What`s new at SST Region 8

What’s new at S S T Region 8
New Early Childhood
Professional Development
Plans are underway to offer new Early Childhood
Professional Development topics during the 2009-2010 school
year. To receive information about Preschool Professional
Development offered through SST, as well as ODE Approved
Professional Development sessions, e-mail Jennifer Huffman
at jenniferh2cybersummit.org. Your name will be added to
our Early Childhood PD listserv so you can receive notifications
by e-mail. Also visit our website at cybersummit.org and click
on Region 8 in the left-hand column for more information about
Professional Development offerings.
Check out summer camps,
youth activities on our website
A catalog of 25 different
camps and fun summer activities
for families of children with
disabilities is posted on our
website cybersummit.org. Click
on the Region 8 link in the lefthand column.
The catalog includes details
and contact information for a
number of summer camps, day
camps, summer school sessions
and activities. Information is also
included for year-round respite
weekend camp.
Learn about new IEP and ETR forms
A new IEP form will be required by the Office of Exceptional
Children (OEC) beginning in Fall 2009. IEPs written on the current
form this spring will not have to be revised next fall, but rather
will be phased in as IEP meetings are held during the 2009-2010
school year.
Attend one of these training sessions to learn more about the
new forms. • Tuesday, May 26, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Medina County
ESC
• Thursday, August 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Summit
County ESC
Update on Surrogate Parent
training set for September
Surrogate Parent Training Update will be held for those who
have already attended the full-day session and need to be updated
on the new laws for the 2009-2010 school year.
To register for one of these sessions call Maureen Cacioppo
at 330-929-6634, ext. 511219.
• Wednesday, September 9, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
at the Summit County ESC • Thursday, September 10, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
at the Summit County ESC
420 Washington Avenue, Suite 100
Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44221
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Visit our website: cybersummit.org and click on Region 8 in the left-hand column
May 2009
Serving Medina, Portage and Summit counties
Especially for Special Education Teachers, Literacy Coordinators, Early Learning Teachers and School Improvement Teams!
Pictured from left, SSTR8 consultants
Carol Peter and Marilyn Swartz
and Windham District Leadership Team
members Gregg Isler, Rhonda
Kates, Sherri Harrah, Carol Kropinak
and Joanne Brookover.
What is OIP?
A strategy to build capacity at all levels
in order to raise instruction district-wide
and increase academic performance for
all students.
What is Ohio’s process?
The state is implementing the OIP in
order to ensure a systematic and coherent
approach for building capacity at all
schools in meaningful and real ways on
a district-wide basis. Ohio is committed
to making and sustaining significant
improvement in student performance
against grade-level benchmarks aligned
with academic content standards for all
students across a district.
Beginning the OIP process
A look at Windham’s journey through Stage 1 and 2
After spending a year working on the OIP process, Windham Superintendent Carol Kropinak
says her tiny district of 780 students in Portage County has established “a common ground for
success.”
“There is a sense of urgency and a sense of pride,” Kropinak says. “Everyone has the same
realistic expectations.”
With the guidance of SSTR8 School Improvement Consultant Marilyn Swartz and Special
Education Compliance Consultant Carol Peter, a District Leadership Team met regularly to focus
on Stage 1 and 2. The 17-member team included administrators, teachers and even a Board of
Education member, Bill Hickman, who is also a Windham parent. All district staff were kept in
the loop with detailed minutes of each meeting.
The Ohio Improvement Process is a new leadership framework designed to ensure a
systematic approach for building capacity of all schools. “It’s been challenging, but enlightening,”
Kropinak explains.
High School Principal Gregg Isler says OIP is different than previous educational initiatives.
“We had to look at ourselves and focus on our district only. It was our data and data-driven.”
Elementary Principal Joanne Brookover says the diverse team learned a different way to
look at data using the district’s Decision Framework, which includes OAT, OGT and EMIS data
from ODE. “Digging deeper, we were able to see trends that are magnified by our small size.”
