PFAST UPDATED Day/Time--Special Daytime workshop series for Parents K-12, Starts April 11

PFAST UPDATED Day/Time--Special Daytime workshop series offered to Parents K-12

This is a perfect time to help your student finish the school year on a high note! Gain key insights and tips to navigate our public schools to help your child succeed. Join us for a special 5-week daytime series (normally 6 weeks) of our popular PFAST (Parent & Family Advocacy and Support Training) for parents, guardians, and others who support our students in public schools (including charter) on five Wednesdays April 11, 18, & 25 and May 2 & 9 2018 from 10:00AM-12:00PM. 

 Hosted by Durham County Cooperative Extension, the workshops help ANY parent and others better navigate our public schools to help their children succeed from Kindergarten through 12^th grade. 

PFAST Flyer 

We also welcome community members and professionals who work with families and are interested in better understanding the school environment.  PFAST works well for PreK parents who are exploring their school options and want to get a jump on the transition.  The interactive workshops engage participants and are designed to target key areas of need for parents and students, including:

·         Engaging with schools—better communication, better conferences

·         Choosing a school for you—unpacking the mysteries of school choice

·         Understanding standards and testing

·         Maximizing the parent-school relationship

·         Navigating the EC—Exceptional Children’s program—IEPs and more

·         Supporting your gifted student and understanding AIG programming

·         Connecting to school data

·         And much more...

TO REGISTER

Online:  https://goo.gl/forms/34O9KFE3Xk0VCnFf2
Form:  Registration Form - Fax to 919-560-0530 or email drewalt@dconc.gov 

See the flyer and registration links above for more information.  Light snacks will be provided.  Please REGISTER by email, fax, or phone. Call Donna Rewalt at 919-560-0538 for more information.  Space is limited and we must have 10 or more participants for a series to start.

Please note this session is in English only.

PFAST NEW Day/Time--Special Daytime workshop series offered to Parents K-12

Gain key insights and tips to navigate our public schools to help your child succeed. Join us for a special 5-week daytime series (normally 6 weeks) of our popular PFAST (Parent & Family Advocacy and Support Training) for parents, guardians, and others who support our students in public schools (including charter) on five Wednesdays 29, April 11, 18, & 25 and May 2, 2018 from 10:00AM-12:00PM. 

 Hosted by Durham County Cooperative Extension, the workshops help ANY parent and others better navigate our public schools to help their children succeed from Kindergarten through 12^th grade. 

PFAST Flyer 

We also welcome community members and professionals who work with families and are interested in better understanding the school environment.  PFAST works well for PreK parents who are exploring their school options and want to get a jump on the transition.  The interactive workshops engage participants and are designed to target key areas of need for parents and students, including:

·         Engaging with schools—better communication, better conferences

·         Choosing a school for you—unpacking the mysteries of school choice

·         Understanding standards and testing

·         Maximizing the parent-school relationship

·         Navigating the EC—Exceptional Children’s program—IEPs and more

·         Supporting your gifted student and understanding AIG programming

·         Connecting to school data

·         And much more...

TO REGISTER

Online:  https://goo.gl/forms/34O9KFE3Xk0VCnFf2
Form:  Registration Form - Fax to 919-560-0530 or email drewalt@dconc.gov 

See the flyer and registration links above for more information.  Light snacks will be provided.  Please REGISTER by email, fax, or phone. Call Donna Rewalt at 919-560-0538 for more information.  Space is limited and we must have 10 or more participants for a series to start.

Please note this session is in English only.  LatinoPFAST / LPFAST in Spanish has a current session running.  Please contact Angelina Schiavone at 919-560-7978 for more information.  

Summer Camp Guide for Kids With Special Needs from UNC School for Social Work

AVAILABLE NOW!

Family Support Program

2018 Summer Camp Directory: A Free Resource Guide for Families with Children who have Special Needs

A resource for family members and service providers looking for day or residential summer camp experiences for children who have disabilities or special health care needs.

The directory is available online at the UNC website: http://fsp.unc.edu/summer-camp.

For information about additional services and resources in your community for families with children who have special needs, please call Access Family Support at 800.852.0042.

http://fsp.unc.edu/summer-camp 

Exceptional Children's Assistance Center has Free Webinars in February--Parent rights, Inclusion, Resolving Disputes and more

Here are some great Webinars from one of our favorite resources, North Carolina's Exceptional Children's Assistance Center (ECAC), for families who have children with special needs.  You can sign up for their newsletter and learn more at https://www.ecac-parentcenter.org/   See what's happening in February...

February Webinars

Please register by clicking on the assigned registration links under each webinar description. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. 

Remember to check out ECAC's Online Calendar for more events and details as they become available! 

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

Resolving Special Education Disputes

12:00 - 1:00 pm 

Leigh Mobley, Dispute Resolution Consultant with the Exceptional Children Division of NC Department of Public Instruction, will explain the various options that parents can consider when major disagreements happen during the special education process.

https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6026046487367597314

  

Thursday, February 8, 2018

Parents Rights in Special Education

7:00 - 8:30 pm

Students with disabilities are not the only ones who have legal rights when it comes to special education. Parents also have rights related to consent requirements, notifications, participation in decision making, and resolving disputes. Join us to learn more about what those rights are and why they are important.

