Interim Executive Director for Special Education

In a comment on the Tuesday Open Thread, pseudonymous commentor "Sick and Tired" wrote:


Anonymous said...
They are hiring an interim ex. director, again. BiHoa Caldwell-- no offense to her but really!!!

Sick and Tired



If this is correct, then there are two matters for discussion:

1) An interim as opposed to a long-term hire.

2) The choice of BiHoa Caldwell, who was principal at Aki Kurose for years and most recently at TOPS.

I think we also need to think a bit about the job. What exactly do we expect from the Executive Director of Special Education. What authority does this person have and is that authority commensurate with the job responsibility? What change can this person effect? Does this position have any authority to direct principals or teachers? Assuming the new Executive Director for Special Education had a clear and compelling vision for inclusive classrooms, how could they work to realize that vision in Seattle?

I think some people would like the Executive Director for Special Education to appear like an avenging angel and smite principals and teachers who discriminate against students with disabilities, neglect - if not aggressively violate - IEPs, and fail to offer any real academic instruction to Special Education students - the vast majority of whom have no cognitive disability. Is that within the authority of the job? Can we get an avenging angel? Is that really what we want?

If the Executive Director of Special Education does not wield a firey sword, then this change will have to come through years and years of slow, incremental wheedling and coaxing of principals and teachers and we will have to suffer through years and years of no apparent change. Is that really what we want?

Comments

SeattleSped said…
An interim because we HAVE no leadership in SpEd; the last interim just left.

An interim because Banda needs more than 3 weeks to accomplish what the last two supts couldn't or wouldn't - formulate a vision for SpEd and find a quality administrator to implement it.

And Charlie don't oversimplify what we want. Is it too much to ask to insist that principals follow the law, not divert SpEd funding, and not subvert the recommendations of the IEP team? It shouldn't take a carrot or a sword. Just do your job, people, and do it well. As for an avenging angel, I prefer a thoughtful, sincere superintendent who places the needs of students first.
Anonymous said…
We need an intelligent, SPED law informed Executive Director willing to use the sword called the IEP. The principals are charged with ensuring ALL students in their buildings receive the best education possible. Their Executive Ed Directors (bosses) should hold principals feet to the fire or face the consequences themselves, especially when they ignore or cover up violations of students IEP rights. Maybe some kind of DOJ group needs to come in and supervise this districts issues with special education much like the DOJ is currently doing with (to) the SPD. It's that serious!!!!

SPED Staffer
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Jet City mom said…
Do they still have the SPED liaisons?
My experience was that the IEPs were written before the meeting, the parent was just expected to sign off on it and it was vague with goals being set very low. I was able to have a district liaison attend the IEP meeting a few times which made a big difference in how much I was allowed to participate.

I would like to see the exec director of SPED require training in what an IEP/504 means for all district employees in the schools. It is unrealistic to expect the principals to educate staff.
I expect our graduation rates would improve.
Anonymous said…
My experience has been that the sped staff trains the principals... Not ideal. Principals absolutely need training from the executive sped director, and a handbook to refer to.

Sped staffer
Maureen said…
Here's the job description.

The closest I can find to "avenging angel" is under #2: Supervises, assigns, evaluates and disciplines department staff
Jet City mom said…
I also wanted to add that I don't think it is necessary to have an IEP to address different learning styles or physical disabilities. An experienced teacher may have learned how to make accomodations for students who can benefit from it.

My oldest has learning differences, but attended private schools that made accomodations without writing them up as a "plan". The disadvantage to that though is, you can't get accomodations in a new environment without documentation.

Teachers should be encouraged to document what they are doing, even if they make those accomodations for the whole class( like extended test time), so that when the student moves on, their teacher isn't starting from scratch to see what they need.

I heard from Michelle corker curry that people came to Seattle because of its strong special Ed program. A strong director could make that into the truth!
Jan said…
To me, the IEP is a threshhold -- and the admonishment ought to be -- don't trip over it! It absolutely should NOT be the "reach for" or the "you are ok if you hit it" goal -- because IEPs are often weak. I could NEVER get enough speech therapy hours out of the school district when my SPED kid was small. It was sort of == well, this is what we have in the cupboard -- here, take it if you want it.And when he was older, a lot of the formulaic stuff (he will do X with Y percentage accuracy, or Z percent of the time) were simply irrelevant to a kid trying to get through AP World History and AP English.

I would like a sped director with the knowledge, commitment, and authority to go into schools and insist that teachers work authentically with these kids, that they don't discriminate (one teacher at one of my kids' schools had a rep with the SPED teachers of failing ALL of his SPED kids -- he just always found a way. Didn't matter if they were doing the work; didn't matter if they were doing well in all their other classes. They routinely failed in his. Trying to get him to change was futile (principal had lots more important stuff on his plate -- and the failing grades were always in the soft, squishy stuff (class participation, presentations, artistic quality of projects, etc.). So -- the SPED teacher went out of her way to make sure none of her kids ended up in his class. Which was probably his goal all along!