After identifying Windham’s critical needs, the team developed
three focus goals to work on next year. They include the
use of Marzano strategies and the development of
common grade level assessments to improve
district scores in reading and math. The third is
Achievement Awards ..............page 2
a climate goal focusing on improving daily
Teacher Awards ......................page 3
attendance. The district will move toward
What’s new .............................page 4
implementation in the fall.
What’s Inside:
Visit our website: cybersummit.org and click on Region 8 in the left-hand column
Students receive Outstanding Achievement Awards
Students from Medina, Portage and Summit county schools will be honored later this
month. The awards acknowledge the outstanding achievements of students with disabilities in
the region.
Students must be between five and 21 years old and enrolled in a school program.
Categories include academics, arts, athletics, community service, employment, extracurricular
activities and independent living skills.
Wrapping up our year
Spring has been very busy for the
State Support Team members. Our special
education consultants have already shared
information on the new IEP and ETR forms
with more than 300 educators and parents.
Our “Train the Trainer” models enable district
leadership to distribute this information to
their own personnel. Additional sessions
will be offered by SST Region 8 later this
month and in August. Dates are listed in this
newsletter and on our website.
In the area of school improvement, our
consultants have been actively involved
with many districts to facilitate the OIP
process. Goals, strategies and action steps
are being developed in preparation for the
implementation, monitoring and evaluation
phases, which begin in the fall.
Positive Behavior Intervention Support
(PBIS) may be a framework that addresses
the strategy or action step for buildings and
districts, specifically in the area of the CCIP
Climate and Conditions goal. To meet this
need, PBIS support for leadership teams will
be offered through BASA and the elementary
and secondary principals’ associations this
summer. District leadership teams will have
time to learn the fundamentals of PBIS
development and implementation during
these sessions. Ongoing follow-up for
leadership teams will be available through
SST consultants next school year.
If PBIS is a strategy that matches
with your district goals, look for summer
opportunities that will soon be announced
through ODE and the associations mentioned
above. Check www.pbis.org for more
information on this research-based PBIS
framework .
Karen Majeski, Ph.D.

Akron Public Schools
Darius Peoples, North High School
Christopher Duckworth, Kenmore
High School
Green Local Schools
Christi Chaffinch, Kleckner Elementary
Austin Hayes, Green Middle School
Jessica Whitmyer, Green Middle School
Barberton City Schools
Monte Blondheim, Johnson Elementary
Michiela Boltenhouse, Johnson Elementary
Teddy Kelly, U.L. Light Middle School
Eddie Talbot, Barberton High School
Hudson City Schools
Rachel Jenisek, Evamere Elementary
Jenna Warren, Evamere Elementary
Kelly Talley, East Woods Elementary
Allison Sweress, Hudson Middle School
Allan Burtt, Hudson Middle School
Chelsea Knudson, Hudson High School
Brunswick City Schools
Kory Burkett, Crestview Elementary
Katerina Demchuk, Crestview Elementary
Sammi Midea, Willetts Middle School
Patrick Valencic, Brunswick High School
Carley Ebert, Brunswick High School
Buckeye City Schools
Alec Ramey, Buckeye Junior High
Copley-Fairlawn City Schools
Caleb Roy, Arrowhead Primary
Aaron Demrovsky, Copley-Fairlawn
Middle School
Coventry Local Schools
Darrin Clites, Lakeview Elementary
Jacob Chamberlin, Lakeview Elementary
Rachel Rooks, Lakeview Elementary
Jesse Gunter, Coventry Junior High
Crestwood Local Schools
Timmy Perez, Crestwood Primary
Austin Miller, Crestwood Primary
Samantha Pritt, Crestwood Primary
Mackenzie Arnold, Crestwood Intermediate
Cuyahoga Falls City Schools
Susan Horvath, Cuyahoga Falls High School
Tiffany Young, Cuyahoga Falls High School
Miranda Smith, Cuyahoga Falls High School
Field Local Schools
Ashley Moore, Suffield Elementary
Connie Lewis, Field High School
News & Updates Serving Medina, Portage and Summit Counties
Manchester Local Schools
Taj Tipton, Nolley Elementary
Morgan Bock, Manchester Middle School
Sarah Dean, Manchester High School
Medina City Schools
Katy Tyna, Medina High School
Norton City Schools
Sonny Fox, Cornerstone Elementary
Cory Gibson, Norton High School
Jason Haupt, Norton High School
Revere Local Schools
Owen Shearer, Revere High School
Stow-Munroe Falls City Schools
Kevin Wolfe, Kimpton Middle School
Andrew Peters, Stow-Munroe Falls
High School
Grace Hanson, Stow Munroe Falls
High School
Wadsworth City Schools
Charles Geiser, Wadsworth High School
Woodridge Local Schools
Tynisha Kaisk, Woodridge Intermediate
Teachers, staff members recognized
at Annual Awards Recognition Luncheon
Parent Advisory Council news:
Valuable online resource
By Susan Foley and Amy Dell’Anno, Parent Consultants
Individuals and teams of teachers and staff members from school districts in
Medina, Portage and Summit counties will be recognized later this month at the
Annual Awards Recognition Luncheon.