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6405169091592740610

  Friday, February 9, 2018 

Inclusion: Everyone Belongs

12:00 - 1:00 pm 

This webinar will cover what Inclusion is and why it matters. Learn about who should be included, the Least Restrictive Environment, Universal Design, Differentiated Instruction and how inclusion relates to the IEP. 

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/976023665790806787

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Transition to Adulthood

7:00 - 8:15 pm

Be informed and prepare now to make a smooth Transition to Adulthood. 

• Learn more about effective practices and national trends that impact families and youth as they prepare to make the transition to adulthood 
• Plan and organize for your child's transition; 
• Effectively participate in developing appropriate IEP goals for your child; 
• Prepare for and set the stage for a meaningful life for your child, including supportive and customized employment;
• Learn about the resources available to you!

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2524153629619183617

Monday, February 19, 2018 

Inclusion: Everyone Belongs

7:00 - 8:00 pm

This webinar will cover what Inclusion is and why it matters. Learn about who should be included, the Least Restrictive Environment, Universal Design, Differentiated Instruction and how inclusion relates to the IEP.

https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/3017230718893270019

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Becoming Your Child's Best Advocate

12:00 - 1:00 pm

Join us and learn more about the steps to becoming your child's best and most effective advocate, including communicating with your child's school and IEP Team, and tips for handling any disagreements that may arise. 

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8223607392305730817

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Resolving Special Education Disputes

6:30 - 7:30 pm

Leigh Mobley, Dispute Resolution Consultant with the Exceptional Children Division of NC Department of Public Instruction, will explain the various options that parents can consider when major disagreements happen during the special education process.

https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/3739396553532279297

Thursday, February 22, 2018

Becoming Your Child's Best Advocate

7:00 - 8:00 pm

Join us and learn more about the steps to becoming your child's best and most effective advocate, including communicating with your child's school and IEP Team, and tips for handling any disagreements that may arise.

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7278598038953253377

Registration links for webinars can also be found on ECAC's Training and Event's calendar.  

https://www.ecac-parentcenter.org/training-and-events-calendar/

You can also register by sending an email to Margaret Campbell at mcampbell@ecacmail.org 

or by calling 1-800-962-6817, ext. 317. 

City-County Joint Community Conversations--Affordable Housing, Transportation and Health Care on Tuesday, January 30 at 7pm

Come out Tuesday night, January 30, at 7:00 to talk about Affordable Housing, Transportation, and Health Care in Durham. Your voice matters and our elected officials from both the city and county will be there to listen.  Next week, Education, including public schools, and Jobs will be talked about on Tuesday, February 6.  

Take advantage of this first time ever series that includes all 3 of Durham's elected bodies--County Commissioners, City Council, and School Board.

DPS Magnet School and CTE Pathway Lottery Deadline--Friday, February 2nd at 5:00PM

Durham Public Schools' (DPS) lottery period is drawing to a close--Friday, February 2nd at 5:00PM is the deadline.  After the recent weather and school closures, DPS added two days to the application period.  You cannot apply late and you must apply online.  Go to the DPS website or straight to the DPS application site to apply for magnet schools for elementary, middle, and high school as well as CTE (Career & Technical Education) high school options. You must have an email address to apply.

Application:
https://dpsncapplication.com/apply/

The application site also has detailed information about your school options. Click on About and scroll down on the right to Browse Programs.

If you are still looking for help in making a decision, feel free to give the Parent Advocacy Program at Durham County Cooperative Extension a call.  Contact Donna Rewalt, Outreach Coordinator at 919-560-0538 or drewalt@dconc.gov.  

Here's a few lottery reminders:

1) Remember, you are always eligible to go to your base school based on the address where you live.

2) If you are confused about your base school, any priority zones, or the year-round options you can apply for, enter your address on the DPS school locator tool, http://gisweb2.durhamnc.gov/durhammaps/DPS/viewer/index.html .  Contact student assignment at 919-560-2059 with any questions.

3) First choices are assigned first in the lottery, so the order of your choices matters.  If you are interested in a popular school option, you will want to keep that in mind.  You may pick up to three choices.

4) On March 1, results will be available.  You can log back into the application site and see the results.  If you are on a waitlist, the lottery dashboard will give you your number on the waitlist.

5) Due to the recent class size reduction legislation for grades K-3 that is affecting schools across NC, there will be fewer spaces available overall for Kindergarten in this year's lottery.

DPS Hosts Town Hall Meetings with the New Superintendent, Dr. Mubenga, this week--Monday and Tuesday 1/22 & 1/23

Durham Public Schools TOWN HALL MEETINGS WITH DR. MUBENGA

Superintendent Pascal Mubenga is hosting public town hall meetings to 
share his vision of academic excellence for DPS students, presenting his 
“Four Guiding Principles.” He will ask attendees to provide input on how 
these principles can be applied to improve DPS and will use it to help create 
a new strategic plan that will guide Durham Public Schools into the future.  

Please join Dr. Mubenga this week at 7:00 p.m:


Monday, January 22   Jordan High School
6806 Garrett Rd.
Durham, NC 27707

Tuesday, January 23   Northern High School
117 Tom Wilkinson Rd.
Durham, NC 27712

No RSVP is necessary.
https://www.dpsnc.net/site/default.aspx?PageType=3&DomainID=4&ModuleInstanceID=450&ViewID=6446EE88-D30C-497E-9316-3F8874B3E108&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=7837&PageID=1