I want a SPED Czar with the ability to review inclusion/self-contained stuff at a programmatic and/or school level, and implement the best solutions (along with the aides necessary to make them work).

I want someone who has a place at the table when program placements are being made, so that SPED programs don't end up being pushed to the least desirable schools to an extent more than other programs.

I want a SPED director with an ombudsman, or assistant, or whatever, whose job it is to deal with families -- answer questions, follow up on complaints, arrange meetings, actually reach out and ask for feedback -- from both parents AND SPED teachers.

I think the SPED Director should have input and decisionmaking authority with respect to sped issues in program placement, APP/Spectrum decisions (for 2Es) and staffing (especially for the hiring of SPED teachers and aides). They should also be involved in the "alternative" programs -- how many SPED kids are in language immersion, in montessori, in TOPS. What is the attrition/failure rate, and why?

I think we need someone to come in and identify the 3 or 4 worst, most critical problems, and formulate a plan on how to meet them. And then accountability for principals and teachers needs to incorporate the degree to which they are implementing the plan.

More important -- I think we need someone who will create the time and space for Seattle staff to again create the nationally known programs (or their current day equivalents) that existed when Michelle Corker Curry was here. We have so much expertise (through the EEU, the UW, etc) in SPED learning. We just lack the vision to make it happen.
Jet City mom said…
I want someone who has a place at the table when program placements are being made, so that SPED programs don't end up being pushed to the least desirable schools to an extent more than other programs.

This.
Kids with special needs have transition issues at a much higher level than other students. They need to have access to neighborhood schools in a consistent fashion. Not be told their neighborhood school doesn't have a place for them and they must sit on a bus longer than other students in the district.
SeattleSped said…
Amen emeraldkity. Or told they must change schools FOUR TIMES from K through 8. No cohort for them, must not matter.
Anonymous said…
The IEPs presented at meetings are supposed to be drafts. I write the drafts before the meetings, and send home the draft copies for parents to review before the meeting. The parents have a chance to think about their questions and concerns, and can come to the meeting more prepared to contribute their ideas to the IEP. I take care to write the word draft on every page. There should never be a completed IEP presented at a meeting, but maybe some teachers do not remember to make it clear that what they have written is a draft.

--Sorrel
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Anonymous said…
You are forgetting Ms. Caldwell's primary job since her retirement: Executive Director of the Principals Association. Aki was not the bastion for IDEA compliance or inclusion during her time there. She has consistently backed Principals who think it is too challenging to serve students who have special education needs at the school closest to where they live, contrary to law. If this is true, it will be interesting to find out what island such students will be shipped to if Ms. Caldwell continues her pattern of supporting Principals in pushing "hard" kids out of schools.

IMHO
Anonymous said…
I am concerned that if this rumor is true, that SPS has hired a former principal who does not have a degree in special education nor has she taught special education. At the school where my son was at, the principal there had no experience with special education and clearly viewed special education with distaste. Unfortunately, her unfamiliarity with special education had serious consequences for my son. The job qualifications listed on the SPS site seem to prefer a candidate with a special education background. I fear that someone without any kind of special ed background will get no respect from the personnel currently in the system.
Anonymous said…
The most recent interim was doing some encouraging of principals to make sure they were following IDEA. My understanding was that principals pushed her out.

And lets not forget that a major decision maker is brockman.

Reader
Anonymous said…
Charlie, your question really is too simple. A special ed exec director can not be an "avenging angel." THere's no way a principal will "report" to sped director. The job really is one of managing influence, and one of leadership. A spedXD can influence a principal by 1) not allowing them to participate in student kick the can games, where students the principal decides not to educate get sent somewhere else. SpedXD definitely will have that authority. 2) by disallowing misappropriation of funding. The SpedXD can certainly shine a light on this practice. 3) Providing gen-ed seat funding commensurate with gen-ed seat usage. SpedXD should have this authority. 4) by being a leader who always keeps student needs in the forefront.

These things sound complicated, but they aren't.

Having a good vision of "inclusive" classrooms of course is paramount. Designing that model is key to the spedXD's job.

SPed Parent
Eileen said…
"I would like to see the exec director of SPED require training in what an IEP/504 means for all district employees in the schools. It is unrealistic to expect the principals to educate staff."

Yes, all SSD staff need this training. It should not come from principals who, in my 20+ years with the district as an itinerant staffer, have rarely (if ever) demonstrated sufficient understanding of IEPs, sped rules and regs., etc. Also, this should be yearly training since things do change.
Jan said…
SPed Parent: It would seem to me that principals SHOULD be accountable to the SPED director, at least with respect to theie SPED kids and programs. I am not arguing with your facts -- but I would like to see the system changed so that either principals or the Ed Directors are answerable to someone with respect to special ed issues. Right now, it seems to me there is no accountability. As parents, you hope to find someone in the system who cares and will work with you. If you don't, your only recourse is to threaten litigation -- and that is not a reasonable system.

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