The Outstanding Educator Awards honor those who have made outstanding
contributions toward standards-based instruction for all learners, building capacity in
a district or building, or toward improving a district or building’s accountability efforts.
Each nomination must include three letters of recommendation which support
the area of contribution noted on the application form.
The following individuals and teams were named Outstanding Educators:
Akron Public Schools
Liza Salchak, Audiology Assistant Aurora City Schools
Mary Beth Manfroni, Special Education teacher
Aurora Team:
Cynthia Allen, Health Instruction Assistant
Karen Carlson, Intervention Specialist
Julie Iafigliola, Speech and Language Pathologist
Jennifer Loudon, Intervention Specialist
Natalie Mandle, Occupational Therapist
Nikki McCreary, Health Instruction Assistant
Heather Watson, Health Instruction Assistant
During the March Parent Advisory
Council meeting, OCALI representatives
shared information on free resources available
online. Here are some links.
Wendy Szakacs, OCALI regional trainer
presented new information available on the
OCALI website. Up to 80 training modules for
parents and educators are available at www.
autisminternetmodules.org or on the OCALI
home page at www.ocali.org, click the link on
the right side. Register for a free account and
to access all the modules. New modules are
added every week and one of the recent modules
discusses the Picture Exchange Communication
System (PECS).
Jim Earnhart, OCALI regional trainer,
discussed various tech resources, including
www.bookshare.org. Persons with disabilities
can access to over 42,000 digital books and
periodicals. Bookshare membership is free to
students with qualifying print disabilities, but not
available to persons who can access printed text. Text-to-Speech
www.readplease.com – A free text-to-speech
reader for Microsoft Windows
www.naturalreaders.com – free text-to-speech
reader for Microsoft Windows
www.spokentext.net – online text-to mp3
converter
Brunswick City Schools
Judie Semosky, Medical Paraprofessional
Bridget Metzger, Sixth Grade Teacher
Maureen Bartinelli, Speech and Language Pathologist
Coventry Local Schools
Celeste Powell, Multiple Handicapped Teacher
Talking Books
www.librivox.org – audio (mp3) versions of
public domain literature
www.symbolworld.org – Symbol Supported
Reading
Crestwood Local Schools
Greg Thomas, Physical Therapist
Barbara Komoff, Intervention Specialist
Green Local Schools
Nancy Hickman, Intervention Specialist
Visual Organization
www.interactives.mped.org - Read, Write,
Think Webbing Tool online graphic organizer
www.region15.org/curriculum/graphicorg.html
- Thirty-nine different printable organizers
for specific writing assignments
www.bubbl.us – Brainstorming made simple
Southeast Local Schools
Southeast Team:
Len Suzelis, Vocal Music Teacher
Joni Stoll, Instrumental Music Teacher
Melanie Jackson, Instrumental Music Teacher
Holly Wickersham, Vocal Music Teacher
Woodridge Local Schools
Laura Randall, Teacher
Connie Woods, Paraprofessional
May 2009

Math and Science
www.nlvm.usu.edu – A collection of more than
100 online virtual manipulatives and math tools
for K-12, including tools for all areas of Ohio’s
Math Content Standards
www.webmath.com – Shows correct
calculations for math operations