2013-01-24 School Committee Minutes

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January 24, 2013 Elizabeth Bostic, parent and Out -of- District liaison for the SEPAC spoke on behalf of the Special Education Advocacy Network where she is First Vice President to share information on an upcoming school fair /workshop that SPAN will be holding on February 8". S shared that Ms. Elmer and Ms. Burd will be part of a panel discussion on social- emotional learning guidelines and how Reading is implementing them. Ms. Bostic thanked the Reading Public Schools for being a forerunner in the implementation of initiatives designed to support the needs of the special education students in the district. Reports I I. Student (out of order) Maham Ahmed shared that Dr. Ryan will be leading his annual trip to the Metropolitan Opera this weekend. Conner Traugot shared that the juniors will be presenting the Real World Problem Solving projects on Friday. He also shared that the RMHS Boys Track Team won the Middlesex League championship and the Boys swimming team has a big meet for the league championship. 2. Liaison 3. Superintendent B. New Business SEPAC Presentation (out of order) Michelle Grasso and Michele Sanphy, Co- Presidents of the Special Education Advisory Council (SEPAC) shared information on the SEPAC. They defined SEPAC and shared the goals and actions. The SEPAC will work with the Director of Student Services, Central Office Administrators, and the School Committee liaison to provide feedback from the community regarding special education and to facilitate and foster open communication between families and schools. In an effort to increase awareness they have contacted all the building principals and PTO leadership, shared the SEPAC contact information with families and reached out to out - of- district families. The SEPAC will be sending a survey out to families and will be using that feedback to plan for future programs. Mrs. Grasso & Mrs. Sanphy explained that the major goal of the SEPAC is to rewrite the by- laws. They have contacted the Town Clerk who will be working with them to develop the document. They both feel there is a collaborative spirit building between the SEPAC and the Reading Public Schools. Mrs. Janowski thanked Mrs. Grasso & Mrs. Sanphy for coming tonight.