A resource for PTA and parent involvement project ideas
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We started out wanting to start a SEPTA. Yet, as we pushed for inclusion for our special needs childrent, it did not make sense to then segregate ourselves from the mainstream PTA. The PTA objectives and purpose include all students, not just mainstream. Instead, we copied the work of Plano, TX PTA and started a SAGE (special and gifted education) committee in Frisco. Richardson has also begun a SAGE group in their district. We do not need to have our own fundraisers and we do not have to collect additional dues which keeps parents from having to choose between involvement in the school PTA or a SEPTA. I'm curious if there are any other groups like us who have formed inside the existing district PTA rather than creating a seperate PTA.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Larry Coleman on -
Heather,
We have started a system wide committee that is working towards the goal of having a rep on each local PTA. We did it within the structure of the current PTA. The already established PTA has been a great support in getting it going. We loosely based on ours on what Guilford County NC estblished.
I have added some of our talking points
Larry Coleman
Durham County NC
Durham Council of PTA
EC Rep - Attachments:
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Permalink Reply by Sheree Brown Kaplan on
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Heather and Larry,
I personally believe that separate SEPTAs are no longer appropriate models for parent involvement. Separate but equal was long ago rejected in the education of children and that should be reflected in the PTA as the national parent-led education organization. Segregating parents of students with disabilities from mainstream PTAs not only gives the wrong message, it harms the cause of inclusion for our children.
I'm in Fairfax County, VA, and our county council has a district-wide special education committee with local PTA reps in each school. This is no small feat. Our school system is the 12th largest in the nation and we have about 200 schools in the system.
The position of PTA Special Education Rep began locally with motivated parent volunteers in the 1980s, and the committee was formed in the past ten years to enable reps to communicate with each other, offer mutual support, share successes and increase effectiveness. Parents who would normally not be involved now participate in active ways for effective change that benefits student with disabilities, whether they are officially identified or still under the radar.
Fairfax County parents chose to use the existing PTA structure rather than creating separate SEPTAs because it frees us from fundraising and administrative duties to focus on issues that are of most importance to our kids and to better serve the needs of our parent population. (Last year the FCCPTA Special Education Committee helped lead our state's parent response to the proposed revision of the VA special education regulations.) One of my big pushes as the committee's chair is to improve the parent-school partnership in special education and to reduce the potential for conflicts that can lead to costly and unproductive disputes.
The PTA objective of serving every child can most effectively be done by different parents working together on particular interests. Our county council has truly embraced that and, as a result, well over 90% of our schools have PTAs. That is far better than the national average. I think for PTAs to have relevance for the future they will have to take the big tent approach and allow for more inclusive representation of their student AND parent populations.
My question is how do we encourage the National PTA to support this inclusive model of outreach to the parents of students with disabilities? This model would be much more widely implemented if it were approached as a matter of best practice not just by our county councils, but by the National PTA.
Sheree Brown Kaplan
Chair, Fairfax County Council of PTAs (FCCPTA) Special Education Committee
Class of 2008, Partners in Policymaking, Virginia Board for People with Disabilities
specialedchair@fccpta.org
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Permalink Reply by Heather Brown on -
Excellent question Sheree. I know that just getting our SAGE to have reps at the different campuses has been met with a variety of responses. Many campuses want it, but finding parents to serve has been difficult. On other campuses, SAGE is swept under the programs VP and our representative is not even an official member of the board.
It seems the best way to do it is to be as vocal as possible. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, so to speak. I know I was never more motivated to speak up than at the '08 TX PTA conference when a couple of state officers hinted at forming a TX SEPTA. I spoke up then and wrote letters to state, area and council.
This being only our second year in existence, it seems it is all I can do to keep the local communication going. Maybe it's worthwhile to take a short break from local to organize a "letter writing" campaign to the PTA to let them know that parents want an inclusive PTA that advocates for all of our children. If national is on board, it may increase acceptance at the state, area and local levels.
When parents ask me why we didn't form a seperate PTA, I go back to the mission statement and goals of the PTA. It does not say that the organization advocates for mainstream or "normal" students, but all. There is no need to create a PTA to advocate for students with disabilities because they are already included in the goals and objectives of the PTA. (It also does not say that we will only advocate for students whose parents are members of the PTA and not for those who aren't, but that's another soapbox).
Sheree, if you have a newsletter, I would like to be inlcuded on it. Please send information on what your organization is doing to friscosage@gmail.com. If you would like to be on our list, you can let me know via the same e-mail address.
Thanks for your input and information
Heather Brown
Frisco SAGE
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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Aley on
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I like this idea!!!! This is the first I have heard of a SAGE. I am Council president and would love to see this happen in my nine schools.
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Permalink Reply by Heather Brown on
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Elizabeth,
Sorry I haven't logged on in so long. If you need any information or would like to just chat about what we've done and plan to do, I'd love to hear from you. For a quicker response, use brownh@friscoisd.org or 972-977-9380.
One key in getting this to work is having a Council president who supports the idea. So far so good!
Heather
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