddifferently during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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DESE: Health & Safety

The health and safety requirements for school reopening use a combination of strategies that, taken

together, will substantially reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 in schools. This

combination approach includes masks/face coverings, social distancing, hygiene, and staying home when

sick.

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Special Education in the Different Learning Models

Within every learning model... Students will receive the services in their IEP IEP service delivery may look different depending

which learning model your child is in. Staff will engage with families about how students

did with remote learning in the Spring. Parents will be notified in writing about how IEP

service delivery will be different.

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Special Education in the Hybrid Model

Students may receive special education services both during their in-person time, as well as during the times they are remote.

IEP Services will be delivered both in-person and remotely.

Student groupings, scheduling, and service delivery will be impacted by necessity to maintain health and safety requirements (i.e. physical distancing, cleaning between groups, limit staff travel across classrooms and buildings).

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Special Education during In-Person

The District is prioritizing in-person instruction for preschool-aged students and students with significant and complex needs

Students within this group will have the opportunity to either be in school “fully” Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday with remote on Wednesdays OR at an increased level depending on need & feasibility

Even if a student has been prioritized for in-person services, families may select the fully remote or hybrid learning models.

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Special Education and the Remote Cohort

Question: Will special ed services be offered for students in the fully remote cohort? Who is teaching students who have selected remote? Answer: Yes, regardless of what learning model students are

in (in- person, hybrid, or remote) students will receive their IEP services.

IEP services will be provided virtually for students who are fully remote.

The District is still determining staffing for the fully remote group.

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Homeschooling and Special Education

Question: If we end up pursuing homeschooling, is my child still entitled to SPED services, and can they be provided online? Answer: Yes, we will collaborate with families who opt to

homeschool their children to coordinate providing related services.

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Preschool Updates

In our efforts to prioritize in-person learning forpreschool students with disabilities, all preschool students (with the exception of the half-day program) will attend school in person five days a week, with anearly release on Wednesdays (to match the elementary schedule) in accordance with their IEP programming.

Parents are offered the opportunity to have their childparticipate in a fully remote learning experience. If a general education student is enrolled in either a fully remote or in-person model, families can change whichmodel that the child is participating in at the end of thegrading period in January.

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OOD Updates

Many out of district (OOD) schools have communicated their proposed plans for re-opening to the district.

School plans include in-person, hybrid, and remote options for students.

Our Out of District Coordinator and Team Chairperson are coordinating transportation with our Transportation Director

Chris Carlson & Bryan Magliocca will be in touch with families to confirm plans for the Fall.

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Questions and Feedback

SEPAC Chair, Inae Hwang, will facilitate from previously submitted questions

Chat box questions will be saved and we hope to address these in the upcoming weeks. Stay tuned for further communication!

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Next steps

If you have not responded to the survey yet. You have until Thursday night at 11:59 p.m. to EMAIL YOUR

BUILDING PRINCIPAL if you are selecting REMOTE BY CHOICE. If you do not respond you will be

assigned the HYBRID model by default.

For AHS please email Lynne Bennett (lbennett@arlington.k12.ma.us)

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